Halloween is not just for kids, nor is it an excuse to endure watching Friday the 13th on AMC ad nauseum. Believe it or not, the thirty-first of October is a great date night. It promotes fun and frolic, and, ahem, role playing. Whether you spend a night in or outdoors, spending Halloween together can be a real treat for couples.
Here are our ideas from the silly to the sexy that will surely (pumpkin) spice up your evening.
Buy a Pumpkin Together
Hit up a local pumpkin patch to pick out your own Great Pumpkin. Forget shopping at Loblaws. Instead, make a day of it and venture out to the countryside while taking in the romantic fall foliage. Later at home, carve out your pumpkin together. Or pick up two pumpkins and hold a carving contest. Save the seeds so you can toast them when you’re done and use them as a snack to go alongside your hot apple cider as you snuggle by the fire (or space heater).
Go to that Halloween Party
We all know that one guy who throws a Halloween party each year. Sure, the costumes are lame and there are only so many times you can listen to “Monster Mash,” but Halloween parties are a whole more fun when you have a plus one on your arm – who happens to be dressed as Princess Leia. Taking part in a couples costume is also an awesome form of bonding and working as a team, as well as an easy/less awkward way of letting people know that you and your girl are “together” without having to say it (though you probably should verbalise it at some point). So go ahead and be the Bagel to her Lox, or Westley to her Buttercup—you might actually enjoy yourself.
Visit a Haunted House
Most cities host a number of haunted houses and attractions, including everything from haunted walks to creepy corn fields. Not only is getting the bejesus scared out of you an adrenaline rush, it’s also a great excuse to cling onto each other for the whole night. If you’re really game for showing how brave you are, you might want to check out legit haunted places like The Old Spaghetti Factory in Vancouver, the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City or the Keg Mansion in Toronto.
Hand Out Candy Together
Doling out candy to young trick o’ treaters has always been one of my favourite Halloween activities to do. Not only is it relaxing and intimate, but it’s also a great chance to see the local kids dressed up and to interact with friends and neighbours. It’s also an opportunity to get to know your date in a unique way and see how she interacts around strangers. And, if you’re dying to be a dad, or already are one, you will also get to see how she is with kids. Crack open a bottle of wine to make it more “grown up” and don’t forget to indulge in some candy between guests.
Stay In and “Snuggle”
Staying in to watch a scary movie is probably the most clichéd Halloween date of all, but that’s because it’s a goodie. The thrill of watching a horror movie amps up the excitement and is also a pretty damn good excuse to cuddle. You could go all for gore and guts with the Saw franchise, go cheesy with Halloween or flirty with Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Use that pent up excitement to your advantage by suggesting a Sexy Costume Party For Two and sleepover.
Brianne Hogan is a freelance writer based in Toronto, something of a humorist, and considers herself more Bridget Jones than Samantha Jones. Though she won’t reveal which parts, she will admit to liking emotionally unavailable men and drinking lots of wine. You can follow her on Twitter @briannehogan.
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