Planning for Valentine’s Day can be stressful and chaotic. And depending on what ‘stage’ your relationship is in, it can be difficult to decide what’s best to do for this special day with your SO. Whether you two just started dating or you’ve been dating for so long everyone keeps asking you when you’ll get married, here are some different date ideas for every relationship stage.
1. The ‘Honeymoon’ stage
We all know this stage. It’s the stage where everything is sunshine and daisies and rainbows. You’re completely obsessed with your SO and you want to make sure your first Valentine’s Day with them is absolutely perfect. There are plenty of good date ideas for the infatuation phase, but you can never go wrong with the classic dinner and a movie date. This allows you two to get dressed up nice, spend some quality time together over a yummy meal and a good movie. Other cute ideas for this stage include going ice skating together, playing indoor mini golf and going bowling. These are also classic date ideas couples typically go on if they’re just getting to know one another, and the element of competition always makes things more fun!
The honeymoon stage of a relationship often has added pressure to have the perfect first Valentine’s Day date, so remember to just take a deep breath and relax! Whether you two have been dating for a short amount of time or you’re rounding the one year mark, remember what this holiday is really about: expressing your love for your SO.
2. The ‘Understanding’ stage
The ‘understanding’ stage is a tricky one. This is the phase where you and your SO have been together for around a year or two. You’ve gathered an understanding of one another, such as your weird habits, daily routines, as well as your likes and dislikes. And sometimes, your dislikes can butt heads. You’ve passed the honeymoon stage and you’re entering the stage where you realize you don’t totally love everything about your SO. Sometimes you two have different opinions on things, which can include plans for this year’s Valentine’s Day.
If you’re struggling to find something you both enjoy for Valentine’s Day, try to brainstorm the things you both like to do together. Then, compromise so you get to do something you both enjoy. A good idea for couples who are in the limbo stage of “understanding,” is to do Valentine’s Day activity where you learn something together, such as a cooking class or a wine and painting class. Other date ideas can be taking a trip to a museum, an art gallery or taking dancing lessons together. What’s great about all of these ideas is you get to learn something new together, while also learning more about each other at the same time!
3. The ‘Comfortable’ stage
The ‘comfortable’ stage is exactly as you’d expect; you two are extremely comfortable with each other at this point in your relationship. You’ve probably been together for three to four years and you’re comfortable wearing no makeup, bra or real human clothes around them because let’s face it, they’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. The comfortable stage can be a good one, as you both know what to expect from one another and nothing less. And while it’s good to be 100 percent comfortable with your SO, that can often lead to a lack of a ‘spark’ in the relationship, where the most exciting thing you do together stays in and watch Netflix every weekend.
If you’re looking to shake things up, try doing something different for this Valentine’s Day, such as a make your own scavenger hunt challenge! What you do: create little clues for each other and hide them around your town. Think of an end goal in mind, such as meeting at the place where you first met and use those clues to lead your SO to that particular place. Then, surprise them there and finish off the night with whatever your ‘end goal’ was.
Other ‘comfortable’ stage date ideas can be recreating your first date together, hitting up local clubs, or doing a bar crawl. Dates that make you go out of your comfort zone are bound to be fun, especially if you two are together.
4. The ‘We’re Basically Married’ stage
We all know that one couple who has been together for what seems like forever. These are the couples that are pushing the five, six, or even seven-year mark this Valentine’s Day, and they’re basically getting asked when they’re getting married. If you and your SO are these people, congratulations! That’s a long time sharing your life with someone, and this Valentine’s Day does something extra special to celebrate all of the good times together.
A great idea to celebrate your love for each other is to plan a weekend getaway. Book a hotel room away from your housemates and all the chaos from school, and take time to relax together. You can swim in the pool, or a have a wine and movie night in your room. Another extra special date idea is road trip together! Find local cities and attractions around your area that you both have always wanted to see and hit the road, enjoying the sights and each other’s company.
Valentine’s Day plans are exciting but it’s easy to get stressed about them, especially if you’re just begun your relationship, or you’ve been together for so long you’ve run out of ideas.