10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas

Ozanne

If this has been done before, I apologize! But then again, if a myTake on first dates has been done, at least these are my ideas on what you can do to keep busy, get to know each other, and not feel so awkward.


Sure they can be nice, but I can’t stand first date clichés such as walking on the beach (what if you have no beach?), going for coffee, or going for dinner and/or a movie. When searching for photos of first dates, I saw the same thing -- dining out.


I want to know that a guy can be creative. I want him to know I can think of better things to do too. Being different and choosing to do something else says a lot about you, and you don't have to be stuck with the ho-hum activities that all couples are doing on their first dates. With some of these alternatives, you can spend a few hours together in a more comfortable way, and find out more about whether or not you want to make plans for a second date!


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas


Auntie Ozanne's 10 First Date Ideas


1. Go to a bookstore. Browsing books first of all shows whether or not the person you’re on a date with even reads. Next, what are they reading? If they have a love for certain genres or authors, it gives you something to talk about and see where their interest lies.


2. Go antiquing. After browsing the bookstore, grab a coffee to take out, and find an antique store. Look for old things to ask about and see if the other person knows anything about it, or if someone in their family had something in their house like it. Finding an old cigar box and hearing about how “dad had a bunch of these things” might get the person talking about their families and some memories they have.


3. Get some ice-cream. I love the discussion about whether or not to use a cone or cup, and what flavours are important. The same could be said about pizza and which crust or toppings are a must for each of you. After all, if you both learn you have this in common, future ice-cream and pizza ordering will be easy. If not, you can joke that opposites attract.


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas



4. Look through photo albums. I love the scene in the classic Fast Times At Ridgemont High when Stacy pulls out her old photo album and she and Rat just talk about her life as a kid. (This eventually leads to their first kiss, but if it doesn’t for you, at least you can talk about things that make you comfortable and willing to share in pictures, and if you’re on the receiving end, you learn more about how the person grew up.) Their German restaurant date was excruciating, but you can see how much more comfortable they were when they went to her house going through her photos afterward.


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas


5. Go wine tasting. If you’re of age where it can be done, learn together what wines are best with which foods and discover together which wines you like together. Wine is an interesting hobby and learning how to wine-taste is interesting in and of itself. Once you establish your favourite bottle of vino together, buy a bottle and enjoy it together later on.


6. Cook together. If you both cook, you’ll understand and appreciate how intimate and enjoyable creating and sharing food is. Shopping for it, preparing it, and indulging together can take the focus away from awkward, personal small talk and put the attention on the food. So what if you both can’t cook or aren’t great at it? This gives you an opportunity to try something new and find out what flavours and foods each of you like, and what a great memory of a first date than to later on in your relationship, recreate the dish you made on the night you first spent together!


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas



7. Take a drive. It sounds so simple, but fill up the car with gas and just go someplace. Take a look at a map of where you live and find a place you both have never been to, being tourists in your own town. If there is a lookout nearby, take a drive to experience it together. Driving also means talking without having to exactly use eye-contact. So for those who are a bit shy, but want to remain close, the actual time on the road can get you talking without feeling so shy feeling the need to sit and look at each other. (The passenger has this advantage!)


8. Play a board-game. You really get to know someone fast if you break out Monopoly or Scrabble! It diverts attention away from the fluffy first date jitters that people feel uncomfortable with because you’re just passing time playing a board-game. Monopoly is so great because you can playfully see how the person reacts to things. Even backgammon, chess, or card games are great to see if they person plays offence or defence, and if they are in it for the fun or if they are competitive. Might be a hidden indicator of their personality!


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas



9. Go to an astronomical observatory. Or set up your own private observatory in an open field or backyard. Naturally a late-night date! You’re both learning something together and discovering interesting things about the world beyond our planet. Finding and pointing out to your date that you see something gets you talking about science and discovery. Maybe after you leave, it gets you talking about colonization projects on the moon and Mars and what you think of that. Astronomy is beautiful, and if light pollution in the sky from the moon makes your date look sexy, you have a chance to tell them so.


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas



10. Visit a psychic. Now, I’m no believer in psychics, but I think it is a cute idea for entertainment purposes only, to get you talking about each other afterward. What kind of psychic isn’t going to see you both together and tell you that you should end your date immediately and never see each other again? Whatever a psychic says about you individually, afterward you can tell each other how much of it is true. This is the part that has you talking! “She was right, I really am sensitive and I’m really close to my mom.” “Well she was wrong about me, I don’t have a stressful job.” Together you can compare notes on what a psychic might have said to get you both talking about the reality of what you’re like.


First Date Ideas (Usually) to Avoid



  • Condom shopping, dildo shopping

  • Thrill-seeking, i.e. skydiving, bungee jumping

  • Meeting each other's parents

  • If one of you is a single parent, bringing the child and going where the child chooses to go

  • Bear-watching, shark-tanks, or anything that could cause one or both of you to shit your pants

  • Extreme physical events like Tough Mudder

  • Taking them to your job site

  • Going somewhere to get drunk


10 Great (Different-ish) First Date Ideas
22 Opinion