With its stunning mountain vistas and twinkling urban light landscape, Date Nights in Los Angeles offers amazing date night activities for both long-time lovers or those testing the waters with a new date.
As a major metropolitan city, Date Nights in Los Angeles has no shortage of intriguing (and often romantic) destinations! Many date nights head towards the Getty Villa, Observation Park, Central Grand Market, or hit up one of Los Angeles’s many famous restaurants.
However, you may want to impress your date with a different, or even unusual date night. With so many meet-up options in Los Angeles, you might even find yourself panicking trying to find the perfect date activity that’s new, fun, and exciting.
Our Top 6 Picks for Unusual Date Rendezvous
These romantic rendezvous each offer something different than a typical—and let’s be honest, rather mundane—date night options of dinner, movie, or drinks at a bar.
Date Nights in Los Angeles experiences are not ranked in any particular order, but each one offers a unique experience for you and your date. From cuddling with cute animals to hiking to Los Angeles’s many stunning vistas, you have several amazing options for a date unlike anything you’ve ever done before.
Your date will be impressed with any of these suggestions because they are truly out-of-the-box ideas!
1. Cuddle Cute Creatures at Animal Cafes
If you and your date are animal lovers, check out one of Los Angeles’s dog or cat cafes, such as CatCafe Lounge or The Dog Cafe. As non-profit cafes, you and your date get to bond with your furry friends and get to know each other better, as well as put your money towards a pet charity.
You will need to make reservations ahead of time since walk-ins are rarely admitted. You can have coffee, tea, or snacks before you meet your furry friends.
Then, you and your date get to interact with kittens, cats, puppies, and dogs. Your socialization will help these amazing pets get ready for their forever homes.
2 Solve Clues and Puzzles Together in Escape Rooms
Heading to an escape room in Los Angeles for an atypical date night is a great way to really bond with your date. . Do you enjoy playing board games or throwing axes? Escape rooms combine both the strategic and puzzle-solving skills involved in board games and the physical activity of axe throwing (without throwing a sharp object, obviously!).
Plus, you get to see how well-matched you and your date are in a “high pressure” situation. Most escape rooms offer a themed, interactive environment where you have to think on your feet and work together to solve puzzles.
Get to know your date in another time and place, such as Zombie Land, Jumanji’s jungle, or a time machine! You and your date will use all your senses to absorb your environment, in addition to paying attention to details and connecting the dots to solve problems.
Additionally, escape rooms make excellent double-date adventures. While escape rooms often fall under the radar for Date Night ideas in Los Angeles, they promise an evening of heart-racing fun.
3. Experience Drag Queen Royalty
Los Angeles is famous for its incredible drag queen scene that makes for an amazing Date Nights in Los Angeles. There are many events to choose from, but drag queen bingo at Hamburger Mary’s in West Hollywood ranks as one of the best.
They schedule games on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. For a $20 fee, you will get several bingo cards and markers. Your fabulous drag queen host calls out the different numbers as you fill up your card. If you are a lucky winner, you’ll receive an equally- fabulous prize.
You will need to call ahead to reserve a table. If you want the exciting drag queen experience without bingo, drag queen brunches are also a fun alternative.
Offering two seatings, the brunch experience at The Abbey not only makes delicious traditional brunch food but also offers an incredible performance to boot. The supremely-talented cast performs throughout the café as you and your date enjoy your meal.
4. Paddle Swan Pedal Boats at Echo Lake
A unique way to experience the incredible Los Angeles skyline, renting swan-themed paddle boats at Echo Lake Park is a great Date Night in Los Angeles for outdoor enthusiasts. Starting at 9 a.m. and for $10 an hour, you can rent a swan-looking paddle boat and head out with your date onto the lake for the length of time for your rental.
If you can snag a rental just before sunset, the twinkling lights of Los Angeles make it a magical experience. Plus, Echo Lake boasts its signature lotus beds and iconic water fountain.
After your paddle boat rental is over, you and your date can take a romantic stroll through the park or enjoy a picnic. Echo Lake Park is truly one of Los Angeles’s hidden gems!
5. Visit the LAB Anti-Mall
Located just south of Los Angeles, another unique Los Angeles area is the renowned urban youth “anti-mall” called the LAB Anti-Mall (LAB stands for Little American Business). It offers a perfect combination of indoor and outdoor activities for a fun date.
A hipster haven, the LAB Anti-Mall has a number of local restaurants with varying foods, creative artisans, quirky shops (such as a well-stocked thrift store!), and even a local brewery. The whole building reuses and recycles materials, such as old amusement ride parts, to make it an interesting visual setting.
In fact, the entire building is full of recycled parts from amusement rides and unique art, making it a visual wonder. The LAB Anti-Mall also has many live music events and art exhibits, so you and your date definitely won’t be bored.
Another bonus—entering the anti-mall is free, as well as the parking – How’s that for an unusual date nights in Los Angeles!
6. Hike around Los Angeles
If you and your date are outdoor enthusiasts, Los Angeles offers an endless number of beautiful hiking trails such as the Hollywood sign, the Bridge to Nowhere, Runyon Canyon, and Griffith Park Trails, just to name a few.
Hiking is a great way for you and your date to get some exercise, enjoy each other’s company, and experience Los Angeles’s natural beauty. Depending on you and your date’s stamina, these hikes range from just over a half-mile there-and-back trips that take under an hour to those that are several miles and last a few hours.
Many hikes are relatively flat whereas others have over a thousand feet in elevation. If long miles aren’t for you, you can easily go on a 20-minute hike and then spend at least an hour taking photos – the views are that great!
No matter the distance, the time and effort you and your date spend on these hikes will be worth it for the amazing vistas and natural wonders around Los Angeles.
Los Angeles has a huge number of options for date nights and destinations, both within the city limits or just outside. As many of us know, it can be very overwhelming to plan a romantic rendezvous simply because there are so many things to do! To really impress your date, check out one of our top 6 unusual Date Nights in Los Angeles options.
Your date will be impressed with your commitment to finding a unique date experience. Hopefully, you and your date can go on many more interesting and exciting dates around Los Angeles!
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