Date Night

There’s no shortage of great venues for a romantic day or evening out around here. But allow us to offer you some uniquely Colorado ideas.T

Take a ride in a hot air balloon

Fair Winds in Lafayette will take you up into the fair blue yonder (weather permitting), with Champagne, a deluxe continental breakfast and, best of all, a flight certificate, pin and t-shirt throw in. Now that’s romantic.

Drive, then drink

Unser Karting & Events (unserkarting.com) allows you to race karts at 40mph around a track and, when you’ve impressed your date with speed, you can go to their on-site bar and impress him or her with your small talk.

Get fresh
surrounded by sharks

The Downtown Aquarium in Denver, just a short drive away, has a shark tunnel. They swim over you, then swim under you, and everyone knows that nothing is sexier than a mild sense of danger.

Sample exotic drinks

There are plenty of options when it comes to local breweries and a few distilleries too. We don’t suggest you get hammered, but a few sips of unusual local brews would set the mood quite nicely. Golden City Brewery in Golden, Left Hand in Longmont and Echo in Erie are just a few of the many gems.

Dance in yourv tighty-whities

This one is more for our homosexual readers, but there are plenty of leather bars in Denver that host underwear parties. You simply show up in your briefs or boxers, and dance. You have to admire that level of confidence, whatever your orientation.

Go see a dead guy

Frozen Dead Guy Days is coming up in Nederland, and to a select few people, the idea of the end is kinda hot. There’s a natural morbid fascination in all of us, so take a date up the mountains in mid-March, drink and dance, and celebrate that dead guy.

Sit by the water at sunset

There are a few suitable places, but Waneka Lake Park in Lafayette is a beautiful spot at sunset. Take some bread, feed the ducks and show your sensitive side.

Watch a foreign film

The Boulder International Film Festival takes place at the Boulder Theater in early March, so impress your date with your (fake?) love for foreign films. Just throw in a line like, “This isn’t as good as his early work,” for added kudos points.

Spend a night in a swanky place

St. Julien in Boulder is a really nice hotel with some beautiful executive suites. So why not treat yourself and a date to a night of luxury close to home. The spa and restaurant downstairs are stunning too. You won’t have to leave the building, or your room if you’re so inclined.

Lie down in a movie theater

Yeah, we know – taking a date to see a movie is soooo cliched. Take note though – the chairs at AMC Flatirons recline fully, and are very, very comfortable. So go with a woo-target to see any movie at all, plant yourself at the back, drop the chair, and have tons of fun.

Explore local history

There are museums everywhere around here. Boulder County loves museums. So why not duck into the Longmont Museum or the Louisville City Museum, or the Mining Museum in Niwot, and impress with your intelligence and depth. If nothing else, there’s likely an exhibit that the two of you can duck behind for a spot of fun.

Taking in a trail

(and jumping off it)

Nature is romantic. That’s just a fact. There’s something very Jane Austin / Emily Bronte about the smell of the grass, the sound of birds singing and crickets chirping, and the beautiful, unspoiled views in front of you. That’s how you sell it. That’s how you get your date to drive with you to the Boulder Creek Path, the Messa Trail, or some other local nature trail, and reasonably expect them to get out of the car and walk for miles, all the while talking up the beauty and romance of it all.

But here’s the truth, people.

Trails like these are jam-packed with ideal spots to effectively dive off of the path and into blessed seclusion for a little bit of touchy-feely. You know it’s true – that’s how we were able to get any experience during our teenage years when mom and dad’s house offered less privacy than these public places. The bushes, the trees – basically foliage that doesn’t sting, prick or provide home to an unwelcoming animal – all offer great cover from other walkers and cyclists.

And the thing is, as deviant as it sounds, there’s still something beautiful and very romantic about getting down to the nitty-gritty in the grass, and theres the wonderful, naughty risk that you just might get caught.

Here in Boulder County, we’re blessed with plenty of natural wonder. We say, enjoy it, really enjoy it, with a date.

Skinny dipping

at night in the mountains

Ok, maybe this isn’t the best idea for a first date, but if you’ve been dating someone for a while, or if you want to spice things up with your long-time significant other or spouse, then why not head up into the mountains after dark, find a secluded spot that has one of the many little freshwater pools, and get stark naked in the moonlight? Here are a few hints and tips. Don’t do this in the winter. In fact, it’s probably best to wait until the warmest summer months. Men – we have shrinkage to consider and we want to look our best. The whole idea might need some suave talking in order to convince the date that it is indeed a good idea, but fear not – we can help there too. The following lines might just do the trick:

Honey, rather than driving onwards to Nederland, let’s just get naked here.
Do you know, your skin looks amazing in the moonlight? All of it.
I heard that mountain water can do wonders for your complexion
Isn’t that an amazing view? I’m going to pull over to enjoy it. Now, get your clothes off
When was the last time we just spontaneously got naked and swam in the mountains? Never? Now’s a good time to start.
Remember that scene in Cocktail when Tom Cruise and Elizabeth Shue skinny-dipped in Jamaica? Let’s recreate it.

As for venues, there’s no shortage of mountain pools in our Rockies. The Boulder Falls, when open, are beautiful but maybe a little too public for these purposes. We would suggest just getting in the car (making sure you have towels in the trunk), putting on some smooth music, and making magic happen.

Keep it classy

and memorable

Who doesn’t love to be wined and dined like one of the high class? Even if you don’t have the funds, its still a great idea to take a night and treat yourself, and a date, with the allusion that you’re one of the elite Boulderites. If you are at a loss on how to do this, let us help.

Text your date with a simple, “Babe, throw on something really nice and be ready at 6 p.m.”
The allure, and mystery conveyed in this short but sweet message will keep your date on his or her toes. Just be sure to pick him or her up in something nice and surprise them with a small gift, whether it is flowers or a simple smooch. Pro tip: clean out the car to make a really good impression.
Take him or her somewhere nice for dinner.
Don’t go cheap on the meal. Try the Kitchen, Jax Fish House or Black Cat Bistro. The food will be worth every penny, as well as the presentation and gratitude from your date.
Go to the Boulder Opera Company
Nothing screams high class like a good old-fashioned opera. Just think about it, an orchestra playing in the background as angelic voices fill the air with reverberating harmony.
Grab some dessert.
Here’s where you can end the night with something a little less high brow. Just grab something simple on the way home. Your bank account has suffered enough and you’ve already won a trip to your date’s house for a night cap.

Scaring

the pants off your date

Let’s be honest, we all look for ways to get our dates in the mood. We treat them to oysters, chocolate, wine and, for the extremists, tiger penis, but treat yourself to something a little more handsy than sitting across a table from one another. The feeling of fright or danger is one of the best aphrodisiacs, so why not take it to the extreme and scare your date right out of his or her clothes.

We aren’t suggesting taking them to a scary movie, because you will still want to impress, so take them on a haunted tour. Start off on Riverdale Road in Thornton, where ghostly pups chase cars as they pass by acting as guard dogs.

Follow that up with a show at the Boulder Theater, which is haunted by former theater manager George Paper. We know not everyone loves a good show, so if it’s not your scene just pack a light dinner and picnic at a local cemetery. Maybe pack some of the foods listed above for the full aphrodisiac feel, oh and bring a Ouija Board.

End the night with a stay at the Hotel Boulderado in rooms 302 or 304 where it’s rumored a double suicide took place. The ghosts lingering in the rooms play with the electricity, appear briefly and speak to guests in disembodied voices throughout the night.