6 date night ideas to keep up the romance while you’re isolating at home

This whole self-isolating shtick can put a real dampener on your relationship, but there are plenty of ways to stay occupied while indoors

Date nights cancelled for the foreseeable? Turns out this self-isolating thing can get old fairly quick — the quaint ideas we had of the romance of being cooped up together faded when we found out it was going to be for a lot longer than expected.

But self-isolation does not mean romance is dead. There are plenty of ways to keep the love alive between you and your partner while Covid-19 rages on outside — by the end of the pandemic, you will be a master of date night on a budget.

If you need some ideas, here are just a few we came up with.

Movie night

Okay, granted, you probably have had a ‘movie night’ every single evening since the pandemic started, but we’re proposing an upgrade. Really put some effort into your next movie night by gathering some options and letting your other half choose, lighting some candles, pulling in all the blankets and cushions from the other rooms in the house, and settling in for a truly relaxing evening.

This option is great if you are separated from your partner during self-isolation too. You can simply FaceTime each other during the movie, or use a Chrome extension like Netflix Party, which helps you to stay at the same time in the movie and chat away to your S.O throughout.

Romantic (takeaway) dinner

Besides escaping cooking for the night, ordering a takeaway also has the added bonus of supporting your local small businesses during this difficult time. Try to mix it up and order something a bit on the fancy side — when it arrives, present the food to your partner with a flourish (candles, again, are a winner here) and eat it at the table — no TV, just pure listening time with each other.

Bake/cook together

If the takeaway options around you are sparse, don’t let the meal fall to one person — cooking and baking together can be a lot of fun, and can allow you to get the creative juices flowing. Look up a recipe and laugh at how clueless you both are, or start something from scratch and have some healthy competition over whose flavour will work best. When the cooking’s done, savour the food together.

Get crafty

If the usual Netflix and dinner date isn’t doing it for you, don’t be afraid to get creative. Arts and crafts may sound a bit childish but it’s actually a great way to pass the time together and bring you closer. Choose whatever takes both your fancy — painting, knitting, pottery, or embroidery are all good options — get the materials together (if you don’t have any in the house, Amazon should have them, you’ll just have to wait a few days for delivery), and get crafty. Rate each other’s creations and give them to each other as gifts — they’ll always be a sweet reminder of your time spent together in this weird pandemic.

Plan future adventures

If you’ve had to cancel nights away and holidays due to the crisis, it can be hard to shake the FOMO. So why not use a date night to plan for a new trip to be taken when it all blows over? Grab a pen and paper and plan the budget, the hotels and the flights, and fantasise about a trip to somewhere exotic. Your plans don’t have to be practical, might I add — sometimes, it’s just as fun to plan the most extravagant, expensive holiday you can think of, even though it may be out of reach for the moment.

Couple’s casino night

If you’re feeling lucky, use this time to tune up your poker skills together, and adopt some healthy competition. Money doesn’t have to be the objective — bet on biscuits, or peanuts, or who gets the remote for the next movie night. If you’ve never learned how to play poker or gin rummy before, now’s your chance. Have fun with it, and prepare for your next couple’s trip to Vegas when the pandemic is all over.

Read more: There are some brilliant new additions coming to Netflix in April

Read more: Grocery workers are putting themselves at risk for us. It’s time we thanked them

Read more: 9 Irish cookbooks that will see you through self-isolation