04101 Beach Picnic

Picnics can be very romantic, but a beach picnic takes it to the next level. I recommend having the picnic at the Willard Beach on Beach St. in Portland.  I would also recommend having the picnic around sunset. Pack your dinner in a basket, don’t forget to bring your blanket!

Make sure you bring:

Dinner

Plantes

Utensils

Drinks

Napkins

Dessert

To build up your relationship, you can prep a few things before hand. When you invite your date to the picnic, ask them to write down 10 of their favorite qualities about you. You do the same, about them. Bring the lists with you and share them over your picnic dinner.

04101 After Dinner Surprise

After dinner on a weekday, take your date out for gelato. Change up your dating routine from the weekend and treat yourself during the week. There is some spectacular gelato located right down by the wharf in Portland. Located at 434 Fore St. is one of the highest rated gelato spots. It is called Gorgeous Gelato, and it really is gorgeous! Check their website for more information at http://www.gorgeousgelato.com/.

If you are watching what you eat, but you would still like to enjoy a sweet treat, feel free to split a scoop between the two of you. Grab your scoop of gelato and head down to the wharf to walk around and explore.  You never know what you can find when you have no agenda. Fore St. has some pretty cute shops to look at and if you happened to have “missed” dinner before you got gelato, there is a Five Guys burgers on Fore St as well.

If you don’t get treats often, when you do, it is really special to share between the two of you! 

04101 Wicked Walking Tours

Change up your usual date night and take a Wicked Walking Tour! The walking tour is the most unique, interesting and entertaining time you will have. You will get to tour some of Portland’s safest streets and discover parts of Portland you never knew about. If you are lucky, you might even spot a ghost!

The best tours are at night, however they do offer day tours also. The day tours last about an hour and the night tours last about 70 mins. It is recommended that you contact them in advance to see the tour times that are available, because they do fill up fast. The tours start at 72 Commercial St. in Portland.The tickets cost about $20 per person. If you do take a night tour, depending on the time of year, make sure you dress warm.

Make sure you hold hands if you get scared! 

04101 Back Bay Grill Restaurant

There is something special about splurging on a fancy dinner together. If you don’t eat out very often, it is a very nice change. You get to try new things that you would normally never make at home. On top of that, you get to get dressed up and looking nice for your significant other. With everyday life getting in the way, sometimes we never get to see each other looking our best, and it’s just fun to get dressed up and go out. Seeing each other look nice, might bring a little spark back into your relationship.

The Back Bay Grill is the number two restaurant (out of 431) in Portland, according to Tripadvisor. They offer American style food, fabulous steaks and a wide array of vegetarian options. Reservations may been to be made in advance to ensure a table. The phone number is

(207) 772- 8833. They are located at 65 Portland St. in Portland. 

04102 Portland Bed and Breakfast

                                      http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review

Escape your everyday routine and take a romantic break at The Chadwick Bed and Breakfast. The Chadwick is the number one rated B&B on Tripadvisor. They offer cozy rooms, with a touch of elegance. They offer private bed and bathrooms for each private party. The staff takes great pride in offer you the best service and accommodations available.  In the morning, they offer a five star breakfast. You will never eat the same breakfast twice during your stay at The Chadwick. They offer gluten free options as well. The breakfast they make every morning look divine! The rooms range in price from $100- $250 per night, depending on packages and different rooms. Check their website for prices and reservations. http://www.thechadwick.com/index.php

During your stay the The Chadwick, you have time to get closer to your spouse. Use this quality time to work on your communication. Really take inventory of your relationship. Talk about issues or problems that you have in your relationship. This will only be effective if it is done in a loving and caring environment. This has to be done with trust between the two of you. If this brings up any sort of argument, make sure you set some ground rules to ensure this will not happen. Use this time to rekindle that spark that you felt when you just met each other.   

04101 Lobster Date

Image from: Portland Downtown District

Take a stroll around Old Port  and the Waterfront in Portland with your date! This will transport you back to a time around the 1800’s. There are so many different shops to do some window shopping (or real shopping) and many different restaurants to choose from.

There are many different activities you can do in Old Port and the Waterfront. You can ride on a sailboat and depending on the time of year, go whale watching!

Take your date on an unforgetable trip with Lucky Catch Cruises. The boat tour lasts about one and a half hours. It takes you through the routine of a lobsterman. How cool would it be to catch your own lobster? Visit Lucky Catch Cruises website to book the tour and to learn more about other tours they offer. It costs about $28- $30 per person for each tour. The lobster tour last from May to October, during lobster season.

After you are done with your lobster tour, continue with lobster fashion and grab a bite to eat at Portland Lobster Co. They are within walking distance from the Waterfront. They are located at 180 Commercial St. I have heard their lobster rolls are to die for! Enjoy your date! 

04101 Foodie Tour

Foodie Tour 

Book a foodie tour for you and your date! A foodie tour is for lovers of good food and artisan foods and a yearning for learning about crafting different foods. You can customize a tour to your liking or choose a predesigned tour such as a chocolate tour, a seafood or overall culinary tour. You will visit multiple restaurants and shops, learn and sample many different types of foods that Maine has to offer. The tours consist of a small group of locals and visitors and a tour guide to show you ned and interesting points of interest in the land of Maine.

This is an opportunity for you and your date to get out of the house and meet and interact with new people. This is a time for you to enjoy each others company while getting out of your normal routine. After the date, talk to each other about what you enjoyed, was there a certain restaurant or dish that you enjoyed?

You could turn this into a two part date and next time you have a date, try and recreate the dish you both enjoyed together at home.  

To gain a better understanding of Maine Foodie Tours visit their website at http://www.mainefoodietours.com/index.html  or call them at (207) 233-7485 to set up a tour. 

04101 Portland Observatory

Portland Observatory

                                                                   http://portlandlandmarks.org/observatory/photos/

Spend a Saturday morning touring the Portland Observatory. Learn more about Portland’s history.  Guided tours are offered and last about 45 mins. The observatory offers some spectacular views of Portland, Casco Bay, Back Cove and Mt. Washington.

Please make note:

• The Observatory is open daily, May 23 – October 12, 2015
• Hours are 10:00 am – 5:00 pm.
• All tours are guided.
• The last tour begins promptly at 4:30 pm.

Admission is $10.00 per person.If you would like to do a sunset tour of the observatory, every Thursday evening, between July 16 – September 3, 2015, 5:00 – 8:00 pm is available for a sunset tour. For a sunset tour, the tours are self-guided, docents are available to answer questions. Regular admission applies.

Depending on the time of day you choose, you could head over to the restaurant, Duckfat. Duckfat offers American style food. It has received some rave reviews! The french frie are amazing! Duckfat is located at 43 Middle St, in Portland. They are open between the hours of 11:00 am and 10:00 pm. Enjoy your day! 

04104 Portland Sea Dogs

                                                       http://www.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t546

Its almost summer time, and you know what that means! Baseball! The boys of summer are back, and it’s a perfect date night for you and your love! The Sea Dogs are a minor league team and a double A affiliate team of the Boston Red Sox. A lot of the players of the Sea Dogs team get drafted into the major league. You get to see them before they are famous! Head over to the Sea Dogs website (http://www.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t546) and check the schedule page for a game date and time that works for you.

Most tickets are all under $20 per person, even the best seats are pretty cheap. Since this is much cheaper than a major league game, go all out and make it a real baseball game date. Get a couple of hotdogs and some peanuts and enjoy the game together. During the innings, they play little games that are fun to take part of.  

Bring your glove because the stadium is on the smaller side, you might be able to catch a fly ball.  

After the game, talk about how you both work as a team. What are the important aspects to a successful team? What are some pointers that you can incorporate into your relationship to build a stronger team?

04101 Portland Museum of Art

     http://www.portlandmuseum.org/visit

Take an afternoon and tour the Portland Museum of Art.The museum shows a number of collections including American, European and post war and contemporary. There is something for everyone to enjoy.  

Art can be inspiring and emotional. As you walk around the museum talk with your date and tell them how each exhibit makes you feel. If a piece of art makes you feel a certain way, let them know. There is a good chance that you will disagree. This is a way that together as a couple you can both practice communication.

The museum is open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

Third Thursdays: 10:00 am to 9:00 pm and Fridays: 10:00 am to 9:00 pm. Admission is $12 per person.

Good news! On Fridays it is free from 5pm to 9pm. That is really nice for a Friday night date after work.  

The address and phone number is: 7 Congress Square Portland, Maine 04101

(207)775-6148

04101 Portland Paddle

Summer is just around the corner and it's time to get outside and get active! Take your love for an adventurous trip and tour of Casco Bay! You can choose between kayaking or SUP (stand up paddle boarding). You can do this date if you don't have any prior experience, plus it's really fun to learn something new.

Portland Paddle offers rentals, guided tours and lessons in both kayaks and SUP. They also deliver for free, and that is a nice perk if you have no way of getting all of your gear to the water.

For a tandem  kayak for two hours it is $45. You can rent them from two hours up to all day. For a SUP  two hour rental it is $25 per person.

I recommend checking out Portland Paddle's website for more information and they can help you determine what would be best with your ability and knowledge of water safety. You can visit their website at http://portlandpaddle.net

Portland Paddle is located at East End Beach. The phone number is 207-370-9730.

If this is something either one of you have never experienced, make sure you both feel comfortable. This is done only through effective communication. Make sure you check how your spouse is doing often and make sure they feel relaxed and that you both are having fun.

Enjoy the day together in the sun and water!

04101 Afternoon in the Sun at Eastern Promenade

Afternoon in the sun at Eastern Promenade 

Relax the afternoon away on a weekend with your significant other. Doesn’t that sound amazing? Grab your favorite blanket or beach towel and a deck of cards, and head down to Eastern Promenade. There is a nice grassy area where you can sit in the sun or shade. Spend a few hours enjoying the sunshine and your best friend You can watch the different sailboats float by. When you are ready, break out the deck of cards. Play your favorite card game, if you needs some ideas you can play:

• Go fish
• Solitaire
• Speed
• War

After you are done playing a game, you can go for a walk along the trail. Don’t forget to hold hands! A fun afternoon date doesn’t need to be expensive or have high expectations. The point is to enjoy each other. If the mood should strike you, you could pack a picnic or some treats for you both to enjoy.

04112 Casco Bay Island Tour

http://www.cascobaylines.com/

Have a fun day pretending to be a tourist! Take a ferry ride to one of the Casco Bay islands. I recommend visiting Peaks Island. The island offers fun outdoor activities that would be great  during the summer. After the short 20 min ferry ride, rent a bike from Brad’s Island Bike Repairs and Rentals. Ride and explore the island all day!

If you get there in the morning, you can go to Peak’s Cafe for Lisa’s famous cinnamon buns. I have heard they are to die for.

Exploring a new place you have never been before is a really fun thing to do together as a couple. I recommend being relaxed and  open to adventure. Adventure in itself is a bonding experience. Make decision together as to where you go and what you do on the island. Take lots of pictures of your day, and reflect back on it often.  

The address for the ferry is:  56 Commercial Street, Portland, Maine 04101

During peak season, one adult round trip ticket cost $7.70 to Perks Island. Check the website for more detailed information.

Brad’s Island Bike Rentals & Repairs

Peaks Island, 115 Island Ave, Portland, ME, United States

Phone: (207) 766-5631