Now that summer is here, I’m excited about our upcoming date nights! David and I have a standing weekly date night, and during the summer, they are a bit more frequent and impromptu. Here are 25 of our favorite summer date night ideas!
Top 25 Romantic Summer Date Ideas
Visit a Museum: Many local museums are a great way to spend time, learn something new, and stay cool! If you’re local to Raleigh, the North Carolina Museum of History is a favorite!
Go out for ice cream: While I don’t love sweets, one of our favorite quick date nights is to go out for ice cream. Here are some of our favorites in downtown Raleigh and we are big fans of Sunni Sky’s in Angier.
Take a drive and have a car picnic: I love to take a drive out east and pull over to take in the scenes. There is nothing better than packing a little picnic to enjoy from the back of the car while catching up.
Find live music to enjoy: Whether it’s at a local dive or at a venue, David and I enjoy listening to live music. Some of our favorite spots are in Saxapahaw and Roost Beer Garden at Fearrington Village.
Try a new food truck: I’m a big fan of food trucks, and I love to try new ones. One of our favorite ways to do that is the downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo each month in the summer. Admission is free and it takes up about half a mile, so there are a lot of options to choose from!
Make s’mores: It’s usually too hot and humid for fires at night, but on the rare cool night, I love a good bonfire complete with s’mores.
Pack a picnic: There are so many lovely places to have a picnic around the Triangle–the Raleigh Rose Garden, Dorothea Dix campus, Duke Gardens, and the grounds at UNC-Chapel Hill. Here are some of our picnic essentials and our favorite picnic spots in Raleigh.
Rent a boat: Whether it’s a kayak, paddleboat, or a pontoon, David and I love to have a date night on the water.
Catch a sunset after work: One of my favorite parts of our ranch is the front porch. We will either hang out on the rockers or on the porch swing and watch the sunset. We’ve started doing this to catch up on our days and to enjoy spending time together.
Cheer on your local baseball team: We are both big baseball fans, and lucky for us, there are an abundance of baseball teams around us, like the Holly Springs Salamanders, Carolina Mudcats, and the Durham Bulls. Bonus points if the stadium is having fireworks on the night we’re there.
Go to a beer tasting: With the uptick of breweries, a beer tasting is always a fun way to spend the afternoon. Use code Meghan518123 for $10 off your first Lyft in Raleigh/Durham.
Play a game: We are really competitive, so whether it’s a card game or mini-golf, we love to have a little friendly competition.
Have a rooftop happy hour: I’m obsessed with a good rooftop, and Raleigh has some real gems. The one at the Durham Hotel is also a popular one for us.
Be a tourist in your own city: I love to check out new places, whether they are new to the area, or new to us. Plan an itinerary to try some of the places you’ve been meaning to check out together.
Visit the zoo: Y’all, David loves the zoo. We had the best time on our lunch date and checking out the exhibits. There is also the Carolina Tiger Rescue in Pittsboro that would be a fun spot to hang out as well.
Stroll the flea market: When we first bought a house, we went to the flea market every Sunday to buy eclectic items for our new home and have a slice of pizza from the food truck there. While we don’t do this nearly as often as we should, it is still one of my fondest memories from our first house.
Enjoy a progressive supper: I’m a big fan of progressive dining because I get to sample multiple places in one trip. We typically we park in a convenient location and walk to various places to try starters, an entree, and then finish with ice cream. Here are some date night ideas for Raleigh if this is your idea of a good time, too!Â
Catch an outdoor movie: This is an annual summer date for us at the North Carolina Museum of Art. We pick out a movie, pack snacks, chairs, a blanket, and La Croix (they also sell beer and wine there), and enjoy an outdoor movie. I love the NCMA anyway–its grounds are absolutely beautiful, but I also love being outside under the stars. Here is the summer film line up.
Take a day trip: Y’all know I love a good day trip, and there are so many cute towns right around Raleigh. We recently went to the Rocky Mount Mills for the day, and here are some of my other favorite ones in North Carolina. Not from NC? I still encourage you to check out the surrounding areas to explore a new area.
Go on a hike: I won’t lie, I’m not the biggest fan of hiking. However, we love to take the boys to the Eno River or to a local greenway for a long walk in the evenings.
Drive to a local farm: There are so many local farms now opening up their space for the public. You can walk the grounds, do yoga, or hang out with chickens and goats. Check out Mandolin’s farm dinner or sunset yoga every Tuesday at Morris Peaceland Farm. Another favorite is the Family Farm in Holly Springs.
Go berry picking: Grab a basket and go pick berries from a local farm. There is one near us that also sells homemade ice cream you can enjoy while picking fruit.
Stargaze: Grab a blanket, a bottle of wine, and hang out checking out the stars. We have uninterrupted views of the sky where we live with makes it perfect for this type of date.
Buy ingredients at the local farmers’ market for supper: I love fresh veggies and fruits, particularly during the summer. David is now the chef of our house, so we are planning a date where we head to the State Farmer’s Market and only use the ingredients we buy there for our supper that night. Or, it’s just a fun stroll where you can find fresh flowers, the best peaches, and some new plants for your porch.
Drive to a nearby beach or out west: We’re so lucky to have Wilmington and Topsail not too far from our house. But taking a drive to Winston-Salem or even Blowing Rock would make for a fun day trip.
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