While date nights often involve going out together as a couple, you can also plan fun and romantic dates nights in your own home. Whether you're staying in out of necessity or just want to come up with some new ways to enjoy time with that special someone without having to go out, you're sure to find several appealing ideas among these 50 options!
1. Enjoy a Romantic Movie Date Under the Stars
Watching a movie can become a special, romantic date night when you set up an outdoor viewing station and enjoy a movie under the stars with the one you love. Use your TV or a laptop connected to a projector or large screen. Set up chaise lounges side-by-side or spread a blanket on the lawn so you and your partner can hold hands or cuddle. Pack a cooler or picnic basket with movie treats, including soft drinks or adult beverages, popcorn, candy, and other goodies. It's sure to be a good night.
2. Take a Virtual Trip From Home
Make a list of places that you and your partner have traveled or want to travel. Every so often, choose one of the locations from the list and plan an at-home date with a theme appropriate for that location. For example, if you hope to take a bucket list trip to Italy, plan an Italian themed date night. Enjoy a meal featuring your favorite Italian recipes, desserts, and wine. Listen to Italian music while you dine. After dinner, take a virtual tour of Italian museums or other attractions. Finish the evening by streaming an Italian movie or TV show while imbibing an Italian cocktail or two.
3. Map Out Your Dream Vacation
If you have yet to take any bucket list trips with the one you live, spend a date night planning your next dream vacation. This would actually be a great follow-up to a virtual travel adventure date night, as what you explore virtually can help you decide what destinations you most want to visit. Whether your dream vacation is a road trip, train travel, flying, or a cruise, it's not likely to happen if you don't prioritize it and put some plans in place. So why not work a little travel planning into a date night? Once you've started to explore possibilities together, you'll be a step closer to bringing your dream getaway to fruition.
4. Enjoy Wine Tasting With Your Love
Wish you knew more about wine? Is your partner interested as well? If so, an at-home wine tasting just for the two of you can be a fun date night idea. You'll need a selection of wines, along with a guide to wine tasting for beginners and a wine tasting wheel. You may even want to use a wine tasting glossary. Start with just one type of wine so that it's not overwhelming. For example, maybe begin with a basic white wine tasting. If you both enjoy it, you can plan future wine tasting dates nights for other types. Start a joint wine tasting journal.
5. Embark on a Home Wine Making Adventure
Wine tasting can be fun, but why not take a more hands-on approach and tackle making your own wine at home? This is a great at-home date night project for wine-loving partners! You'll need to invest in some home wine making supplies. Purchasing a wine making kit may be the best way to go; there are several options, including a number of affordable dry wine making kits and kits for making homemade port wine. Fruit wine is another good option. Getting this project started is a great date night activity. Assuming you see it through, tasting the fruits of your labors will provide for another great date night in the future!
6. Start a Home Brewing Hobby
If you and your significant other prefer beer to wine, you can still devote an at-home date night to making your own adult beverages. Just invest in a home brewing starter kit and you'll have everything you need to get started making your own beer. Depending on the type of beer you decide to make, your home brew will be ready within two to four weeks. Consider spending one date night getting it started, then schedule a pub night for two to taste the results.
7. Partake in a Private Pub Night
Like to hang out at the pub? Re-create the experience in your own home! Set up a dartboard at the end of a hallway to enjoy a fun pub game. Stock up the fridge with your favorite pub drinks or home brew and fill a few bowls with tasty pub snacks, like party mix, peanuts, and pretzels. Stream a playlist of jukebox tunes played at your favorite pub.
8. Get Creative With a DIY Paint Date
Feeling creative? Plan a paint party just for the two of you and explore your inner artist. With a few basic supplies (canvas, acrylic paint, paintbrush) that you can pick up at any craft store and an instructional YouTube video, you'll have everything you need to try your hand at painting. Or, purchase paint-by-number sets to use if you'd prefer a more structured project. Set up workstations for you and your partner and enjoy creating personal masterpieces together.
9. Stay Up for a Sunrise Spectacular
Who says date night has to start with dinner? Why not go to bed a bit early one evening so you can wake up and catch the sunrise with your loved one. Put a breakfast casserole or oatmeal in your slow cooker the evening before, chill some juice, and make sure the coffee maker is ready to go. Wake before the sun and take your breakfast outside to enjoy an early meal together while the sun comes up. What a romantic way to end the evening and bring in the new day!
10. Enjoy a Romantic Stargazing Evening
When is the last time you and your love took the time to gaze up at the stars? If it has been too long, set aside a romantic date night to enjoy some backyard star gazing. Check the astronomy calendar of celestial events to find out the best viewing opportunities. Also keep an eye on the weather forecast for clear skies. Lay a blanket on the grass, turn off as many exterior lights as possible, and gaze up at the night sky. You may even want to download a stargazing app to help interpret what you're seeing. If you enjoy this, consider investing in a telescope for even more enjoyment.
11. Camp Out in Your Backyard
Who says you have to go to a campground to enjoy camping? Break out the camping equipment and pitch a tent in your backyard to enjoy an outdoor adventure very close to home. Set up your fire pit, grill, and some camp chairs near the tent, and enjoy an evening out of the house without actually leaving your property. Enjoy a traditional camping meal and tell some campfire ghost stories.
12. Hang Out in a Couples Hammock
If you have a sturdy tree, invest in a hammock built for two and use it any time you and your significant other are in need of a relaxing date night. Nothing can beat chilling out together in a hammock when the weather is nice. Just relax and enjoy each other's company and the sounds of the evening.
13. Challenge Each Other to Lawn Games
Get outside and move around with your partner playing a variety of backyard/lawn games. Games like croquet, horseshoes, corn hole, and badminton require minimal expense and effort, and they can provide hours of entertainment. Fire up the grill so your dinner can cook while you're playing.
14. Plant a Vegetable Garden
Stop talking about planting a garden and actually do it - together - as an at-home date night activity. You could spend one date night choosing your garden plan and layout, and another actually setting things up. With the right soil, it can be very easy to set up a raised bed vegetable garden or grow vegetables in containers. Plant vegetables that grow well together and you'll have a great food source to enjoy throughout the season.
15. Take an Online Cooking Class Together
Sign up for a virtual cooking class for you and your partner to enjoy together. For example, via The Chef & The Dish, you can register for a private virtual cooking class conducted via Skype. You'll choose the menu ahead of time, so you'll know what supplies to have on hand. During your session, a professional chef will coach the two of you through the process of preparing the pre-selected meal. For a more frugal (albeit less personalized) alternative, start with a free cooking lesson via YouTube. The two of you will have fun cooking and learning together, as well as enjoying the meal after the fact.
16. Listen to a Livestream Concert
Love live music? Streaming technology makes it possible to enjoy the concert experience at home! Netflix has a selection of concerts, as do a variety of apps. If you have a Roku, you can add the Flickstream-TV Concerts app for free access to stream an extensive selection of musical events. The Stingray Quello app offers on-demand access to many more concerts for just under $8 per month. No matter which app or streaming service you use, streaming concerts can make for a great date night experience. Dress in your favorite concert gear and dim the lights, or even listen outdoors for an at-home music festival experience.
17. Enjoy a Vinyl Revival
If you're a hardcore fan of vinyl, livestreaming just might not be as appealing as breaking out your turntable and albums. Remember the good old days with the one you love by spending an upcoming date night listening to your favorite vinyl albums or singles.
18. Start a Couples Book Club
Do you and your partner like to read? If so, start a book club just for you. Take turns selecting a book to read, then get together on date night to discuss your thoughts on the text. You could discuss the current book over dinner, or perhaps later in the evening over late-night coffee or a nightcap. This is a great way to gain an appreciation for your significant other's preferred reading genre. You could even turn this into a double or triple date by organizing an online book club for you and a few select friends.
19. Enjoy an Audio Book Marathon
If you like the idea of sharing books with your love but you don't want to go the book club route, consider opting instead to choose an audio book to listen together. Streaming an audio book via speakers while you relax on the sofa is a great way to spend a date night together. Dim the lights or even light some candles and enjoy your favorite snacks or beverages while the story unfolds.
20. Learn a Language With Your Love
If you're planning to travel internationally with your partner, why not spend some of your at-home date nights expanding your multilingual capabilities? With so many options for online foreign language lessons, this is a great date night activity to enjoy from home. Whether you enroll in a class, listen to language lessons by podcast, or stream a language learning program, you're sure to have a lot of fun expanding your horizons together.
21. Master Couples Dance Steps
If you're looking to add a bit of romance to your at-home date nights, consider learning how to dance as a couple. This is a super-cheap date night option, as there are many free instructional videos on YouTube. Whether you're a beginner who needs to learn how to waltz or if you're ready to tackle salsa, swing dancing, or even the tango, you can learn with your partner in the comfort of your own home.
22. Share Special Skills With Each Other
Does your loved one have a skill that you wish you could master, or vice versa? Set up an educational date night focused on skill sharing. The idea is for one of you to teach the other a skill. Ultimately, this could lead to more opportunities for you to share hobbies and adventures, as each of you masters the other's special talents. Consider skills like building a campfire, tying knots, sewing, arranging flowers, making homemade jelly or jam, canning vegetables, etc.
23. Get Crafty Together
Taking on an creative crafting project with your partner could be a fun date night activity to enjoy at home. Agree on a craft project and gather all the supplies ahead of time. Consider creating a DIY mosaic tray or tackling a decoupage project. There are plenty of craft project ideas to consider. What matters is that you spend the evening creating something together. As a bonus, you'll end up with a tangible memento of the experience you shared on this special date night.
24. Create a Digital Scrapbook
If you and your partner have an unorganized collection of photos documenting your many adventures together, pairing up to create a digital scrapbook can be a great at-home date night activity. To get started, you'll want to learn about digital scrapbooking projects and decide if you want to use digital scrapbooking software or design your own pages or layouts. You'll also want to learn digital scrapbooking terms and explore backgrounds, elements, and flourishes.
25. Make a Memory Book
Digital scrapbooking isn't the only way to document your time together as a couple. Take the traditional approach to preserving your memories for posterity with a paper scrapbook/memory book. Start by creating printed versions of your most cherished photographs and gather the scrapbooking supplies you'll need to get started. You may want to start with a particular theme, such as creating a travel memory book to preserve memories of vacations you have taken together.
26. Upcycle or Repurpose Household Items
Tackling an interesting repurposing or upcycling project could be a fun way for you and your significant other to spend some quality time together. Consider rummaging through the garage for old windows, doors, or furniture pieces that could get new life with a little creativity and TLC. Or, check around the house for items to upcycle. When you look at old junk with repurposing ideas in mind, there is no telling what kind of fun date night projects you might unearth. As a bonus, you can end up with cool new items for yourselves, to give as gifts, or to sell (which could be a great way to build up a stash of cash to fund future date nights!).
27. Learn Tai Chi
Enhance your physical fitness and mental health while bonding as a couple through tai chi. Devote a few at-home date night sessions to learning the basics of Tai Chi together using free YouTube video lessons for beginners. If you both enjoy it, master additional tai chi moves in future sessions.
28. Challenge Each Other to a Couples Cookoff
Add a little friendly competition if you're looking for interesting home dinner date ideas. Pick a certain ingredient or food item to feature, with each partner responsible for coming up with the "best" way to prepare and serve the item. For example, if you have extra hamburgers from earlier in the week, compete to come up with genius ways to use leftover hamburgers. You'll have blast creating and trying new flavor combinations, as well as deciding whose results are the tastiest.
29. Plan a Pizza Topping Idea Party for Two
Purchase some pre-made pizza crusts or prepare a batch of pizza dough prior to date night, then go to work creating creative or strange pizza toppings using items from your pantry or refrigerator. You could turn pizza night into a competition for the best or most unusual topping combinations, or simply enjoy the fun of coming up with interesting combinations. From traditional pepperoni or mushrooms to Mexican pizza or unique dessert pizza toppings, you're sure to have a great time at your pizza party for two.
30. Have Fun With a Fondue Dinner Date at Home
For a super-fun at-home dinner date idea, consider enjoying a fondue night with your love. For a complete meal, you'll want an oil or broth fondue for meat, a cheese fondue for veggies and bread, and a chocolate fondue for dipping strawberries, bananas, and chunks of pound cake. While it would be great if you have actual fondue sets or this, it is possible to prepare fondue without a fondue set. Whether you go with one, two, or three types of fondue, you and your partner are sure to enjoy this fun approach to a home-cooked meal.
31. Dine on Fun Finger Foods
For a less labor-intensive small bites date night dinner than fondue, consider opting for a selection of finger foods to enjoy with your partner. Put together a party tray or other cheap and easy finger foods for budget-friendly, simple date night dining. Consider some 1950s cocktail party recipes for a retro flair. It'll be great to have snacky items on hand when enjoying other date night activities such as watching movies, listening to audio books or music, playing games, etc.
32. Savor a Slow Cooker Surprise Home Dinner Date
For another easy date night dinner idea, host a slow cooker surprise meal. Take turns being in charge of menu selection and meal preparation, with the only requirement being that the main course and any side dishes must be slow cooker recipes. (Of course, you'll need multiple slow cookers to do this, unless you require a one-pot meal.) This ensures minimal prep time and easy clean-up, so you can focus date night on enjoying each other's company.
33. Sample Small Bites on No-Cook Nosh Night
For another simple and easy date night meal idea, opt for a no-cook dinner date. The idea here is to serve only foods that don't require cooking. Think charcuterie board, simple deli meat and cheese tray, raw veggies with ranch dressing, fresh or dried fruit, or even peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. With such a simple approach date night dining, your focus can shift from meal preparation to the joy of spending time with that special someone.
34. Get Decadent With Dessert for Dinner
Who says you have to have a main course before dessert? Plan an evening of decadence with a dessert for dinner date night adventure. Make or purchase a selection of the desserts you and your partner adore, and serve them instead of a traditional meal. Love ice cream? Set up a sundae bar. Love to indulge in chocolate? Make a sinfully delicious chocolate dip or gourmet chocolate candies. Flip for fruity desserts? Opt for lemon meringue pie or strawberry cheesecake. Whatever you love, indulge - but not too often! Be sure to include beverages consistent with the theme, such as dessert wines or ice cream drinks, or classic dessert cocktails.
35. Relax Together via Guided Meditation
Set aside a date night to meditate with your significant other. Guided meditation is a great option for couples looking to relax and reconnect. There are a number of options on YouTube, though you may also want to invest some meditation CDs if this is an activity you'd like to enjoy regularly.
36. Connect With Couples Massage
Spend some time exploring how to connect using massage techniques and stress reduction through massage, then apply what you have learned to provide your partner with the perfect massage. Set the stage with low lighting and aromatherapy, including massage candles and relaxing massage oils. Or, if your budget allows, you could hire a professional masseuse for an in-home couples massage appointment.
37. Soak Together in a Romantic Bubble Bath
Curl up with your loved one for a romantic bubble bath, complete with candlelight and aromatherapy oils. Add some champagne and strawberries and you'll be set for an evening of sensual soaking. You may even want to combine this adventure with a couples massage to enjoy the equivalent of a romantic spa vacation, staycation style.
38. Boost Wellness and Togetherness via Partner Yoga
Incorporate a workout into your at-home date nights via partner yoga. Follow along with a YouTube video or watch a yoga workout program via Netflix, Prime, or whatever streaming service you use. Just be sure to choose a workout that's appropriate for your fitness level. If you're new to this kind of activity, you may want to start out with a basic stretching program or beginning yoga session before trying more advanced partner poses.
39. Enjoy a Grown-Up Game Night
While family game night activities are selected with kiddos in mind, it's not hard to adapt the concept of game playing to a date night activity. There are many free romantic couples games, fun games for couples, and sex board games you and your partner may enjoy. Strip Twister and the Embrace board game are two options to consider if you're looking to be a bit spicy, though traditional board games are also a great activity for couples.
40. Take on a Video Game Challenge
Spending an evening playing video games together can be a fun and relaxing way for couples to spend an evening together. Geek.com recommends Mario Kart, Bomberman, and Overcooked as a few of the best video games for couples to play together.
41. Explore the Unknown With a Ouija Board
If you and your partner have an interest in the paranormal, schedule a Ouija board date night. You can even make your own talking board if you don't have one. If you're new to the Ouija board, learn how to use a Ouija board for the first time and familiarize yourself with Ouija board rules and guidelines before you get started. Follow best practices for creating a safe place to play Ouija board and use safe questions.
42. Get Moving on Roller Skates
If you have a flat patio or driveway, or if your neighborhood has well-maintained sidewalks, roller skating can be a fun date night activity for couples. Investing in traditional skates or roller blades can provide for hours of free at-home enjoyment for the ultimate cheap date night experience.
43. Reminisce With Family Photo Albums
For a low-key date night, get out the family photo albums and reminisce about all you've enjoyed and accomplished throughout your time together. This can be fun for couples in all relationship stages, though it may be especially appropriate for empty nesters or those whose kids have recently accomplished major milestones, such as graduating from high school.
44. Sing Karaoke Together
Do you have a karaoke machine or app? If so, you can enjoy a karaoke date night at home. You can sing your favorite duos or serenade one another individually. What matters is that you spend time together sharing your love of music and each other.
45. Make Music With Household Items
If couples who play together are ones that stay together, maybe you should consider learning how to make music as a couple in a way that really challenges your creativity. Rather than investing in expensive instruments, learn how to raise a joyful noise using household items like cups, tools, pans, and pantry staples. This is a great cheap date night idea that you can enjoy time and time again.
46. Re-Create Your First Couple Car
Work together to put together a model car kit that matches the first car you owned together as a couple, or another vehicle that represents an important phase in your relationship. For example, you might want to make a model of the car you rode in together when you were first dating, when you took your first trip together, or that you drove away from your wedding in. You'll have fun assembling the kit together, as well as reminiscing about the time you spent together in the actual vehicles.
47. Get to Know Each Other Better With Relationship Questions
Get to know your partner even better by setting aside an occasional at-home date night focused on learning more about the other person. Start with a list of fun relationship questions or intimate questions to ask your partner as a way of getting the conversation started. This is a great way for you and your significant other to focus solely on one another and deepen your bond. Of course, this should be done in a spirit of love and cooperation, with the ultimate goal being to build a stronger bond while having fun while developing deeper insights about one another.
48. Play Q & A Games
For a less emotional take on question-and-answer games, you may want to spend an evening with your partner playing your own grown-up versions of teenage query games. For example, truth or dare questions can provide for an evening of fun with your partner, as can never have I ever questions. Just be sure to keep the questions and dares light and fun, and you're sure to have a blast!
49. Master Sign Language
Expand your communication skills by learning sign language together. Many lessons are available via YouTube, so this is a great cheap at-home date night idea. Mastering sign language skills can be a fun way to spend time together and will also provide both of you with a valuable skill.
50. Binge Watch Favorite Childhood TV Shows
Use your favorite streaming device and TV apps to find full seasons of your favorite childhood television programs and binge watch them with your partner. This will provide a way for the two of you to share an experience that was special to one or both of you before you became a couple. It will also provide hours of entertainment, maybe even over several date nights.
Enjoy Fun and Cheap Date Night Ideas at Home
As you can see, there plenty of low-cost and creative ways to enjoy date nights at home. Sometimes taking time to focus on the one you love in the home you've established together is exactly what your relationship needs! Use the 50 stay at home date night ideas provided here to get started, then get even more creative by adding your own special touches!
