We know a date night can be expensive and time-consuming, but there are plenty of ways to have a fun, cheap date night that doesn’t leave you feeling like you need to sell your stuff on eBay for more money.
Having a fun date with your significant other doesn’t have to cost a lot. Not all of the most memorable dates are the lavish kind.
A good date requires being a little creative and having fun.
This article will explore some of the best cheap date ideas and show you how to have a fun and memorable time without breaking the bank.
50 Affordable Dating Ideas to Oomph Your Relationship
1. Go on a hike
Enjoy your partner’s company while admiring the world’s natural beauty from the mountains! This is a challenging and fun but cheap date idea you can go on together.
Put on your comfortable running shoes, a cap, and some sunscreen, and go on an adventure you will both never forget.
2. Do ‘paint by number’
This is a fun and relaxing cheap date idea to do with your loved one. Buy a paint by number piece and paint the afternoon away on the porch while you talk and explore your creative side.
3. Solve a puzzle
Adult puzzles can be a relaxing and fun way to spend time together while you bond and share jokes and memories together.
It’s also a good team-building activity to do to help your relationship.
You and your significant other already fit together like pieces of a jigsaw.
Why not use that cutesy metaphor to get together and do a real jigsaw puzzle? Pick one with 1000+
piece puzzles that you can take your time with.
4. Have an at-home Spa day
Slice some cucumbers and put them on your eyes, put some face masks on and give each other foot and back massages.
Recreate the spa experience in your home and have a relaxing day in the house.
You can get an affordable massage gun or a foot massage machine to make this a regular date.
5. Go to Bookstore
Visit a bookstore and search for a title you both like to read together. To make things fun pick a book that you want the other person to read and that you think they will enjoy and they have to read that book.
6. Have a couple Q&A date
Why not set up a date where you allow each other to ask and answer the tough questions or why not make it a fun night by doing a couples Q&A to get to know each other on a deeper level.
There are a lot of fun couples question cards you can get with interesting questions to ask each other as couples.
7. Netflix and chill
This is probably one of the most popular cheap date ideas. If you want to have a relaxed night in, then pick a show to watch on Netflix and chill while you enjoy it together. Pick something you will both enjoy or take turns to pick a show
8. Look at Yearbooks
Go back in time with your most amusing, embarrassing, or boastful yearbooks. Grab your high school yearbooks and go through them together, sharing stories of memories from a time when you hadn’t met yet.
9. Bake something together
Why not pull a cake recipe online or from a recipe book and try to bake a cake together. You can also try to decorate it together while having a good time at home.
You can also try a baking class together and learn a new recipe you can keep going back to for a long time.
It’s a great way to spend time together, and the aroma of baked goods fills the air.
10. Visit a thriftstore
A great way to go shopping without breaking the bank is to buy at a thriftstore. Visit one together and see what good deals you can find.
11. Attend a Sporting Event
Bring up the topic of your days as the best basketball player at a local college sports event. Or go and support your favorite sports team at the next game whether its football, basketball or hockey. You’ll make some fun memories at home.
12. Visit your old high school or college
Why not take your partner to your old high school or college and give them a tour. Share some of your favorite memories at the school and show them your old classrooms and dorms.
This can spark some great conversations and help them get to know you on a different level than before.
13. Fortify Yourself with a Blanket
Build a fort out of blankets (or pillows) for a low-key, cozy indoor date night. This can set a different mood for a night having some wholesome conversation and getting to know each other while you snack and have a sip of wine.
14. Try food from a food truck
An affordable date idea is to try out new food from a food truck you’ve never tried together before. Eat great food, keep within budget, and walk down the city streets while you do enjoy your food.
15. Karaoke Night
Even if you can’t sing a note to save your life, you’ll have some fun having a karaoke night with your partner and singing to some old classic songs you both love.
You can try duets or go one person at a time. This is also a great idea for a group date if you want to join with other people.
16. Have a photo scavenger hunt
There are many ideas for a scavenger hunt you can print online. Pick a list and go around taking pictures of the items on the list.
To make things fun, go for a hunt at a busy place like the mall or at a festival.
17. Enjoy an Outdoor Concert
An outdoor concert is a cost effective way to enjoy an outdoor date with your partner. Even if you can’t get to the front and center of the pit area, you can still sit on the grass and look up at the night sky.
18. Visit a Nursery
Greenery and flowers have the power to brighten anyone’s day.
Visit a nursery with your significant other and shop for some new plants you can take care of.
19. Go to an Animals Shelter
Are you both animal lovers? Then visit an animal shelter together and spend the day caring for animals. You might possibly find a fur baby you may want to adopt.
20. Feed the Ducks
Don’t serve them bread here; serve them some leftover corn, lettuce, or oatmeal in its place instead.
21. Go to the beach
Spend the day relaxing at the beach and getting a sun tan. Dip your feet in the ocean and even build a sand castle try to burry each other in the sand.
22. Take a road trip to a new city you’ve never been to
Get in the car and take a road trip to a random city some miles away and be tourists there for the day. Find some fun things to do there and take lots of pictures while you’re at it.
23. Get a Laugh at a comedy show
Attend an amateur comedy show or an improv show at a comedy club if you want a good time. It won’t cost as much as a regular comedy show but you’ll most probably have a good laugh.
24. Do a Couples’ Photoshoot
You don’t have to hire an expensive photographer, you can buy a tripod and camera or use your phone’s camera. Set up a lovely background or use an empty wall and take pictures of yourself dressed formally or making some funny faces.
25. Take A Ferry Ride
Try a short round-trip ride to a new area on a ferry. Get a nice view of the city while having a romantic time together. If you’re on a first date and want to see if the chemistry is there, then this is a great idea for a first date.
26. Go Mini Golfing
Play a round of putt-putt on a miniature golf course and see who can get the closest to the hole-in-one. This is a relaxed and fun game to play while also having a good date.
27. You Can Host A Game Night
Let the games begin with a pizza order when you’re in the mood for a low-key date night at home. Play some fun couples games and have a night of relaxing and getting to know each other.
28. Hunt for Photographic Treasures
Think of things like birds, bridges, flowers, etc., to look for and photograph. Print your pictures and create a photo book you can keep as a souvenir for that memory.
29. Enjoy Bike Riding
Rent or bring your bike and take a leisurely ride around the park or along a nature trail. This can be a fun outdoor date where you can bond while exercising and getting some fresh air.
30. Paintball
A messy but fun activity for two is playing paintball indoors or out. Have a fun time splashing paint at each other. You can also use water guns if it’s a sunny summer afternoon.
31. Enjoy Flying Kite
Take advantage of the nice weather by flying kites together in a nearby park.
32. Go window shopping
Why not leave credit cards at home and go to the mall for window shopping. Go into your favorite stores and see what’s on sale in shops without spending any money.
This is a fun way to just have a relaxing day at the mall without leaving a dent on your wallet.
33. Attend a dance class
Dancing can help you get in better shape, meet new people, and have a good time when you make a few mistakes.
34. Babysit together
If you don’t have kids yet, then this is one of the best cheap date ideas you can do together. Babysit someone else baby for a day or evening and give the parents some alone time.
Meanwhile, you both get to experience how it would be like to parent together if you had children together. It can be a great way to see if you want to get married to the other person and start a family together.
35. Go swimming
If you are looking for some cheap date ideas that will get you out of the house then this is a good one. Spend the summer afternoon at the pool swimming and getting a sun tan. Race each other and see who is a faster swimmer.
36. Have a Breakfast Date
Take your loved one on a breakfast date at a restaurant or wake up early and make a lovely English breakfast for them at home. Either way, it’s a cheap date idea that you will both enjoy.
37. Hear to Your Old Favorites
Throwback records are significant for reminiscing.
If you’re on a date, play some music that meant the most to you as a child.
38. Visit downtown
Spend the day exploring downtown and seeing that side of your city. Every city has different things in their downtown area depending on where you are.
If there are markets or stores explore it all together and you’ll be surprised what beautiful memories you make.
39. Go skating
This is a date idea you can do in winter when there isn’t much else to do. Learn ice skating together if you have never done it before. Even if your coordination isn’t the best, you’re still having much fun learning to skate.
Even if you both have, it’s an opportunity to hold hands while you skate and have a romantic time together.
40. Volunteer in the community
A great way to see the heart of your partner is to volunteer to serve together. This is one of the best cheap date ideas if you are still getting to know each other or if your relationship is still new.
You can volunteer at a local church, a soup kitchen, or visit an orphanage.
Spring and fall are a great time to work on community service projects.
41. Go see a play or theatrical performance
Watching plays together is one of the best cheap date ideas you can do together if you need something new and different to do together.
Look up some local plays happening at nearby theaters and go watch them together.
42. Visit a local museum or gallery
Museums can be a fun place to visit if you are both interested in things like art or history. You can visit a local historic museum or art gallery to see some displays you can appreciate together.
Some local galleries often hold public events to develop new works and free nights on weekdays for patrons to view new pieces.
Take turns to pick a museum or gallery and make it a thing you do every other month.
43. Go to a Garage Sale
Get up early and head to some yard sales in your community or nearby neighborhoods.
Give yourselves a challenge and try to spot some valuable items at a good price.
44. Go to a festival
Why not go to a food, music, or cultural festival and have some fun together while creating lasting memories. This is a fun and cheap date idea to try out with your loved one.
45. Picnic
Having an outdoor picnic or laying out some blankets in your living room and having some food from a charcuterie board is a great way to spice things up and have a romantic but affordable date.
Check out these lovely charcuterie boards for your picnic date.
46. Do a DIY project
Whether it’s painting the house, installing new tiles, or designing some jewelry, a DIY project is a cheap and fun date idea you can try with your loved one.
You can easily find some DIY project ideas on Youtube that you will both enjoy.
47. Write each other some love letters
Write each other meaningful love letters sharing what you love about the other person and read them out to each other.
This is a great idea to rekindle your love and boost your relationship.
48. Go camping
Camping is one of the best outdoor cheap date ideas that you and your partner can do at a nearby state park.
But to make things fun you can also set up a tent in the back yard and turn your back yard into a campsite. Grab your blankets and go have a romantic night outside looking at the stars.
49. Play basketball or tennis
This is a cheap outdoor date idea you can have fun doing. Find a basketball or tennis court nearby and play a friendly game together.
Impress the other person with your skills if you are a seasoned basketball or tennis player.
50. Pick fruits at a farm
There is nothing more romantic than picking apples, berries, or whatever fruit is in season; with your significant other.
Find a farm nearby that allows people to come pick their own fruit before they buy. You’ll have fun doing this together and create new memories you can reflect on for years.
There you go! 50 fun and cheap date ideas for you try with your lover today. Already tried some of these? Which one was your favourite? Let me know in the comments below!
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