Dating in washington dc blog travel guide


The 10 Best Dates Ideas contact Washington DC

These days, dating in Washington can be considerably tough as reaching across high-mindedness aisle. And while dating develop DC is notoriously difficult, up is no shortage of pronounce date spots around (and beyond) the District. Once you've flatter a date with a feasible partner, here’s where to have a say when you’re looking for efficient more creative date than nutriment at your neighborhood dive bar—from hitting the dancefloor to nerding out on a quirky museum date.

If you’d normally grab unadulterated drink:

Bar hopping in Ivy City

Ivy City
Formerly industrial, now decidedly groovy, Ivy City’s warehouses and workshop spaces have been converted meet for the first time restaurants, shops, and a occasional excellent drinking establishments that bring into being for a more interesting undercurrent than any old bar meetup. Start at Other Half Brewing which has a solid collection prop up beers on tap and straighten up covered patio with board rejoicing and TVs. To dial swift the romance, head to greatness former garage turned distillery perfect example Don Ciccio & Figli. They specialize in Italian herbal liqueurs, and you can enjoy cocktails, flights, or an extensive guided tasting.

Try iconic foods

Various locations
As truthful Washingtonians know, the city’s subsistence scene has exploded in just out years with more Michelin marked restaurants and celebrity chefs caress you can count. Yes, dining out in DC’s trendy establishments makes a great date, on the contrary have you eaten your put on the right track around the city’s OG feed staples? Doing so makes connote an adventurous date, one ensure could stretch for hours mistake even days. Start at Weakling Taylor Seafood in The Wharf’s fish market, where you vesel score steamed Chesapeake crabs backed in Old Bay. Move disputable Half Smokes at Ben’s Chilli Bowl, oysters at Old Ebbitt Grill, and wrap up ethics night with midnight jumbo slices at Duccini’s.

Sneak into a speakeasy

Various locations
Few settings are as intimate, romantic, and date-worthy than excellent speakeasy. Tucked in the presently of restaurants or hidden have forty winks dark alleys, speakeasies give a-ok fun twist to your standard in the main bar date. Check out The Fine, which has moodily decorated inner and a gin-heavy cocktail docket, Allegory an award-winning concept bar unobserved off a common room repute the Eaton hotel, or Captain Gregory’s in Old Town Alexandria, which offers an intriguing combination of rendering town’s nautical flavor with divers 1920s-esque elegance.

Hang in a tear hall

Various locations
Sometimes booking a feast reservation for a date survey more trouble than it’s flora and fauna. That’s the beauty in opting for a date at reschedule of the city’s food halls. Opt for a casual main meal at one of the city’s food halls, like Union Trade be in the busines, La Cosecha, The Roost, Bryant Street Market, or The Square.

Have a picnic

Various locations
DC is people to some of the country’s best restaurants, but sometimes enclosure a baguette, cheese, some indulge, and finding a city resource is more interesting than battle a table at the now hotspot. Settle down in skin texture of DC’s best-known parks come out Rock Creek Park, Meridian Mound Park, and Lincoln Park. They’re all great picnic spots, on the other hand for something a little approachable the beaten path, look ruse one of the smaller immature spaces in the city emerge Bishop’s Garden, Lady Bird Writer Park, or Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens.

If you want memo get creative:

Visit a museum puzzle out hours

Various locations
With 17 Smithsonian institutions in the city and pronounced other smaller, underrated spots, there’s rebuff shortage of places to go over with a fine-too in DC. But there’s full stop extra romantic about strolling excellence halls of a museum fend for hours. And for a principal date, walking around while superior at art takes some influence the pressure of just lawabiding across a table. Phillips Collection stays open until 8 pm send out the third Thursday of ever and anon month, and the downtown Internal Museum of Women in greatness Arts is open until 8 foremost on the third Wednesday motionless every month. Library of Congress stays open until 8 pm surplus Thursday with live music affairs, poetry readings, and book alliance. And The National Gallery account popular Gallery Nights which are to hand to attend by their sweepstake system (if you snag tickets, your date will definitely exist impressed).

See a classic film

Various locations
Several of DC’s movie houses imply classic and black and ivory films on the regular, deadpan turn up the charm flourishing grab tickets to see expert classic film somewhere in probity city. The Miracle Theater in Washington Hill, The Angelika Pop-Up acquire Union Market, Landmark’s E Terrace Cinema downtown, AFI Silver Auditorium in Silver Spring, and picture Alamo Drafthouse in Brentwood be first Crystal City all have heedlessly scheduled classic film screenings. Justness cherry on top: Tickets commence at just $8 and haunt of the theaters have stirring wine and beer selections.

If bolster want to get active:

Sweat drowsy a sauna

Various locations
The couples drift sweat together, stay together, right?Book an infrared sauna sweat inattentiveness and a salt soak drum Pure Sweat + Float Studio in Georgetown. Or make a comprehensive day of it and restraint out the spa, hydrotherapy unfilled, and various saunas at Balian Springs in Alexandria.

Go ice skating

The National Mall
Maybe you have say publicly moves, maybe you don’t, on the contrary regardless, it’s hard notto conspiracy fun while ice skating, regular if you haven’t tried cotton on since you were a babeinarms. Even if you fall added times than you would adoration to admit, skating at representation skating rink in the Genetic Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Grounds is a pretty iconic method, and one you and your date won’t soon forget. Deplete up afterwards with a stuffy chocolate from the Pavilion Cafe.

Spend some time in nature

Various locations
Studies show that even just a wee walk in nature can hire stress and anxiety, which sounds like a perfect cure expend first date jitters. DC evaluation a super green city, filled of forest bathing opportunities —the Japanese concept of shinrin yoku, or engaging all the faculties in a therapeutic connection phizog nature. Try a walking behind the times, roaming through the sprawling Folk Arboretum (the Arboretum often droves guided forest bathing walks), seek exploring the gardens of Dumbarton Oaks or the C&O Canal.

Want more Thrillist? Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube.

Madeline Weinfield writes about all articles Washington DC (and beyond). Focal addition to Thrillist, you potty find her writing in outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Condé Nast Traveler, and Travel + Leisure.