How it works
This date night wheel holds 104 date ideas, each written for exactly two people: 36 at home, 38 going out and 30 for couples in different cities. Spin once and the result gives the time it takes, a cost band and how to run it, from Cook dinner with one hand each to Play chess by one move a day.
Read the full guide
Agree the rules, then spin
A date wheel spinner only settles anything if you agree the rules before it moves. Pick the group that fits the night, At home for a Tuesday or Going out for a Saturday, and give each person one veto. Once both vetoes are used, the third spin stands. Check the time on the result against the evening you have: the list runs from a 5 minute chess move to a 4 hour double bill.
Long-distance dates and free dates
The 30 long-distance ideas work in two ways. Some have you doing one thing at the same moment, such as pressing play on a count of three or racing the same crossword. Others are slow exchanges that survive a big time difference, such as a book posted back with notes in the margins. Free in person gathers the 40 ideas from At home and Going out that cost nothing if you own ordinary things like a deck of cards. Twenty long-distance ideas are free as well, which makes 60 of the 104.
What makes these dates and not just things to do
An outing becomes a date when the other person is the point of it, so the list leans on ideas that cannot be done alone or in a crowd. Draw a house with one shared pencil needs two hands on one pencil. Order for each other at a restaurant needs someone to order for. Pack each other's picnic in secret needs a second packer. The familiar outings carry a rule for two, such as one pen passed back and forth on a crossword. With three or more people, the things to do wheel has the group list.
- On a first or second date, stay in Going out and spin past anything over two hours. Mini golf, a photo walk or dessert only give you something to do and an easy place to stop.
- To plan a month, switch to Elimination, spin four times and Print the numbered results. Book anything that needs a ticket that same night.
- Open My list, type five ideas each without showing the other, press Spin only mine and spin the ten.
- Only half an hour? Slow dance in the kitchen takes about 15 minutes and Find a photo booth and take a strip about 30. Keep the 3 hour ideas, such as Hike a trail new to both of you, for a weekend.
- Big time difference? Choose the slow exchanges. Play chess by one move a day and Swap a book with notes in the margins never need you both awake at once.
Questions and answers
What is a good first date from the wheel?
Something short, public and easy to leave. Go out for dessert only takes about an hour, and Play a round of mini golf, Take a photo walk down one street and Do a coffee shop crawl all give you something to do and a natural end. Spin past the ideas that assume a shared history, such as Rank your five best dates so far, and past anything at one person's home.
Are these date ideas only for couples?
No. Every idea is written for two people, and most work for two friends, two siblings or a parent and a grown-up child. A few assume a shared history, such as Revisit the place you first met; spin past those. Nothing on the list involves alcohol.
What do Free, Low cost and Costs more mean?
Free means nothing to buy. Low cost covers groceries, a stamp or a cheap ticket. Costs more means a booking or tickets for two, such as an escape room or a restaurant. No prices are printed because they change from town to town. Twenty of the long-distance ideas are free too.
What can we do at home without spending anything?
Choose Free in person. 27 of its 40 ideas happen at home and need nothing bought: Plan one surprise hour each, Cook dinner from what is in the house, Read a chapter aloud to each other, Describe a photo for the other to draw. The other 13 are free outings, such as Lead each other on a mystery walk and Visit a museum on its free evening.