COVID-19 has certainly put a damper on date night. We have an older article—230+ Rochester Date Night Ideas: The Ultimate Guide to Spending Time Together—that was published during another time.
A time when people gathered en masse for concerts and musicals and dancing. Even something as traditional as dinner and a movie is off the table. Alas, many of the things we did then are not options for now.
So we’ve scaled back our ideas to those you can still do. And we’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below, especially as the cold winter weather forces us back indoors.
Date Night Ideas
Whether it’s your first date or 50th, spending time trying new activities with your partner is a great way to connect, learn more about each other, and avoid the routine rut or feelings of isolation.
Take a Walk
In the Snow
- Great Winter Walks
- Rent Snowshoes
- Sledding Hills
- Downhill & Cross-Country Skiing
- Outdoor & Indoor Ice Skating Rinks
In the Park
- Monroe County Parks
- Seek Solitude
- Get Away From It All
- National Natural Landmarks
- New York State Parks
- Beautiful Boardwalks
- Hiking Trails
- Gorge Trails
- Geo-caching
- Rock City
- Genesee Riverway Trail in the City
- Genesee Valley Greenway south of the city
- Nature Centers & Wildlife Preserves
Among the Flowers
Explore a Hidden Place
- Corbett’s Glen
- Sunken Garden
- Grimes Glen
- Old Canal Lock 62
- Rochester’s Hidden Sidewalk
- Channing H. Philbrick Park
- Turning Point Park
- Washington Grove
- Helmer Nature Center
- Holley Canal Falls
- The Jump Off
- Akron Falls
- Havana Glen
- Thomas Creek Wetland Walk
- Bergen Swamp
- Griffis Sculpture Park
Take a Scenic Drive
- Lake Ontario Seaway Trail
- Historic Routes 5 & 20
- Spend a Day in the Finger Lakes Region
- Erie Canal
- Greater Rochester Nine-County Area
- Breathtaking Views of Fall Foliage
- Quirky Roadside Attractions
- Explore Rochester’s Street Art
Head for Water
- Genesee River Through the City of Rochester
- Letchworth State Park
- Lake Ontario
- The Finger Lakes
- Roadside Waterfalls
- Kayak Rochester’s Water Trails
- Whitewater Rafting with Adventure Calls Outfitters
Go fishing
Spend Time Among The Animals
- Seneca Park Zoo
- Rosamond Gifford Zoo
- Buffalo Zoo
- Hidden Valley Animal Adventure
- Wickham Farm
- Stokoe Farms
- Braddock Bay Raptor Research
- Wildwings
Watch the sun set (or rise!)
These suggestions link to Google image search results to give you an idea for each area. Take a scientific approach to watching the optimal sun set using this calculation of the sun’s position at a given time, date and location. Try August 8 at 18:30 (sunset is 18:55) at Cobb’s Hill (43.1396542, -77.5723119) and you can see below why this is very popular place to watch the sun set.