Fun + Fabulous Date Nights for Your Wedding Prep
“Let’s go babe. We need a date night!”
Date Nights for your Wedding Prep isn’t just about staying romantic. It’s a necessity to keep from wanting to smother your spouse-to-be with the matching napkins.
Jake and I have been married a long time now, and if there’s one thing that’s carried us through wedding planning, four kids, and running a business together, it’s this: you have to keep dating each other. Not just before the wedding. During it. And honestly, for the rest of your marriage too.
So, before you get lost in the checklist, here are our house rules for a good date night, plus a few of our favorite PNW spots to try them out. I am all about having fun, after all isn’t that what life is all about? We also believe in the importance of date night!
The Rules (Such As They Are)
- No wedding talk. This isn’t a planning meeting, it’s a date. Save the seating chart for daylight hours.
- Take turns planning. Spontaneity is hard to come by when you’re both working and planning a wedding, especially if there are kids and childcare to coordinate. Trading off who plans means neither of you is always the one making calls and buying tickets, and it means you both get surprised once in a while.
- Don’t get stuck in a rut. Same restaurant, same bar, same movie night. It’s easy, but it gets old fast. Mix it up.
These ideas are all local to us here in the South Sound and greater Seattle area, but the categories work anywhere you live.
For a Silly, No-Pressure Night
Some dates don’t need to be deep. They just need to be fun.
Dorky’s Arcade in downtown Tacoma is a great low-key option: pizza, beer, and a room full of pinball and old-school arcade games. Let your competitive side out and see who’s buying the next round.
Kent Valley Ice Centre is another easy one, especially if neither of you has skated in years. There’s something about wobbling around a rink together that turns into a genuinely great time (and a lot of laughing at each other). They’ve also got mini golf and a cafe if skating isn’t quite your speed.
For Something Slower and More Intentional
If you’re craving actual quiet, not just a break from wedding talk, Wellspring Spa near Mount Rainier is worth the drive out to Ashford. It’s a woodland retreat with private hot tubs, cabins, and even a treehouse to stay in. Cell service is spotty out there, which honestly might be the best feature. A full day and night with nothing to do but talk about your future (or say nothing at all) is hard to come by once the wedding season really kicks in.
Closer to home, a sunset picnic at Kerry Park in Seattle is the low-cost version of the same idea. Grab a blanket, pack some snacks, and take in that classic skyline view while you actually talk to each other. It’s one of those simple date nights that never really gets old.
For a Night Out on the Town
When you want a real night out, Can Can Culinary Cabaret in Pike Place Market delivers. It’s an intimate dinner theatre with rotating shows, live music, and genuinely great food. It’s the kind of date that feels like an event, not just dinner.
If you’re up for something a little different, catch a bout with Rat City Roller Derby. It’s fast, it’s loud, and it’s one of those only-in-Seattle experiences that makes for a great story later. Grab tickets, cheer loudly, and maybe swing by for burgers after.
Wedding planning will always try to take up all the space in your relationship if you let it. Don’t let it. Protect the dates, keep it playful, and remember why you started planning this whole thing in the first place.
Got a favorite date night spot of your own? We’d love to hear where you two like to sneak off to.
Planning your wedding and need a break from the planning altogether? Check out our free wedding planning resources for the practical stuff, so you have more time for the fun stuff.
The Kent Valley Ice Center
The Kent Valley Ice Center, Located in Kent Washington, this easy to get to arena is a fantastic date night. Even if you’ve never gone ice skating before, it’s fun and often hilarious to try it together. The Ice Center offers other enjoyments at well, such as mini – golf and a cafe for snacking. I’m sure you’ll be able to think of a way to warm yourselves up when you’re done on the ice!
The Can Can Cabaret, Pike Place Market, Seattle Washington
Talk about a sexy date night. The Can Can is an intimate theater showcasing burlesque dancers. Themed, seasonal offerings are always changing – but the one thing that doesn’t change is the stunning meal and drink options – which are only outclassed by the funny, sexy MC Johnny Boy and the crazy talented, and gorgeous, troupe of burlesque dancers. Hit up an evening showing with your lover and prepare for a very fun, very funny, and very sexy date night. Tickets purchased here: http://www.thecancan.com/
Rat City Roller Derby
Key Arena in Seattle Washington is the place to be if you want to take in a kick ass night of roller derby. Not sure what roller derby is? It’s a blend of roller skating and female wrestling – hot chicks with tattoos and epic blocking moves… It’s pretty awesome! Check out their link here: http://ratcityrollergirls.com/ and get your tickets. Plan on a casual, exciting, sexy night of rowdy girls and loud spectators. Then maybe pick up a burger at Dicks and head home.
Do you have other favorite date suggestions? Is there a hidden gem in the city you would like to share with other couples? Leave us a comment, and let us know what you like to do together to blow off steam and where you go on your favorite date night.
