Valentine’s Day is a holiday that is always a source of conflict. There are those couples who are all cute and gushy and who tell wonderful stories of their romantic dates. Then there are those who are single, and as such, are left to eat popcorn on their couch while watching rom-coms with friends. Or by themselves.

Not only that, but Valentine’s Day falls on a Tuesday this year. Of all days. That means the already limited romantic date ideas are cut back yet again.

But fortunately, we found some fun, appropriate date ideas! The cost is relatively reasonable, but some of the ideas can get a bit pricey.

1. Want to take a stroll through D.C.? There are many opportunities for fun date ideas here. Not only are there quite a number of amazing museums to go to, but there is also paddle-boating on the Tidal Basin, and fun restaurants, like Wicked Waffles.

Tidal Basin:

• • • Cost: $16/hour for a two person boat. A regular boat. For their new variety of Swan Boat, which is a bit more cute and fun, the cost is $30/hour and it comes with its own motor, so if you get tired of paddling, you can just let the motor take you into the sunset.
    • Accessibility: You could drive into D.C., but that is usually a bit of a hassle, so the metro would be the best idea.  

Wicked Waffle: 

• • • Small, but fun and delicious, this little restaurant is discreetly tucked away in the heart of D.C., but is just right down the street from the Tidal Basin.
    • It is not very pricey for the quality of food, and they have gluten free options! It closes at 4 p.m.

Ice Rink in the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden:

• This option is a bit out there, but if you are downtown after eating at Wicked Waffles, you can stop at the Ice rink and skate off those waffles. There are also many different food efforts in the area so you could get a nice dinner on your way to the ice rink. This is a great idea if you want a quick and easy metro ride with your date to spend the evening skating by the light of sunset and little twinkly lights that cover the trees.

• Affordability: $7.50 (with student I.D.)  per person and $3 for skate rentals.
• Travel Distance: It is only about 20 minutes driving, and about 20 minutes via the metro.
• Hours: They are open until 9 p.m. (Maybe even get dinner before/after the skating or a snack at the Pavilion Café)

Would you rather stay home and do some fun indoor activities? There are many possible ideas, but we picked some out for you to get the wheels turning.

Couples Yoga:

• • This is a fun idea if you want to laugh at your attempts to master some of the balanced poses of couples yoga. There are tons of videos on YouTube, and even ideas on Pinterest.
  • This doesn’t just have to be for actual couples… it is a ton of fun to try some of these when just hanging out with friends.

Build a pillow fort and watch a movie:

• • If you are sitting in front of the TV on a couch with a table in front there are countless pillow fort ideas. You’ve just got to take some big pillows and use them as the walls and support of the fort, stuff the fort full of soft, squishy pillows to relax on, then drape a blanket over the top for your canopy, and voila! You have a pillow fort. Perfect for comfort with plenty of reliable pillows to hide under when the embarrassing moments in the movie come on.
  • Which leads to the movie. Preferably a rom-com. There are so many options for romantic comedies on Netflix and Amazon Prime, you can take your pick of which embarrassingly cheesy movie you want to watch. Or TV show. There are plenty of both.

Cute and Fun Cooking/Baking Activities:

• Not only would you be able to get dirty and crafty, but you would also get to eat food! And who doesn’t love that?

There are a lot of fun valentine’s day food creations, but we picked some out that we thought would be fun and easy.

1. Heart shaped chocolate chip cookies –  Chocolate chip cookie dough Valentine’s hearts are an irresistible cupid-inspired dessert. Yummy chocolate chip cookie dough (raw but without eggs) in a heart shape, dipped in melted chocolate makes for the simplest, most delicious Valentine’s snack.
2. Red Velvet Pancakes – Take a Valentines day spin of your favorite breakfast food! Adding red food dye to your favorite pancake batter can make the perfect dinner for Valentine’s.
3. Heart shaped Eggs in a Hole – This is really simple and easy, but fun. It would be cool to try making toast and eggs in a unique way, at least once.
4. “Cupid Floats” – “Cupid Floats” are a perfect Valentine’s drink that you can serve with dinner or as a treat later in the evening. With only three simple ingredients, this is a super easy choice for your stay at home Valentine’s dinner!
5. Heart shaped pizza –  If you want something savory for dinner this is the option for you. Making heart shaped pizza is super easy (especially if you use premade dough). By adding your favorite pizza toppings this is a meal that both you and your date can enjoy!