My husband and I love date nights. Options for date nights in St. Louis are endless; however, many say that they are too costly to do all the time. We try to do one night a week just for us, so we have to be cheap. Here is a list of 20 things that we do to keep our cost low and our date nights constant.
- Bowling. My favorite spot is Flamingo Bowl, but really anywhere works. Tropicana Lanes. Pin-Up Bowl. Moolah Lanes. All good.
- Take a Hike. Katy Trail State Park, Castlewood State Park, Cliff Cave Park Trails, Grant’s Trail, Laumeier Sculpture Park, and Route 66 State Park are some of our favorites.
- See a show. Did you know that the Muny Theater holds spots for each show for free seating? They offer 1500 free seats to every performance of their summer season! Get there early though; the line can get really long and the free tickets can “sell” out fast. Ballpark Village also has summer and winter movie series for free on specific nights throughout the year.
- Bookworms. Grab a coffee and explore. My husband and I break off typically at the beginning, find something we like, and find a nook to read together for a bit.
- Drive In Theater. Ever been to Skyview Drive In in Belleville, Illinois?! It is so cute and a complete blast from the past! There are a lot of Groupons in the spring time typically as well.
- Art Gallery. St. Louis Art Museum. Contemporary Art Museum. Sheldon Museum of Art.
- Dine In. Hit up Soulard Farmers Market and buy your cooking options together. Make a night of it. There is nothing more romantic than roaming arm-in-arm through the market together choosing options.
- Hit up an international food market. Global Foods Market in the Kirkwood neighborhood is a great place to explore, try new things, and ask questions about food you may have never seen before.
- Festivals. International Festival. Irish Festival. Beer Festival. Strawberry Festival. Storytelling Festival. Microfest Beer Festival. Heritage Days. Shakespeare Festival. Greek Festival. Apple Butter Festival… and so many more.
- Hang out at a local coffee shop. Mississippi Mud. Sump. Rise. Park Avenue. Coffee Cartel. Mokabe’s. Blueprint. Kayak’s. Foam. The Mud House. Soulard Coffee Garden. So many options.
- Plan a picnic. Go to Forest Park. Romp around and explore. Sit at the bottom of Art Hill and talk while overlooking the Grand Basin.
- Donut crawl. Start at Strange Donuts, then onto the Donut Stop, the Donut Drive-In, and World's Fair Donuts. You will be stuffed with delicious goodies by the end of the day.
- Stay home and rent a movie. Redbox the evening. Or find an old favorite from your childhood and share it.
- Microbrew Hop. Civil Life Brewing Company. Perennial Artisan Ales. Schlafly Taproom. Urban Chestnut Brewing Company. There are enough in St. Louis to do this for two plus days...
- Root for your favorite team. If you have never been to a St. Louis Cardinal baseball game, you are missing out. But not a baseball fan? Try our hockey team or football team or even soccer!
- Go up in the Arch.
- Visit the zoo. 18,000 animals from 700 species on 90 acres with no admission charges. Yes please.
- Pick your favorite fruit at Eckert’s. Just a bit outside of the city and you can find fresh from the farm tastes! Pick-your-own season in Belleville begins mid-May and ends in October which means whatever is in season is available to pick!
- Botanical Gardens.
- Tour of Italy on The Hill. The Hill is a neighborhood within St. Louis that has an Italian American majority population, and is home to many Italian restaurants and businesses. Start at one location for appetizers, another for your entree, and another for dessert!
Photo via Joel Marion
