101 {Not Cheesy} Cheap Date Ideas for Valentine’s Day, Anniversaries, and More

I just love date night.

I mean, I love our daughter – she’s sweet and cute and I could kiss her cheeks all day – but giving her to grandma for the night and heading out on the town with my best friend (the hubs, in case you were wondering) is something I really, really look forward to.  I can drink without worrying about parenting, I can relax and actually talk to and listen to my husband, and for the first time in a week, or even a month, I can truly relax.

However, traditional dating: dinners out, movies, and the like are typically expensive.  A date night in the traditional sense could cost us upwards of $100, and even one of those a month could completely wreck our budget.  Going  on one date night a week would add $400 a month to our budget, which really can’t happen right now.

Luckily, dates don’t need to cost a lot of money in order for them to give you some quality time, so here I’ve rounded up 101 cheap date ideas.  These are good for Valentine’s Day, anniversary’s, birthdays, summer, winter, or anytime you and your spouse just need a break.

{Need a Valentine’s Day Idea For Your Guy?  Look no Further}

1. Cook a nice dinner together
2. Hit up a trivia night with happy hour drinks and appetizers (bonus points if you go with another couple)
3. Scope out a free comedy show in your neighborhood
4. Go on a picnic
5. Hike through your local park
6. Watch old movies together
7. Watch a documentary that you both can (good-naturedly) debate afterwards
8. Check out a farmer’s market together
9. Go to an open mic night and embarrass yourselves together
10. Take a museum tour on cheap or free days
11. Host book club with other couples and wine, of course
12. Play a board game
13. Go to coffee shop and enjoy each others’ company
14. Tour your city, your own mini staycation
15. Tour a haunted attraction near your house
16. Tour a factory near your home for free
17. Create a dream board together
18. Plan your dream vacation together
19. Watch wildlife at your local nature preserve
20. Stargaze
21. Volunteer together
22. Go ice skating
23. Go rollerblading together
24. Go bowling together
25. Pick fruit alongside the road, or at a farm
26. Play frisbee golf together
27. Bake desserts together
28. Paint together
29. Do a puzzle together
30. Miniature golf together
31. Sharpie mugs together
32. Shop flea markets or thrift stores together
33. Check out a drive-in movie theatre
34. Go fishing together
35. Make fondue together
36. Walk around the zoo
37. Play video games together
38. Find a piano bar
39. Go to a food festival
40. Walk through IKEA
41. Hit up your local liquor store for liquor samples and tastings
42. Walk around Sam’s Club or Costco and hit up the free samples
43. Go to a local fair
44. Go to an art opening
45. Attempt origami together
46. Learn a new skill together
47. Take the dog for a walk
48. Ride the ferry
49. Take a road trip
50. Visit favorite places from your childhood
51. Take dance lessons together
52. Do the crossword in the newspaper
53. Take pictures of nature or of each other
54. Watch a local dog show
55. Hear a local author speak or have your copy of their book signed
56. Take in a free community college lecture
57. Attend open houses
58. Learn to tend bar together
59. Create your own signature cocktails
60. Make s’more over the stove
61. Put a fire in the ring in your backyard
62. Fly a kite
63. Play truth or dare
64. Take an architectural tour of your city
65. Have a snowball fight
66. Learn to rock climb together
67. Check out a dive bar
68. Watch a free local play
69. Repaint a room in your house
70. Pick out new bed linens together
71. Revisit your bucket list together
72. Redo an old dresser together
73. Start a garden together
74. Find a new TV series and binge-watch it
75. Go to the beach
76. Learn something new from YouTube
77. Give each other massages
78. Have a spa day
79. Do face masks together
80. Get pedicures together
81. Attend a free home improvement workshop
82. Get ice cream
83. Make pizza
84. Do a scavenger hunt in your city
85. Feed the ducks
86. Take a cheesy love quiz together
87. Play Strip (enter your board game here)
88. Hit up Bingo night
89. Play Cards Against Humanity
90. Or Dutch Blitz
91. Or Uno
92. Or Poker
93. See how many paint chips you can get from the home improvement store.  Then do a project
94. Test drive cars
95. Have a nerf war
96. Play fantasy football together
97. Workout together
98. Binge watch an old TV series
99. Learn to do magic together
100. Create a Pinterest dream board together
101. Rearrange furniture together

What are your favorite frugal dates?  Share them below in the comments!

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