Let’s suppose that you want to take your partner on a romantic date.

Whether you are just starting to date and really want to make a good impression, or you have been dating for a long time, are engaged OR married, a romantic date is a great way to let your partner know just how special they are to you.

As with all the other suggestions on this website, we think you’ll find it easy to come up with your own, once your mind gets on the track and your creative juices start flowing.

As with the other ideas we’ve given you, some are more elaborate and some cost just a little money to execute, while others are totally free except for your effort!

So, feel free to pick one or more of these ideas, or change them a little to make them more personal for you and your partner.

Remember you have the answers to your questions about your partner to give you clues so you can decide which idea(s) will work best for your.

Once you get started, you’ll come up with all kinds of ideas of your own!

1. Rent a limo and show up at your partner’s door, dressed in your finest to take her/him out for a surprise evening. If you can’t afford the limo, ask a friend to drive you in a rental car OR pay for them to have their car washed and have them drive you around throughout the evening date. Bring a camera and take pictures of the places you go and of the two of you in the limo or ‘rented car’.  Bring a bottle of wine or champagne along as well.
2. If you live in a city that has commuter trains, you can buy two tickets on the train during off peak hours when it isn’t crowded and bring along a picnic lunch. Plan to stop at one or two interesting towns to go shopping, or share a cup of coffee in a nice coffee shop.
3. Engage some of your friends (preferably those your partner likes) and have them meet you in a street side deli or a public table in the mall to serve your food and drinks and act like waiters. OR, have them come along to serenade your partner in the evening when you know he/she will be home. You can print up booklets with love songs and everyone can sing them.  If you want to get really elaborate, you can assign parts for each person to sing.  Just be sure your friends have good voices.
4. Create an entire evening of charades using sayings or statements you’ve written, or chosen from love poems or movies. As each charade is solved, your partner will get to hear the statement or line of love you created for him/her.
5. Take your partner on an old-fashioned date, ice skating, roller skating or going to a county fair. You can really do it up right by bringing an old-fashioned box lunch or picnic basket for a local restaurant or caterer and buying flowers from a street side vendor.
6. Take your partner on a hot air balloon ride OR a helicopter tour of a lovely area.  Pick him/her up in a car and insist that they wear a blindfold. Bring a bottle of wine for the journey and don’t reveal the special surprise until they are on board or as close to the craft as possible.
7. If you are in a city with horse drawn carriages or hansom cabs, plan to take a leisurely walk one evening after dinner, and grab a carriage to take you around the beautifully lit city or countryside.
8. Hayrides are also very romantic.  Bring a blanket to lie on and one to cover you and a little bottle of cognac or schnapps to keep you warm!
9. Schedule a secret evening – don’t tell your partner what you have in mind, and give her/him a ‘spa night’ to remember.  From the moment they walk in the door, don’t let them lift a finger. Draw a bath with lovely scented oils and candles in the bathroom, wash their back gently, play soft music, serve a glass of wine or hot mulled cider. After the bath, serve a home cooked or take out meal as you choose, complete with candles on the table and special music in the background. Push the furniture back against the walls and create your own dance floor, perhaps even decorating the living room like a romantic ‘dance club’. Dance the night away and see where the mood takes you.
10. Involve your partner’s co-workers in your scheme and have them plan a working dinner either at a restaurant or calling for takeout to work on a project. Then arrive with flowers, music playing on a portable CD and an outstretched hand to whisk your partner away from what they expected to be a hard evening of work. Go to a little, out of the way restaurant – if you can find a new one that everyone thinks is great, so much the better. Have the dinner ordered and ready to serve, so that your wine is poured and your dinner is served as if by magic with no orders placed and no waiting.
11. Fill your living room with dozens of candles and spread a blanket on the floor in front of the fireplace or the TV. Light the candles and, when your partner arrives home, have a favorite romantic movie starting, the room lit with only candles and a fire burning, if you have a fireplace. A bottle of wine or champagne and a small basket of flowers in the middle of the picnic blanket can add the finishing touches.
12. Many hotels have great weekend ‘romantic getaway’ rates.  Rent a hotel room in a nice area of town where you can walk around and shop, go to the theater or browse in museums or just walk through the park. Don’t tell your partner where you are going, just tell them to meet you in the hotel lobby at a certain time (make it after check-in, so you can get checked in and bring all of your ‘tools’ up to dress up the hotel room). Go to the hotel early, check in and place candles in the bathroom, and run a hot bath with bubble bath or bath oil.  Bring a CD player and play some romantic music. Light candles and place them around the bedroom as well.  Now turn down the bed in the hotel bedroom and spread rose petals or other flower petals across the sheets. Bring some massage oil and do it up right.  After a relaxing afternoon in the hotel room, you can go out for dinner, walk in the park or go to a museum or play, as you wish.
13. Plan a day to pretend you are millionaires.  Visit and tour homes you could never afford, test drive a Mercedes or Masserati and go to shops to try on clothes or jewelry you would never buy.  End the day with appetizers and drinks or just Tira Misu and coffee with Grand Marnier and stay in that millionaire frame of mind as you try to imagine just how the rich people treat their lovers and partners.
14. Stop at your favorite romantic restaurant or a new one you’d like to try and pick up a matchbook with their name on the front. In a brightly colored ink, write a romantic message, asking your partner to meet you at the restaurant at a certain date and time and then leave it where you know they will find it. Be sure to leave the cover of the matchbook open so your partner will notice the brightly colored message peeking out at them. Then get to the restaurant early and bring a flower, order a bottle of wine and get ready for some romance!

Now that you have some ideas for dates, you can continue with more of your own, using these ideas every week, or every few weeks, to surprise your partner.

To get some spice and romance back in your life, you’ll want to do something new and different.  You don’t have to START with things that seem foreign to you.

If you have never done anything more romantic than slap your spouse on the behind, it may be a bit of a stretch for you to pull off a lavender scented bath for two with rose petals floating on the water.

Start small.

That way, you will get more comfortable with the idea of romance and as you proceed you can think of new and more elaborate things to do without feeling you are out of your element.

You have to get used to the new habits, and that takes a bit of time.  Don’t worry, we’re going to give you plenty of ideas for those small romantic touches and for the big special occasions like anniversaries and proposals.

First, let’s see how well know your partner.  The key to romance for YOUR relationship is to do things you know YOUR partner will like.

Don’t worry about what made that woman on the big screen melt, do what makes YOU and YOUR partner happy.

Though your discomfort with romance will fade as you practice, if you try to do something that feels foreign to you as a person or to your relationship you probably won’t want to try it again.

So, just how well DO YOU KNOW YOUR PARTNER? Get ready to gather answers and determine…

1. How does your partner like to relax at the end of a long, tiring day?
2. What is your partner’s favorite dinner entrée?
3. Does your partner like the ‘pet name’ you’ve given him/her?
4. What makes your partner smile?
5. What does your partner like to do on a special occasion?
6. What kind of movies does your partner like best?
7. What is your partner’s favorite place (park, beach, etc.)
8. What city would your partner find romantic?
9. What puts your partner in a romantic mood?
10. Name a celebrity your partner finds attractive or sexy
11. Does your partner like to get up early, or sleep late?
12. Is your partner a night owl?
13. What recreational activity does your partner like best?  (dancing, jogging, biking, horseback riding, sports, etc.)
14. Does your partner prefer a hot bath or a long shower to relax?
15. Does your partner prefer red wine or white wine?
16. Does your partner like public displays of affection or is he/she a very private person when it comes to romance
17. If you had to dress in something sexy for your partner, what would they like the best?
18. What kind of music puts your partner ‘in the mood’?
19. When your partner is distracted or upset, does he/she find words, or touch, more comforting or perhaps both?
20. What is the fastest way to turn your partner off?  What pathetic or revolting attempt at sexiness would they find unsexy or unromantic?

You may wonder why this exercise is important.  Very simply, these answers will help you personalize your romantic experience with your partner.

If you found it hard to answer some or most of these questions, you don’t have to give up on romance.  Just take the time to ask questions and find out more about what appeals to your partner.

It doesn’t have to be an interview or inquisition.

You can start by saying something like “You know, from the pictures I’ve seen, I always thought the Caribbean would be a romantic place.  If you could pick a romantic spot to go, where would it be?”

By asking your partner questions, you will find out who they are TODAY, and not have to depend on 20-year-old conversations you had during your first date.

Remember, a big part of romance is knowing what makes the other person tick and showing how much you care by doing something THEY will like.