There’s something about Christmas that makes everything feel more romantic. Maybe it’s the twinkling lights, the excuse to cuddle up against the cold, or just the general magic in the air. Whatever it is, I’m here for it.
My husband and I have been together for over a decade now, and Christmas dates have become one of my favorite traditions. Early in our relationship, we’d bundle up and drive around looking at lights, stopping for hot chocolate, and talking about our future. Now, with two boys in tow most of the time, we’re even more intentional about carving out time for just the two of us during the holiday season.
I’ve learned that Christmas date ideas don’t have to be elaborate or expensive to be memorable. Some of our best dates have been completely free; walking through our neighborhood admiring decorations, baking cookies together after the kids are asleep, or just sitting by our tree with wine and Christmas music. But we’ve also done some bigger adventures that have become cherished memories.
The key is variety. Some dates lean into the cozy, intimate side of the season. Others embrace the festive, social energy. And honestly, I think you need both. So here are 55 Christmas date ideas that cover the full spectrum of holiday romance.
Classic Christmas Date Ideas That Never Get Old
1. Drive Around Looking at Christmas Lights
This is the one we do every single year. Make thermoses of hot chocolate (add peppermint schnapps if you’re feeling festive), create a playlist of your favorite Christmas songs, and just drive. Rate the houses, laugh at the over-the-top displays, get lost in neighborhoods you’ve never explored. It’s simple, but it never stops being magical.
2. Go Ice Skating
Whether it’s an outdoor rink downtown or an indoor one at the mall, there’s something quintessentially Christmas about ice skating. Hold hands, help each other stay upright, laugh when you fall. We’re terrible skaters, which somehow makes it more fun.
3. Visit a Christmas Market
If you live near a city with a Christmas market, this is perfect. Browse the stalls, buy handmade ornaments, drink mulled wine, and eat roasted chestnuts. The atmosphere alone is worth it, and you’ll probably find unique gifts while you’re there.
4. See The Nutcracker
Local ballet companies perform it every year. It’s beautiful, it’s festive, and it gives you an excuse to get dressed up. Plus, there’s something romantic about experiencing a live performance together.
5. Go to a Christmas Concert
Church choir, symphony orchestra, local band doing holiday covers; whatever’s available in your area. Live Christmas music hits differently than recorded, and you’re creating a memory together.
6. Take a Sleigh Ride
If you live somewhere with snow and access to sleigh rides, this is peak Christmas romance. Bundle up under blankets, listen to the jingle of bells, and feel like you’re in a Hallmark movie.
7. Visit a Tree Farm and Cut Down Your Own Tree
Make a whole day of it. Walk the rows together picking the perfect tree, drink hot cider, and take photos. Then bring it home and decorate it together. The tree becomes a symbol of your shared effort.
8. Attend a Christmas Eve Service
Even if you’re not particularly religious, there’s something beautiful about candlelight services on Christmas Eve. It’s quiet, reflective, and centers you on what the season is really about.
9. Go Caroling
I know, I know, it sounds old-fashioned. But find some friends or just go as a couple to a nursing home or through your neighborhood. Spreading joy together is incredibly bonding.
10. Visit a Gingerbread House Display
Museums, hotels, and community centers often have elaborate gingerbread displays during the holidays. It’s whimsical and impressive and gives you ideas for your own baking projects.
Cozy Indoor Christmas Dates
11. Bake Christmas Cookies Together
Put on Christmas music, pour some wine or cider, and spend the evening baking. Sugar cookies, gingerbread, whatever you love. The house will smell amazing, and you’ll have treats to share or give as gifts.
12. Have a Christmas Movie Marathon
Build a fort with blankets and pillows, make popcorn, and queue up your favorites. We alternate picking movies; he gets Die Hard, I get While You Were Sleeping, and we both love Home Alone.
13. Decorate Your Home Together
Don’t rush through it. Put on music, take breaks for hot chocolate, and hang each ornament intentionally. Talk about where they came from, the memories attached. We do this over several evenings, and it’s become one of my favorite parts of the season.
14. Make Homemade Hot Chocolate
Not from a packet; the real stuff. Find a recipe, get quality chocolate, make it from scratch together. Top with homemade whipped cream and peppermint. Sit by the tree and enjoy.
15. Wrap Presents Together
This sounds mundane, but hear me out. Pour some wine, put on Christmas music, set up a wrapping station. You’re being productive but also spending quality time together. Plus, it’s one less thing on your to-do list.
16. Build a Gingerbread House
Buy a kit or make it from scratch. Either way, it’s fun and ridiculous. Ours always looks drunk and lopsided, but we laugh the whole time we’re building it.
17. Have a Christmas Cocktail Tasting
Make three or four festive cocktails: cranberry margaritas, peppermint martinis, spiked eggnog, and white Russians. Rate them, pick your favorite, enjoy the buzz, and each other’s company.
18. Read Christmas Stories Aloud
The Gift of the Magi, A Christmas Carol, or even just articles about Christmas traditions around the world. There’s something intimate about reading to each other.
19. Make Homemade Ornaments
Get supplies from the craft store: clear glass balls, paint, glitter, and photos, and create ornaments together. They’ll be treasured because you made them as a couple.
20. Have a Fondue Night
Cheese fondue for dinner, chocolate fondue for dessert. It’s interactive, cozy, and feels special. Light candles, put on soft Christmas music, and take your time.
Active and Adventurous Christmas Dates
21. Go Skiing or Snowboarding
If you live near slopes, a day on the mountain is an incredible date. You’re active, you’re in beautiful scenery, and you get to warm up together in the lodge afterward.
22. Take a Winter Hike
Bundle up and hit the trails. Winter hiking is gorgeous and peaceful. Bring thermoses of something hot and take breaks to enjoy the quiet beauty together.
23. Go Snowshoeing
If you have deep snow, this is a magical way to explore. It’s easier than it looks and lets you access parts of nature you couldn’t otherwise reach.
24. Have a Snowball Fight
Be playful. Build a fort, make ammunition, chase each other around. Then go inside and warm up with hot drinks and a fire.
25. Build a Snowman Together
Yes, it’s something you’d do with kids, but it’s also surprisingly fun as adults. Get creative; build a snow family, give them personalities, take photos.
26. Go Tubing or Sledding
Find a hill, bring sleds or tubes, and just fly down together. It’s exhilarating and silly and you’ll laugh until your stomach hurts.
27. Take a Christmas Lights Walking Tour
Many neighborhoods have streets famous for decorations. Park the car and walk instead. Hold hands, take your time, stop for photos. You’ll notice details you’d miss from a car.
28. Go on a Holiday Scavenger Hunt
Create one for each other; hide clues that lead to different Christmas decorations or landmarks around town. Make the final clue lead to a small gift or romantic spot.
29. Visit a Zoo with Holiday Lights
Many zoos do special holiday light displays. You get to see the animals plus incredible light installations. It’s unique and beautiful.
30. Go Cross-Country Skiing
If you have access to trails, this is wonderful. It’s peaceful, beautiful, and you’re moving together through a winter wonderland.
Creative and Cultural Christmas Dates
31. Take a Holiday Painting Class
Many paint-and-sip places do Christmas-themed sessions. You’ll create holiday art together, probably laugh at your terrible painting skills, and leave with something to hang up.
32. Visit a Christmas Light Display at a Botanical Garden
These are often spectacular. Gardens transform into glowing wonderlands. Walk hand in hand through lit-up landscapes.
33. Go to a Christmas Play
A Christmas Carol, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, local theater productions. Support local arts and experience the story together.
34. Take a Gingerbread Decorating Class
Some bakeries and community centers offer these. You’ll learn techniques and create something beautiful and edible.
35. Visit a Historic Home Decorated for Christmas
Many historic sites do special Christmas tours showing how the holidays were celebrated in different eras. It’s educational and atmospheric.
36. Go to a Christmas Craft Fair
Browse handmade gifts, support local artists, and find unique treasures. You might find perfect presents while spending time together.
37. Take a Wreath-Making Workshop
Learn to make a fresh wreath together. You’ll have something beautiful for your door and the memory of creating it as a couple.
38. Attend a Christmas Cookie Decorating Competition
Some bakeries host these. Compete against each other or team up against other couples. Either way, it’s fun and festive.
39. Visit an Art Museum’s Holiday Exhibit
Museums often have special Christmas exhibitions or just look beautifully decorated for the season. It’s a culture with a festive twist.
40. Take a Christmas Cooking Class
Learn to make a traditional holiday dish from another culture. You’ll expand your cooking repertoire and have a new tradition to incorporate.
Unique and Memorable Christmas Dates
41. Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
Book a cozy B&B for a night. Somewhere with a fireplace, Christmas decorations, and breakfast in bed. It’s an escape without traveling far.
42. Take a Christmas Train Ride
Polar Express-style experiences or scenic train rides through winter landscapes. There’s something magical about trains at Christmas.
43. Go to a Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony
Towns often have official tree lighting events with caroling, hot chocolate, and community spirit. It’s festive and makes you feel connected to something bigger.
44. Visit Santa Together
I’m serious. Get in line with the kids, sit on Santa’s lap, take a silly photo. Embrace the absurdity and playfulness of it.
45. Go on a Christmas Pub Crawl
Many cities organize these; bars decorated festively, special holiday drinks, groups of people in ugly sweaters. It’s social and fun.
46. Take a Horse-Drawn Carriage Ride
Through downtown or in a park. Bundle up under blankets, listen to the clip-clop of hooves, feel like you’ve traveled back in time.
47. Go Stargazing on a Clear Winter Night
Winter skies are incredibly clear. Drive somewhere dark, bring blankets, a thermos of something warm, and just look up together.
48. Attend a Christmas Ball or Formal Event
Dress up fancy, dance together, enjoy the elegance. It’s a chance to get out of your usual comfort zone and feel glamorous.
49. Take a Photography Tour
Bring your phones or cameras and spend the evening capturing Christmas beauty. Compare shots afterward, pick your favorites, maybe print them for your album.
50. Go on a Progressive Dinner
Plan courses at different restaurants or friends’ houses. Appetizers at one place, main course at another, dessert at a third. The movement keeps things interesting.
Giving Back Together
51. Volunteer at a Soup Kitchen
Christmas is about generosity. Spend an evening serving meals together. It’s humbling and reminds you what really matters.
52. Adopt a Family for Christmas
Go shopping together for a family in need. Pick out gifts, wrap them together, deliver or drop them off. You’ll feel good and you’re doing it as a team.
53. Donate to a Toy Drive
Shop for toys together, drop them off, feel the warmth of giving. Talk about what you’re grateful for on the way home.
54. Sing Carols at a Nursing Home
Bring joy to people who might be lonely during the holidays. The gratitude you’ll see is incredibly moving.
55. Sort Donations Together
Many organizations need help during the holidays. Spend a few hours sorting toys, food, or clothing. You’re making a difference together, which is deeply bonding.
Read also 60 Best Date Night Ideas That’ll Bring Back the Spark
Making Christmas Dates a Priority
Here’s what I’ve learned about Christmas dates after years of marriage: they’re not just nice to have, they’re essential. The holidays can be so focused on family obligations, shopping lists, and making things perfect for everyone else that your relationship can get lost in the shuffle.
My husband and I now block out specific dates in December just for us. We protect them as fiercely as we protect the kids’ school concerts or family gatherings. Because here’s the truth: our relationship is the foundation everything else is built on. If we’re not connected and happy, Christmas magic suffers for everyone.
Some years we do elaborate dates; the sleigh ride, the fancy dinner, the weekend getaway. Other years, we’re exhausted and broke from all the gift-giving, so we opt for free or cheap dates like driving around looking at lights or baking cookies at home. Both are equally valid. What matters is the intentionality.
The other thing I’ve realized is that Christmas dates don’t have to wait until December. We start in late November sometimes, spreading them throughout the season so we’re not cramming everything into a few chaotic weeks. This year, we’ve already done the tree farm date and have our light-looking drive scheduled for this weekend.
So pick a few of these ideas that resonate with you. Maybe one cozy indoor date, one active outdoor adventure, and one that involves giving back. Mix it up. Try new things. Let Christmas be a time when you don’t just celebrate the holiday, but celebrate each other.
And if you only do one thing, make it the lights drive. Trust me on this one. There’s something about being in the car together, in the dark, with Christmas music playing and twinkling lights all around, that just makes everything feel right with the world. It’s become my favorite tradition, and I hope it becomes yours too.
