Are you ready! Know what you’re going to do.. got it ALL planned out? Well, if you’re not reading this the day of Valentine’s Day, then you should have ample time to plan a GREAT date. If this is Valentines Day, you still might have time; some of these ideas can be quickly put together.

Below you’ll find 10 Great, Romantic, ideas for this special occasion. But before we get into the 10 Valentines Day Ideas, let me just give you some insight.

Think a string of plans.. don’t do just one thing! Make a day or at the very least an entire night of it. You don’t just go to dinner. You go to dinner, a movie.. and then to the club for dancing (or whatever)!.. and then to the bedroom if you are at that stage.

Here’s my trusty minimum 4 Step Romance Plan that’s worked for me for years:

1. Take them out to a nice Supper somewhere romantic (of course!)
2. After catch a movie or cozy up on the couch with a movie (often better!)
3. And if you want to top it off, take them to your favorite club or to a nice cocktail bar for a few drinks… meeting friends or just with each other.
4. Then… again, that last step depends on the stage of the relationship you are in.

All along.. thinking romance. And don’t forget the romantic gifts! Now I may switch out or mix up some of those things and you can with the 10 ideas below, but essentially that’s the flow.

Now let’s see what we can plug in there.

IDEA #1

Go to a Nice, Romantic Restaurant. Most probably already know about this one. The key though is to take an ordinary restaurant experience and make it extrodinary.

• Take her or him to a fancier, more romantic, restaurant that you would on a normal occasion. spend a little more!
• See if you can’t coordinate ahead of time to get seated in the most romantic part of the restaurant. That could be one that overlooks a lake, is nearer to the piano, is more secluded.. consider the lighting etc..
• And think of other things you can do to make your experience special like knowing what wine she likes ahead of time and being prepared to order it. Making sure there’s candlelight. Revealing a special gift during dinner.

A restaurant can set the tone for the whole evening. Don’t take the choice and planning in this department lightly!

IDEA #2

Take her/him to a Movie! Again, don’t take the planning of this lightly either. Choose a more romantic flick or one your significant other you know will enjoy. If you are planning your date, it’s all about them! Not necessarily what you like doing the most. (of course, don’t do something you hate..)

IDEA #3

Take her/him to a Romantic Local Getaway. I know nearby where I live there’s a place called the Sybaris where I’ve taken a few ladies in the past including my current wife. One of our first Valentines Day experiences was taking her out to dinner, blind folding her and taking her to this romantic destination! (I like making things a suprise.. )

If you don’t have access to something like that or it’s not in the budget, just a regular hotel can be a nice place to go. Even if it’s local! It’s nice to get away from your home sometimes for these special, romantic rendezvous. Soak in a hot tub, have some nice champagne in the room… among other things.

IDEA #4

Does she/he have a funny bone? Take her/him to a comedy club!

We all have different personalities, but for me there’s nothing better than to set the mood with some light humor. These places can also be romantic if you find yourself at your own table with cocktails and candlelight.

The take away here is ‘know your lover’. Know what they love, their personality and do things that you KNOW they will get a kick out of.

IDEA #5

Take him or her/him to a concert! Since you’re planning this, again, this isn’t about you.. ..you know what their favorite band is or music. Choose something that they’ll love and that will get them really, really excited. Lots of rewards will follow.

Again, you can combine this with a night out on the town, go to a nice supper before hand and mix in other romantic features.

IDEA #6

A romantic stroll and/or picnic.. How or if you can do this will depend widely on the climate and weather, but there’s nothing more romantic than a walk through the woods, in a park or on the beach. Mix it with a pre-planned picnic, you can’t go wrong!

One of the most romantic things you can do is pay attention, listen and talk with your partner. Talk about your relationships, how much you love each other.. bring up good times you’ve had in the past and what you look forward to in the future. A walk can give you that time.

A big part of any Valentines Day Date is the conversation. Make it intimate. Talk about things you know the other cares about and that emphasizes the love you have for each other. The more you focus on the love, the more love that will come out of it.

IDEA #7

Send her or him flowers to their workplace. Or even a basket of some sort.. one time I sent a romantic Valentines Day cookie basket. I remember it being filled with big cookies in the shape of hearts and decorated all Valentines Day-ish. She loved it!

There are so many great ideas out there for this. You can browse the collection of Baskets we have at RomancinGifts.com if you desire: Romantic Gift Baskets

IDEA #8

Give a gift certificate for a treat at the spa! My wife loves this one. This is an outstanding idea for both men and women. Men even like to be pampered sometimes.. of course we KNOW many women do.

You can even go together. Give your partner a certificate for a message, manicure or a full day at a spa. There are a great number of Spas and Salons to choose from; probably something in your area. You will be able to choose from a wide variety of packages.. and don’t forget to look for Valentine’s specials!

Check this Out:

IDEA #8

Make a Romantic Video! Do you have a Web Cam? Video on your Phone? Flip Video Recorder? ..you don’t? Bet you know someone that does!

It doesn’t have to be a long message. Just record something a minute long if you want.. tell him or her how much you love them. Tease them a little about your evenings activities. Talk about what your hopes are for the future; whatever! It’s a great touch no matter what the topic.. if it’s about the both of you.

This is especially special if you find yourself apart for Valentines day.. it’s not hard to upload videos to the web these days.

IDEA #9

This one might require a creative side of you.. Make a game of the night!

One idea would be to create a homemade spinner.. have him/her spin for what you do next. Whether that’s for the night in general or.. in the bedroom. Or a combination! There are even Romantic Lover Games on the market that you could get if your parnter would be ok with those type of things. (I say that because my wife doesn’t like those type of games much )

You could also do some kind of ‘Clues’ game. Where you hide things for them to find.. that they have to follow and eventually leads to a surprise at the end.

Be Creative; have fun with it!

IDEA #10

Just like taking her/him to see a concert or comedy club, if she/he is into sports or other physical activities, incorporate that! There are few things more romantic than going to a skate park and falling into each others arms.

Roller Blading, Hiking, Biking.. Jumping off cliffs, Bungee jumping, Zip-lining! Having fun together with these type of activities and then finding yourself having a nice romantic candlelight dinner after in front of a fire… Great combo!

No Matter What You Decide…

Remember it’s about your partner; and about the two of you together. No matter what you do, if you are doing it together.. having fun, enjoying each other, loving each others company.. it’ll be a success.

The activities you do and the things you give are only the backdrop. It’s your love for each other that is center stage. The gift doesn’t have to be perfect.. the night can not go 100% the way you had hoped, but if you are focused on each other.. the conversation, the little looks, kisses, hugs.. etc..

This Valentines will be perfect.

Good Luck!

-Joe Taylor

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I know someone who for the longest time (since I’ve known her and that’s something like 10 years) didn’t date. She didn’t have a boyfriend. She was busy with work, some charity stuff and whatever else. But never seeked guys or made it a priority.

She’s in her later 30s. Not old.. but the clock is of course ticking if she wants to have kids. …which she does. A family.

The last year, 2009, she decided to try online dating using eHarmony.com. Great! I was happy for her. She finally got up the courage and took control of her love life.

She went on a few dates and it took a few months, but she finally reeled someone special in. Online Dating worked for her! I saw it.. true story.

I believe they hooked up somewhere in the neighborhood of September or early October. She is all worried about getting a ring already! That’s all she talked about the weeks leading up to Christmas.. was she going to get a ring? When will they get married! Obsessed.

I don’t care how in love she ‘thinks’ she is. And I don’t care how well she ‘thinks’ she knows this guy. More time! He’s been married before and has a kid which adds to the need to take things slow..

I met him.. she had to take us out to meet him to see what we thought.. but even though he was a really nice guy, I don’t really ‘know’ him. I can say he’s good looking and seems like a good guy, but in the end, it’s up to the person dating them to really get to know them better.

People can change.. be one way for a few months and then Pow! Different.. or a topic comes up you never really hit on that’s important to you and that changes things. Things can happen. That’s why I believe people need more than a few months before major commitments and life changing decisions.

Why the rush? Yes, the internal clock.. Yes, you can feel so madly in love that you can’t imagine being with anyone else ever again.. but that is no reason to play with something so precious as marriage. I may be old fashioned, but I take marriage pretty seriously. I know things can happen, but they are less likely to if you TAKE YOUR TIME.

Certainly don’t add the pressure of getting married two months in! Right? Am I right?

Even IF it’s love at first site; mellow.. enjoy each other. You have a lifetime.

-Joe Taylor

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It’s very easy when you are dating… and dating… and dating… to feel that you may never find the perfect match for you. You may be trying endlessly, but there’s always something that derails. Maybe:

• You’ve been cheated on… I had by several women; and those are just the ones I know about..
• Bad habits like making snorting noises while he (or she!) eats…
• She’s into that Feminine Domination thing.. I know how every guy is scared of that!
• He’s all about me, me, me… Muscles, but no brains.

The list goes on right? Let’s face it, there’s a lot of imperfect people out there!

The good news is all of us are fishing in the same ocean. Some get lucky and find that perfect mate when they are still in High School. But most of us don’t. And by the time most people are deep into their 20s and 30s, they have plenty of good and bad stories to tell.

I did find my soul mate until I was almost 30 years old! Yes, at the time I got lucky, but you know something? I was unlucky many, many times before that. I had dated a LOT of women. Slept with more than my wife likes to hear.

…Some were one night.. some went on for a few years.

But the only reason I finally got to where I am today is because I never gave up. Yes, I hit some low points, but know that you get over those. You CAN move on unless there’s some underlying psychological issue that can’t be resolved or is unattended to.

You will not be Single Forever!

One of the best golfers of all time once said,

“The harder you work, the luckier you get.” ~Gary Player

Same applies to dating and finding that special someone.

They aren’t going to come to you; you have to go after the prize. And you can’t chalk up losers and failures to anything more than you becoming better as a person, better at the game and becoming one step closer to finding that perfect course to play on.

-Joe Taylor

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