Valentine's Day is a divisive holiday. Some people love it, others hate it, and many couldn't care less. Regardless of where you stand, navigating the holiday stress-free is pretty difficult. Whether you want to do something special while avoiding the circus or you're flying solo, here's how to make it through today without stressing yourself out.
While it's easy to figure out how to keep your Valentine's Day as traditional as possible, this is less about following the path of fancy champagne and boxed chocolate, and more about keeping yourself (or your significant other) as relaxed as you can. Skip to the section that applies to you for ideas.
A Stress-Free Valentine's Day for Couples
Valentine's Day is a holiday specific to couples, but just because you're in a relationship with a great person it doesn't mean you're both up for dealing with big crowds, rushed meals, and overpriced hors d'oeuvres. If you prefer to ditch the stress of being perfect and fall back on something memorable, here are a few ideas.
Pick a Hidden Gem Restaurant You Already Like
On Valentine's Day every single fancy, fashionable, and fantastically reviewed restaurant is jam packed with people. If getting packed into a sardine can of a restaurant sounds less than romantic, you're better digging into those hidden gems where food is put first—even if that means the restaurant's lacking atmosphere.
If you already have a hidden gem of a restaurant in your pocket—that place you both love despite its oddness or the fact it's off the beaten path—then it's likely a great place to spend the holiday without dealing with a crowd. If you don't, search through a service like Yelp for user reviews with the term "hidden gem" to spotlight a few choices. Another great option is to search through Urbanspoon's "cash only" section. Chances are, if a restaurant is cash only it's off the beaten path—but that doesn't mean it won't have great food. Photo by Michael Cory.
Take the Day to Actually De-Stress
If the entire idea of Valentine's Day turns you into a ball of stress then it's probably not a great idea to plan an intricate romantic evening that involves lots of perfectly timed stops. Instead, take the day to actually relax and de-stress with your significant other.
Stress does some pretty wicked things to your body, but overcoming stress isn't as hard as it sounds. In the case of Valentine's Day, take the day to relax with the person you care about. That's going to mean something different to everyone, but just because it's Valentine's Day doesn't mean you have to go for grand gestures. A long walk, lounging on the couch, a home cooked meal, or anything else that chills you both out are all as genuine as a candlelit restaurant. Photo by Ken Bosma.
Step Outside Your Box and Experience Something Entirely New
A romantic night is at least partially about creating great new memories, and few things are better at making memories last than a new experience. New experiences are plenty important in general, but they're great for marking a special occasion.
Obviously it's impossible for us to suggest something that's new to you, but consider events or ideas that are outside your usual routine, a little left-field, or that you've always been interested in but never committed to actually trying. Always wanted to learn how to paint? Take a class together. Ice fishing? Nothing's more romantic than a hut on a frozen pond. The best part is that finding something cheap to do is pretty easy with services like Time Out, or Eventbrite. Regardless of whether you end up loving what you do or hating it, at least there's no pressure to impress your significant other since it's a new experience for both of you. Photo by Catherine.
Reschedule for a Different Day
Maybe you really do love the idea of a fancy, romantic evening at a high-end restaurant, but you simply can't do it on a Thursday night where reservations are next to impossible to get. On one end, you could go with your second (or third or fourth) choice restaurant. On the other, you can reschedule Valentine's Day to pretty much any other day of the week. It's not like the day itself has any real significance, and rescheduling will likely save you money, time, and stress. Plus, you'll actually get that table at the restaurant you've read great reviews about (and even some discounts on that fancy chocolate, if you plan your holiday after February 14th). Photo by Dan Moyle.
Work on a Project Together
Pretty much everyone has a hobby, and whether you share those interests with your significant other or not, Valentine's Day is a great day to bring your loved ones into the fold (or just spend some quality time working on something you both enjoy).
For example, instead of worrying over cooking the perfect meal for someone, pull them off the couch and have them help you with the cooking. Or skip the cooking altogether, order food from your favorite delivery place, and spend some quality time with each other fixing up that Dolly Parton pinball machine. The idea here is to spend some time together, expose each other to your favorite hobbies, and work together instead of secluded for the day. Better yet, combine both your hobbies into one project—say, use your PC building skills, and their painting skills to create a custom skinned new media center. Photo by Fort George G. Meade Public Affairs Office.
A Stress-Free Valentine's Day for Yourself
Even if you're not a fan of Valentine's Day in general, it's one of those annoying holidays where being single means it's not an actual holiday for you. Thankfully, you can use that to your advantage.
Hit Up Meetups and Events
You'll find plenty of singles events out there on Valentine's Day, but for most of us that probably sounds a bit more stressful than it's worth. Instead, you may be better served by hitting up meetups and events that actually cater to what you like.
To find a gathering of pretty much any type, we like Meetup. Here, you'll find a group of likeminded people to hang out with who share similar interests ranging from board games to Drupal development. If food is more your thing, Grubwithus has a big collection of Valentine's Day activities that are less about finding you the perfect romantic match, and more about spending time with new people.
Of course, not everyone wants to hang around with a bunch of strangers. If you'd rather find something unique to do with just your friends, sites like Goby or Eventbrite will point you toward concerts, comedy shows, and plenty of other events that are just as fun on Valentine's Day as they are any other day.
Catch Up On All That Media You've Been Neglecting
It's surprisingly easy to get behind on enjoying the media you like. If you're anything like us, you have a huge backlog of movies, books, games, and everything else you've been neglecting. Today's a great day to treat yourself to enjoying those.
If you're looking to catch up on all those blog posts, it's suprisingly easy to do with a little effort, and powering through all those books you've been meaning to is easy as well. If it's movies and TV shows you're behind on, that's pretty easy to remedy too. Hunker down on the couch, pick something fun to entertain yourself with, and let the night fly by.
Avoid the Crowds and Get Your Shopping (and Whatever Else) Done
A number of your favorite spots are packed on Valentine's Day, so it's probably not a good idea to hit up that fancy restaurant you've been eyeing, or finally checking out that cupcake shop up the street. That said, it is one of the best nights to go out and get your annoying errands done.
If history is any indication, the best places to hit up on Valentine's Day include stores like the grocery store, Ikea, and the mall (provided your mall doesn't have any romantic restaurants inside). Ikea's about as far from romantic as you're going to get, but if you've been holding off picking up that low-priced desk because you don't want to deal with the crowds, today is the day. The bonus? You'll have the exciting prospect of putting that thing together when you get home. Sounds like a good time to call some single friends over for help. Photo by gaelx.
Treat Yourself to Something Ridiculous
Treating yourself to something nice is probably the most common piece of advice out there for fighting away the Valentine's Day blues, but it does work in a lot of cases. Buying yourself a bunch of little things usually makes you happier than a few big ones, and in this case, it's all about treating yourself to whatever you want. Feel free to binge-watch episodes of your favorite show while eating take-out pizza from your favorite restaurant. Or grab that video game you've been putting off. Whatever it is you like to do, take the night to embrace it, enjoy the time to yourself, and treat yourself right. Or, if you want something a bit more budget friendly, you could... Photo by mollypop.
Finish Those DIY Projects You've Been Putting Off
You know how most days of the week require your attention directed at 20 things at once? Valentine's Day is likely devoid of most of that. While everyone's out spending money on restaurants and wine, now's your chance to power through that DIY project you've been putting off.
DIY projects are great for a couple reasons. First off, they keep your brain focused on a project, and away from wandering off into any negative thoughts you might have. Second, finishing a DIY project makes you feel better. The end product is yours, and that's a great way to end the day. If you're looking for ideas on projects to tackle, we've got plenty to choose from.
Title image remixed from ouh_desire (Shutterstock), EpicStockMedia (Shutterstock) and geralt.
