We all have it rough these days with a global pandemic across the world forcing people to stay indoors. Couples are especially feeling it in various ways. For one, there isn’t much time to be away from one another, but also there is another growing issue: date night.
Date nights are special as they’re an opportunity to show appreciation and take a break from things. They’re something beyond ordering take-out or going to a nice place and having dinner. They’re bold and creative and can rekindle passion for one another. But there is only so much that a couple can do for date nights before they get repetitive and that magic starts to disappear. On top of the restrictions of possibly kids, a busy schedule, and this pandemic amongst other things, you’ve probably exhausted every idea that you can think of.
In light of that, I wanted to give you some date night ideas that you might not have tried. These are perfect to try at home making it optimal for during the pandemic, but also after it too. Beyond that, these can save you a tonne of money and encourages you to be more resourceful with what you have, something I’m sure this pandemic has encouraged us all to do.
1. Movie Night With A Twist
Debating over what to watch is especially tough these days, however there are some ways that you can make this more exciting. Some ideas are making the movies more thematic like watching lots of holiday movies around Christmas time or horror films around Halloween. Here’re some ideas for you: The Best Date Night Movies That Guys Will Enjoy Just As Much As Girls
Some other ideas are closing your eyes and watch whatever you land on or flipping a coin to decide what to watch.
2. Cooking Night
Whether one or both of you have some cooking skills, there are all kinds of dishes that the two of you can make. You can stick to making favourite dishes, or maybe you can tackle a larger recipe together.
There are a tonne of recipes online to try out, however you can also look into owning a cookbook yourself. For starters, try out recipes from The Well Plated Cookbook, a bestseller that provides fast and healthy recipes.
3. Learning Something New
Stemming from the previous idea, maybe one of you isn’t that good with cooking. This provides an opportunity for one of you to teach the other. This doesn’t apply to cooking. It can apply to any skill such as learning to speak Spanish or another language.
4. Game Night
Board games are another good at home date night ideas to try out. It’s also fairly inexpensive as well. One good game to play together as a couple is Odin’s Ravens. Inspired by norse mythology, it’s easy to get into and is inexpensive price wise.
5. Lounge Room Picnic
Picnics are usually designed to be outdoors, however there is something nice about having them indoors as well. Pandemic aside, having a picnic indoors is nice as it removes having the elements involved. Not to mention you don’t have to avoid the bugs while indoors. Naturally you’d want cheese for this picnic and I’d recommend picking up some nice gouda
6. Massages
This is another cheap and intimate experience as all you’ll need is a towel and some oil. Having your significant other give you a massage is far less awkward as well since you’re not paying a stranger to rub down your body. The Relax Therapeutic brand offers a tonne of different massage oils to pick from that are cheap and high quality.
7. Fondue Night
While we think of this as a group activity, it can be enjoyed as a couple. There is something so delightful about dipping items into chocolate and eating them. Fondue makers themselves are also pretty cheap to pick up as well. All you’ll need to bring after that is bread, cheese, chocolate and fruits.
8. Video Game Marathon
There are a plethora of video games these days that allow co-operative versions. Some games will make you compete against one another or the two of you work as a team. Nonetheless video games are a fun way to bond with another. There is bound to be a game out there that you and your partner will enjoy.
9. Cooking For Your Partner
For the busy couple, sometimes it’s nice to come back home – or finish a work session – and see that supper is already done. Another cookbook that is nice to pick up is the Cooking for Two cookbook. It has 650 recipes, making it one of the best cookbooks that you’ll ever need.
10. Take An Intro Yoga Or Fitness Class
For many folks during quarantine, they’ve probably gained a bit of weight and this is one way to ease back into exercise. With this pandemic going on, there has been a huge push for live training workouts but you can also find plenty of training regimens on YouTube.
My suggestion is to try out a regular workout routine first and maybe branch off into other forms of fitness be it high-intensity or yoga amongst others. Nevertheless, having a mat to workout on will be beneficial to you too.
11. Take Music Lessons Together
While this idea typically involves someone instructing the both of you, there is nothing wrong with one of you teaching the other. If you’ve been practicing an instrument – or even with signing – providing some lessons is a fun way to bond together.
The alternative is pulling up some Youtube videos that have tutorials that you can follow. Or if you want to improve your singing voice, you can try taking voice lessons via CD.
12. Rom-Coms Marathon
While these movies are cheesy and so predictable, there is something about them that is entertaining to watch. Put together a nice little playlist and to create a nice romantic atmosphere at home to set the mood. From there you can order food, open a bottle of wine and cuddle up. If you’re not the type to get drunk, I’d suggest a non alcoholic wine to try out that still fits the mood.
13. Wine Taste At Home
There is a plethora of wine available to pick out and each one can deliver an all new experience. Even if you’re not someone who drinks that often, this can be an opportunity to experience something different. Not to mention wine is a good way of mustering up more courage to talk to one another. On the other hand, you could also indulge in a new trend of non alcoholic beverages. Here is a good quality non-alcoholic wine that you can try out.
14. Have A Bake Off
Provided the kitchen is big enough, you can recreate a mock “Cupcake Wars” situation and try to impress one another with various baked goods. Even if by the end the bake off doesn’t make Pinterest-worthy posts, it’s still fun to do. Plus you have food you get to enjoy. You can pull some recipes from the internet, or you can get a cookbook that can go into finer detail on baking other incredible dishes.
15. Or A Paint-Off
Or instead of baking you can look at painting. You don’t need to have a large amount of art supplies using things like markers, crayons, watercolors, or even random pens that you’ve got lying around. In terms of competition, have each other draw the same still-life scene – this could be a fruit bowl or maybe a simple landscape.
You could even try drawing one another’s portraits. If you’re doing that, I’d suggest having something more sophisticated than pen and paper.
16. Tackle A DIY Project
Whether the two of you are in an apartment or a home there is always some kind of project that could be done. Doesn’t always have to be something as big as renovating a part of a home or painting, but tackling it as a team makes it far more tolerable.
17. Clean Out The Closets
Organizing closets can be a struggle as we all have a tendency to hoard things over time. With not much else happening lately, one good project to do together is to go through one another closets and start cleaning things out, setting aside stuff you don’t need anymore while keeping some other things. And for the future, you could look into a closet organizer to ensure it stays organized for longer.
18. Make a Bucket List For the Next 10 Years
One great at home date night idea I love is making a bucket list for the next 10 years. For couples that have been together for even a short period of time or longer, outlining each other’s goals and desires is key to deepening the relationship. If you’re serious about the relationship, sharing each other’s goals is fantastic and what better way to share it than to have a bucket list for the next decade? Just don’t forget to write them down and have a spot to remind you of them.
19. Work On a Garden
While many associate a garden with something outdoors, you can set up an indoor greenhouse of your own. The only thing is you’ll be more limited in what you’re able to grow indoors and you’ll need some extra equipment to get it all working.
Still, this is a fun activity for the two of you to do and can spark conversation since it is a mindless -yet relaxing – task. Here are some seeds to help you get started.
20. Play Some Drinking Games
While you won’t be able to really party like you used to, there are some pretty fun drinking games out there. Whether you want alcohol involved or not you can always play beer pong or flip cup on the kitchen table. Here’s a drinking game set that’s good to pick up.
If you’ve got kids – or want no alcohol involved – you can keep it tame by using fruit juice or water.
21. Play Some Classic Card Games
Another one of the great at home date night ideas to try out is playing some classic card games. Things like War, Rummy, Cribbage (provided you have a Cribbage board), Crazy 8, Old Maid, or Go Fish were fun as kids and still fun while you’re older. Of course you’ll need to pick up a deck of cards which are cheap to pick up and provide hours of entertainment.
22. Read Books Together
Whether it’s one person reading to the other or both of you reading in silence, there is something nice about curling up together and reading together in some fashion. While everyone has their own sense of taste in books, there are some books that are delightful to co-read.
One book that comes to mind is The Sense of an Ending. It’s the perfect length where it’s not quite a novel but longer than a novella. It’s a deep book that looks into responsibility without getting too depressing as the protagonist works through living on despite his closest friend committing suicide while he was away.
23. Stargaze
While this is technically an outdoor activity you may still have an opportunity in various ways. If you own a home, you can easily head out into the yard and do this. For apartments, there are balconies or going to a non-public area if possible. That aside, stargazing is always a delight and it’s just fun to be in each other’s company and look up at the stars.
24. Work On a Difficult And Large Puzzle
There are so many puzzles out there for adults to work on and complete. The idea with this date night is to find a puzzle that’s complex enough and will take a while to complete. One that I’d recommend is this 500 piece mosaic puzzle.
25. Have a Deep Conversation
Deep conversations can begin in all kinds of ways. One easy way to get into them is to play sleepover games like Never Have I Ever and Truth or Dare. The answers that can stem from these can lead to some organic and deep conversations, pulling you away from the typical conversations you’re used to having.
26. Write Each Other Love Letters
Sitting down with some paper and pens and writing out the various things you appreciate about one another. Even though love is complicated, there are usually several reasons for why you love one another and expressing that creates a stronger sense of intimacy.
27. Bowling Indoors
Bowling is a fun sport that many can get behind, though it can be difficult to find a proper bowling alley in your area. Paired up with a pandemic, it’s almost impossible to do that. So why not bring it to your home? There are all kinds of bowling sets you can get to play a game of bowling indoors.
28. Plan Out Future Dates
This pandemic – while long – isn’t going to last forever. Soon enough things will open back up and we’ll all be able to get out of the house and enjoy date night in other ways. In light of this, why not make some plans right now so you can prepare in advance?
29. Build a Fort
As childish as it may seem, it’s another great at home date night idea to try out. Tapping into childhood fort building skills, you’ll probably be able to manage to build a better fort with the materials you have now.
30. DIY a Photo Booth
While they are a relic of the past, you can still create your very own photo booth. All you have to do is squeeze together in a tight space and snap away. You could use your phone to take burst shots, but for those really wanting to make it old fashion you could use a disposable camera.
Bottom Line
If you have such a busy life that you can’t do too many outdoor activities together, having a chance to do some fun stuff inside is always nice. I strongly encourage you to bookmark this article and refer back to it if you need a refresher. Better yet, try some of these this week!
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