Budget Friendly Dates for Married Couples

The following guest post is from Jesse Mecham at You Need a Budget:

Having a busy life and family often reduces “spouse-time” down to a hello or goodbye kiss. Doing something together—just the two of you—then becomes priceless. Unfortunately, that’s true in more ways than one. The typical dinner-and-a-movie date carries a price tag of upwards $60 these days. That’s assuming you see a new movie and you’re not dining at Wendy’s. Grabbing food and a flick in the name of love has become ridiculously over-priced, not to mention blasé.

Imagination to the rescue! These date ideas don’t take your money (well… not too much of it), but they do take brain power. With a little effort, and someone to watch the kids, time with your spouse can be fulfilling, inventive, and adventurous without bleeding the bank.

For Free or Not For Free, That Is The Question…

If the two of you enjoy “the thea-tuh”, consider volunteering as ushers for the night. Most large venues and big universities have such programs. They generally require an hour of your time before and after the show, but it’s worth it once the curtain goes up. Unlike the rest of the audience members, ushers are allowed to watch the show sans a pricey ticket fee. So grab the empty seats in the back, hold hands in the dark, and soak up a night of quality entertainment..for free! Now that’s worth singing about.

For an example of the usher program in L.A., visit the Los Angeles Theatre Center.

Spark in the Dark

Why not get all dressed up and go out to dinner…in the park? A basket of food, a blanket, and a couple of candles is all you need (just don’t accidentally set the park on fire). This simple date is ideal, not only for the budget, but also if you don’t have a lot of time to be away from the kids. You can head to the neighborhood park and feel good knowing you’re only a couple of blocks from home. Add little touches like music, your best china, and (if you can get him to do it) dancing. Sparks will fly in no time!

For picnic recipes, visit About.com.

Roughing It

For lovers who love the outdoors, a camping trip for two is the ticket. Reserve a campground (the deposit might be the only money you spend on this), or head up into the mountains for a weekend in the wild. This can take considerable planning, but if you already have the necessary equipment, it’s just a matter of getting it together and doing it. Get back to nature and back to each other. Nothing says close like sharing a sleeping bag and a can of pork ‘n’ beans.

For more tips on making it romantic, visit: Romantic Camping.

Love:Love

If you haven’t had time to interact lately, one-on-one sports can put the air back in your Jordan. Participating in sports is obviously great exercise. It’s also easy on the wallet since the equipment is reusable, and, lastly, it offers the best of both worlds. Men bond through “doing,” and women bond through talking. Try tennis or racquet ball. Shoot some hoops, or just play catch with a baseball. All the while, you’ll be conversing! Everybody wins and your money stays at home like a champ.

Time Goes By

If you met your spouse at a Civil War re-enactment, or both of you religiously TiVo “Antique Roadshow,” paying homage to history is a perfect date for you. A simple online search will produce a list of local museums or historical sites you may not have known were even in your city! Most of them are free, or offer special discounts certain days of the week. Top off the history lesson by dropping into a vintage-styled diner for dessert (if there’s one in your area). Be both budgeter and romancer by ordering it the old-school way: one shake, two straws!

For a list of national sites in the US, visit The History Place.

Garage Romance

For the crafty “good with their hands” kind of couple, a unique, long-term project makes a great escape. Once the kids are in bed, sneak out to the garage together and build model planes, restore old furniture, or rebuild a car (ok, maybe not the most budget-savvy move, but the end result is..a car!) What ever the project is, you’ll be working on it together. Once finished, you’ll feel satisfied and proud of your joint-accomplishment, with plenty of “we made that” moments every time you see it.

Seasons of Love

Each month offers a special kind of atmosphere. Summer wind, Autumn leaves, Spring flowers, Mid-night snow-fall. Every season offers a different, but romantic, backdrop to your relationship. Be pro-active! Take advantage of it! Go on a walk through the forest in October. Take summer naps together outside in a hammock. Go ice skating at Christmas. Grab your cameras and take pictures together of the city in springtime. Mother Nature is a beautiful source of entertainment, and she’s always free.

Two for the Road

Bike riding is wonderful time spent together. Why not kick it up a notch, and try your hand at a tandem bike? The two-seater adds an element of fun you don’t get with traditional bikes. It also prompts better communication since you have to work together to get it going! This idea is definitely more of an investment. Some cities have places you can rent a tandem for an hourly rate. If you plan on riding often, it’s worth it just to buy. A bicycle built for two goes for about $300—not a bad price for staying in sync with your spouse.

For specific pricing and Tandem options, visit Bikes.

Déjà vu Date

For the nostalgic fool in all of us, a little visit to the past is always a special treat. Recreate your first date—same places, activities, restaurants, even outfits if you want to be that exact—and enjoy an evening of reliving your first moments together as a couple. Depending on what you did for that first date, this one may or may not be budget-friendly. But no matter what, it’ll be a special reminder of how far you’ve come together, and all the special moments in between.

Jesse Mecham is the founder of You Need a Budget, a budgeting software that helps you get out of debt, save more money, and stop living paycheck to paycheck. Jesse lives in Utah with his wife, Julie, and their four children.