5 Unique Date Night Ideas
Susannah Amezquita
A couple who’s been together for a long time may struggle to find new date night ideas. It is common for a couple who has been together for an extended period to default to their favorite restaurant or going to a movie. While these things are fun, and a couple can enjoy doing them together, it can be useful to spice up their dating life by creating new and unique ways to spend time together.
This is so the couple can make memories and reflect happily on their time together. Although it may be difficult for couples to come up with different date ideas, with some creativity, they can have a lot of fun, stay within their budget, and make great memories that will last a lifetime.
Five Unique Date Night Ideas
Here are five unique date night ideas:
Food around the world
One beauty of the Internet is that couples can search for different food ideas from around the world. A couple that may have wanted to go to a specific place like Italy or France but have never been able to afford to do so may be able to research and try different foods in that area. It may be as simple as grocery shopping and getting French-themed items.
However, a couple who wants to go the extra mile can buy books or search the Internet for French cuisine that they can make at home. A simple purchase of a French cookbook can help couples either make a meal together or one spouse can make the meal for the other as a surprise.
This may take some extra effort and money, but it may be worth it. This may be extra special to the spouse who has always wanted to visit the place but feels that that destination is outside their grasp due to budget or time constraints.
Additionally, great websites allow people to have boxes with food from around the world sent to their homes each month, like a club membership, where they can sample different food. This is a great experience for date nights and as a gift idea. It is interesting to taste food from different areas of the world, and it would be something that both parties would look forward to each month.Keep food sensitivities and allergies in mind as you create these unique concoctions for your spouse. Even if the effort is there, if a spouse tastes food they don’t like or are allergic to, it can sour the evening and dampen the memories you choose to make.
Make a movie
Instead of watching a new or classic movie, make your own movie. Each of you can come up with part of a screenplay for a film that you’ve always wanted to make. Set up a video camera and let your imagination run wild. Allow both parties to play different roles in the movie. Create the plot around concepts or causes that you both find interesting and want to help with.
For example, if both parties are interested in curbing homelessness or helping deal with the epidemic sex trafficking issue, create a movie where you can successfully end these issues. It will take some creativity and ingenuity to create scenes to make a movie and allow you to make a difference in the world hypothetically as you seek to figure out ways for both of you to partner to help end some of these issues.
A couple that wants to make a difference in the world may enjoy making movies that will help give practical strategies to significant problems that are difficult to deal with on a small scale.
If you, as a couple, are feeling outgoing, you can invite your friends to watch the movie. Feel free to laugh at yourselves and what you did, but brainstorm ways to put the movie’s arc into practice. What can you, as a couple, or you and your friends, do to help curb the issue at hand? Can you sponsor a child who has been sex trafficked? Can you sponsor a Compassion International child? Be creative and see where the Lord takes it.
Have a concert
If one or both of you enjoy music or have the musical ability to play instruments or sing, put on a concert. Although this idea may sound like something children would do on a rainy day, this can be an excellent way for both of you to use your talents to benefit each other, worship the Lord, and have fun together.
A couple that can sing and play instruments can even create songs, sing them, and record them on Spotify or another streaming platform. This may lead to getting some streams and allowing people to hear their work while using their musical talents as a creative outlet.
Get a karaoke machine or get a couple of microphones with stands. Get some music stands and play and sing your favorite music. Put a spin on it and do a remix if possible. You can also record what you sing and use your computer to edit it and make different sounds. Download a software app like a DJ app or other musical editing software. This can be fun for both parties to create music, sing to the Lord, and release stress.Have a slumber party
Because you’re married, taking the other person for granted is easy. Recall what it was like when you were dating. Recall what it was like when you were not living together. At the night’s end, one person had to take the other home. Imagine what it would have been like if the two of you could have stayed up all night. What would you have done? Get into your pajamas, get pillows and blankets, and have fun.
Create a blanket fort, or even have an old-fashioned pillow fight. Pop popcorn, talk, or give each other massages. Don’t rush to end the night and go to sleep. Spend the time talking and discussing more profound things in your life. It was great to talk about what’s going on in your life, but it is also incredibly intimate for a couple to share their hopes and dreams and what they see for themselves and each other in the future.
It is interesting to know where the couples are regarding their lives. Sometimes, couples are on different pages regarding the future; others are on the same page. Ask each other where you see each other in five years and see what the other says.
Don’t default to “I don’t know.” Instead, take the time to answer the question. Where would you see yourself in a year if money was no object and time was no constraint? What would you have done? Where would you work? Will you be retired? Will you be done raising your children? Will you have children? The possibilities are endless.
Have a video game party
Even if the couple does not play video games, there are fun games for every person. There are simple games like driving games, sports, etc. Set up old Nintendo consoles and play old-fashioned games like Super Mario Brothers and Q-bert or try new ones. Invite your spouse to be your partner and play against people you don’t know. Do your best to win the game, but keep your differences in how you view the game from ruining the night. It is only for fun, not to win.
You can take this further and purchase some arcade games to fasten to the wall. Pac-Man, Frogger, and other games are available for a small price. This adds great décor to your home and allows you to go back in time and play simple games that both parties can play together.
Date nights can be fun but boring if both parties run out of ideas. By utilizing the suggestions above, both parties can have fun, do something unique, and bond like never before.
“Under the Orange Tree”, Courtesy of Natalia Blauth, Unsplash.com, Unsplash+ License; “Happy Couple”, Courtesy of Priscilla Du Preez, Unsplash.com, CC0 License; “Silhouette of Couple in Love”, Courtesy of Jayson Hinrichsen, Unsplash.com, Unsplash+ License