Date Night Ideas That Won’t Break the Bank

I love a good date night! Which is why Mike and I decided that this year (and hopefully in the years to come) every Thursday is our dedicated date night. No ifs, ands or buts about it, if it’s Thursday, it’s happening! We set some parameters such as: each week we alternate who plans the date, it doesn’t always have to be going out to dinner, and it shouldn’t be very expensive. Maybe every once in a while we’ll get fancy but for the most part I don’t want these nights breaking the bank.

Tonight is my night and I’m really excited for it. I decided that we’ll stay in and I’ll make a nice dinner (shrimp cocktail, ribeye steaks, potatoes, asparagus and gluten free chocolate chip cookies!) and we’re going to both take the enneagram test. We haven’t yet and I really want to know what our numbers are, so this is date night! Some of you may think this sounds boring but I’m pumped for it (and hopefully Mike is too!).

Here are a few other ideas that I have up my sleeve:

1. Pick up food from somewhere and take it to the beach or a park. Luckily, this can be done most months in Charleston. You can totally make your own dinner and bring it along picnic style but I’m just being honest when I say I’m not about to do that. I’ll take the easy route and grab some sushi takeout and bring it to the beach or Pitt Street Bridge to watch the sunset. Oh and we’d probably bring a bottle of wine too, duh.
2. Eat dinner at home and go out for dessert. Going out to dinner is a pretty common thing, but going out for dessert isn’t (at least not for us). I think it’d be fun to eat something at home and then head out to an ice cream place or a sweet shop in Charleston!
3. Play mini golf or 9 holes together. We have a mini golf place 5 minutes away and haven’t been yet! If it’s a really nice afternoon or evening it’d also be fun to play 9 holes together. I don’t really play but riding around in the cart is fun and you can sneak in a thermos with wine in it, if you’re into that sorta thing 😉
4. Rent bikes and ride them around town, stopping in at a few places for appetizers or small plates. Obviously if you own bikes there is no need to rent them, or just borrow from friends! Ride around and explore together and pick a few restaurants to pop in to share an app.
5. Go to a book store. Confession: I really love book stores. I could walk around them for hours (and also spend way too much money if I’m not careful). Head to the nearest store and roam around together. Pull a few different books and plop down on the floor to see what they’re all about. It might be wise to set a spending limit on your way in if you’re like me and want every single book you see!

Do you have any fun date night ideas? Leave them in the comments below or tell me on Instagram!