In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, be sure to make it a priority to spend some festive and joyful time with your partner by making time for a holiday date! The holidays can be a whirlwind time full of excitement, stress, anxiety, and many other emotions. There is often a long list of to-do’s to be mindful of when the holiday season is near and at times, quality time with your partner gets put at the bottom of that list. The holidays are a great time to strengthen your connection with your partner, create or uphold traditions, reflect on the past year, and have meaningful conversations. What better way to do this than to plan a holiday date? Check out this list of 15 festive date ideas for this winter season!
1) Holiday Lights Tour
Take in the sights of some festive and twinkly holiday lights! Stroll a decorated local outdoor market, drive through popular lit-up neighborhoods, or take a trip to a drive-through or walk-through light show with your partner! There is something truly magical about the glow of holiday lights.
2) Hot Cocoa for Two
Create a delicious hot cocoa bar for two with your partner! You can decide to make it from scratch yourselves or buy the premade hot cocoa mix! Choose fun toppings or mix-ins like whipped cream, marshmallows, candy canes, and sprinkles. Find syrups to infuse different flavors into your hot cocoa like peppermint or salted caramel. Pour a cup, spruce it up with toppings, and snuggle up together to enjoy!
3) Holiday Movie Marathon
Sit down with your partner and make a list of your favorite holiday movies to watch throughout the season! Movies like: How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Home Alone, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and A Christmas Story to name a few. Make this a tradition each year to enjoy your favorite festive films with holiday snacks, holiday beverages, and cozy blankets on the couch!
4) Create A Playlist of Merry Music
Fill the room with a playlist created by you and your partner of merry and joyful tunes! Find songs from different genres or periods to create a mix that the two of you enjoy. Put on the playlist and sing and dance around the room together!
5) Stroll through the Zoo Lights
If you are local to Houston, travel to Hermann Park where the Houston Zoo is located to see twinkling holiday lights and animals of all kinds! If you are not near Houston, check out your local zoo to see if they offer a holiday light event during the winter season!
6) Seasonal Beverages Crawl
Go on a seasonal beverage tour around your area with your partner! If you drink alcohol, find local breweries or restaurants that have seasonal beverage options like holiday-themed cocktails with cranberry. If you do not drink alcohol, find local coffee shops or tea houses with seasonal beverage options like peppermint mocha coffee. Drink up and enjoy!
7) Holiday Bake-Off
Get out your flour, sugar, spices, rolling pins, and measuring cups to challenge your partner to a friendly holiday bake-off! There’s no need to declare a winner because both of you win while enjoying delicious treats and each other’s company. Each of you can select a favorite holiday treat to make and share with your partner while also having fun in the kitchen together!
8) Pajama Picnic Party
Find some matching holiday pajamas and create a spread of yummy seasonal snacks for an indoor or outdoor pajama picnic! Pajamas can be traditional with a festive plaid or be tacky old-school ugly holiday sweaters for a fun twist!
9) Craft Ornaments
Break out the craft items including paint, glue, ribbon, glitter, and any other supplies you may need to create new ornaments for your tree! Figure out what kind of ornaments you and your partner want to create. Whether they be earthy wood cut-out ornaments or flashy glitter-dipped bulb ornaments – put on some music and get to crafting! Make it a tradition to add new handmade ornaments to your tree every year and watch as the collection grows.
10) Visit a Tree Farm
Check out a local tree farm where you can hand-pick and cut down a tree for your home with your partner! Tree farms may also have fun seasonal events like train rides, food vendors, and more which can make for a fun one-stop shop date!
11) “Favorites” Holiday Feast
Who says that you have to wait until the day of a holiday to enjoy your holiday feast favorites? Have a dinner or lunch date where you cook each of your favorite holiday recipes from green bean casserole to cranberry sauce. Enjoy and reminisce on what makes these recipes in particular your favorites!
12) Ice Skating
Find a local ice skating rink and lace up to hit the ice with your partner! If you have never been ice skating before, challenge yourself to try something new for date night. Skate hand in hand with your partner for a fun and memorable date!
13) Decorate Some Gingerbread
Pick up your favorite icing, and toppings, and get ready to decorate a gingerbread house with your partner! You can either choose a pre-baked gingerbread house or take it a step further and try your hand at making gingerbread from scratch together. Fancy up your gingerbread house with fun edible decorations like gumdrops and sprinkles. After the gingerbread house is all decorated, now is the fun part of snapping a few photos of your creation and enjoying it together!
14) Enjoy A Holiday Performance
Find a local playhouse, music hall, or theater to enjoy a holiday-themed performance! If you enjoy watching dance, try to find a scheduled performance of The Nutcracker. If you enjoy listening to music, check out the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and see if they will be performing near you. Enjoy the arts with your loved one this holiday season!
15) Volunteer and Give Back to Your Community
Take some time to identify what you and your partner value and what the two of you are passionate about. Find a way to volunteer and give back to your community that honors that passion. Are the two of you animal lovers? Find a local pet shelter and spend some time there tending to the animals, taking the dogs on walks, and snuggling the cats. Do you love books? Find a local library where you can volunteer by reading to children, tidying up their shelves, or assisting with community outreach. Finding a way to honor you and your partner’s values can further strengthen your bond.
Whether you have been together for weeks, months, or years, dating your partner should remain a priority to deepen and continue to foster your connection to one another. Doing so can help keep the twinkle alive in your relationship! Put the holiday to-do list aside and plan a date from this list for you and your partner this holiday season!
If you and your partner need additional date ideas, check out our blog “Intentional Quality Time with Your Partner” for some inspiration! If you need support in fostering healthy connection and communication with your partner, feel free to reach out to our team of counselors at admin@naturalbalancecounseling.com to schedule a free consultation to see if our therapists would be a good fit for you! Have a wonderful holiday season!