How To Date On A Budget Ideas & Inspiration || CopperRed Photography

Okay so I love to date my husband. Yup, we still date and we do it on the regular. In fact we’ve got the next 5 months of dates already booked into our google calendars with the sitter booked up too. It’s that important to us. If new couples or newlyweds ever ask for my advice on how to still be totally head over heels about each other after 13 years I hands down tell them it’s to never stop dating each other.

But let’s face it if you’re saving for a wedding or like us you’ve got a million mini humans to put through sport and feed then money isn’t always in abundance for super cool dates and vacations. So we get a little creative and we manage to do some pretty cool stuff at a low cost.

I thought it would be awesome to share all the ideas we do in case you can make them work for you too. Here goes…

1. CINEMA = FREE

Okay so if you are based in Canada and have a SCENE VISA card then guess what? Go to the cinema for free! You can even use your SCENE points for food. So when we go we indulge in the popcorn and drinks we never would normally pay for and use the points to go crazy lol. Alternatively I am 100% happy to say that I am one of those pre-planners who will go to the local Dollarama to stock up my handbag with some cheap treats.

If you don’t have a SCENE card to collect the points then don’t forget that you can get the killer deal in Costco where you buy 2 passes plus popcorn and 2 drinks for $29.99. Don’t waste money if you have a Costco membership and can tap into that discount.

Cheeky side note: That’s also an awesome gift idea for friends and family

2. MASSAGE = FREE

Yup thats right FREE. Wanna know how? Benefits. Do you have benefits or does your spouse have benefits? You’ll likely have an annual budget for massage. Just be careful to check what your max amount per claim is in order to pay nothing for your massage. For example we have a $500 limit per person per year BUT we can each only claim $105 at any one time. So we make sure we book massages under that amount to avoid paying anything. Also be sure you’ve booked with a Registered Massage Therapist. To my knowledge most insurance companies will only allow you to claim massage when it’s with an RMT and they give you a special receipt.

At The Sanctuary in Vaughan we were able to book a couples side-by-side massage both with RMT’s and received a separate receipt each so we didn’t pay a thing! Wahoo!!

3. FOOD = FREE or fraction of the price

We are total foodies. Hands down one of our favourite things to do when we date is EAT! Anyone else with us on this one lol. So there are a few ways you can make this portion or the date so much more affordable or even free and here they are…

- Use your SCENE points. Yup did you know that you can pay for your meal at some restaurants with them? I honestly had no idea about this until December when I took hubbie out for a birthday dinner double date at Fionn McCools in Newmarket and when I was using the chip and pin machine it gave me the option to enter my SCENE card number, so I did, and then I was able to use points for different money values off the meal! SO GOOD!

Here is a list of all the places you can redeem your SCENE points at: Click here

- Groupon. Okay so this option takes a little pre-planning because most of the time when you purchase a meal/drinks deal on groupon there is a time delay for you to use it. But if you’re super organized with your dates and know ahead of time that it’s coming then just jump on there and you’ll be able to get some amazing meal deals.

- Do a little research and find any restaurants who run daily offers. I know for example that St Louis do half priced Apps on Thursdays (maybe we go there too much lo). So instead of buying a meal just grab 3-4 apps and share them with a beer.

4. Go Exploring = FREE

I know you maybe roll your eyes at this one but seriously we’ve had some of our most fun date days when all we’ve done is jump in the car, drive to a super cool trail or new town and gone walking. Pack a flask of hot chocolate and just enjoy being alone together. There are so many awesome trails around and towns too. One town that we loved to look around was Port Perry. Have you headed over there yet? Before we were vegan we LOVED the fish and chips joint there Captain George Fish & Chips.

https://breakawayexperiences.com/kananaskis-snowshoe-tour

5. Snowshoeing OR Ice Skating at Arrowhead Provincial Park = FREE or $

So really you could do this one at many places BUT if you’re looking for a more unique day that’ll feel extra special then head up to Arrowhead Provincial Park and do the ice skating trail there or go snowshoeing. If you’re Canadian it’s likely you own your own skates already and if not you know someone you can borrow from to keep it super cheap. Alternately you can rent both the skates and shoes at the park for a relatively low fee (about $10 I think).

Check it out Arrowhead Provincial Park

6. Cook Like Chefs = $

Okay so maybe you cannot get out. Maybe you’ve got mini humans and don’t have the money for the sitter AND the date. So you have to get creative inside the house. Our top choice is to Cook Like Chefs lol. We find a crazy recipe that we love the sound of but would never normally make because it’s got lots of elements and is wayyyy too time consuming for a Monday to Friday dinner. We pop on a playlist on Google Home (currently I’m lovin some James Arthur) and flirt while we cook.

It is SO much freakin fun to just cook up a storm together and better yet we didn’t have to pay for a sitter and we used price matching coupons for a lot of the ingredients so we didn’t spend much wonga at all! Maybe even look in your cupboards before picking the meal, discover what you’ve already got and then goggle for recipes that use those ingredients to keep costs low.

If you need some recipe inspo check out these tasty ideas: Date Night Dinner Ideas

Other tips on how to date on a budget…

• If you can’t date because you can’t afford a sitter do a sitter swap. Find a friend and ask to switch with them. You’ll watch their kiddos for free one friday night if they come and watch your another. Win win.

• When you have a new baby it’s tough to get out so date nights in are amazing. If you don’t fancy cooking other ideas…board games, take a bath together, set up pillows and rugs on the floor, light candles and watch a movie cuddled up

• Staycation. If you can’t afford a vacation together this year maybe you can steal s weekend in the nearest city? Airbnb has been our go-to sometimes for a cheeky night away in Toronto. A fraction of the cost and you really feel like you actually got away despite being 40 minutes down the road.

• VACATION on Air miles or it’s equivalent. We just checked our point a month or so ago after totally forgetting about them and never using them in the 7 years we’ve had the card and we discovered we have enough points for international flights! So check up on your travel/air mile points and see if you’ve got a sneaky cheap vacay awaiting you.

Whatever you do, do something and don’t leave it to chance. My #1 tip would be to book it in and book in multiple. Make it a priority and get organized. Then approach it with the level of intention you did before you got together, before you got married, before you had kiddos. Remember those days when you knew you were on a date that night and you’d do your hair, makeup, shave your legs and spend time choosing the outfit? Well put in that level of effort. You’ll reap what you sow as they say and when you approach each other with the same energy you did in the beginning you’ll discover a new found interest and passion for your relationship. Try it…you’ll see!