WHETHER YOU BUY into the whole thing or not, chances are if you have a significant other you’ll be celebrating Valentine’s Day in some shape or form. Why not make the most of it?
You COULD go to a restaurant and spend the evening down the pub, or you could try something different next weekend. Trust us.
Go bowling
Remember your nerve-filled teenage dates? It’s time to revisit that at your local bowling alley.
If you require some social lubricant, Bray Bowl and Leisureplex Stillorgan are both running BYOB nights next weekend at €10 a head.
Elsewhere, Leisureplex Cork is offering a special deal to couples next Saturday night - you get a game of bowling and an hour at the snooker tables for €15.
Take a turn for the macabre
If your sweetheart is a history buff with a taste for the macabre, try a day date wandering around some of Dublin’s museums.
The Natural History Museum (also known as The Dead Zoo) at Merrion Square is quiet and perfect for a bit of sneaky hand-holding.
If that’s not enough for you, try the Glasnevin Cemetery and Museum, the burial site of Michael Collins, Daniel O’Connell, Éamon de Valera and a host of other prominent national figures.
If all that death starts getting you down, you can always duck into the beautiful Botanic Gardens next door. Perfect.
Check out a drive-in movie
A retro treat that is sure to delight your beloved. There are two drive-in cinemas operating this Valentine’s Day:
- The Movie Junction in Cork, which shows the latest films and provides rain-proof canopies for each car to ensure a clear view, whatever the weather. You can even get a pizza delivered right to your vehicle. Heaven.
- And The Underground Cinema at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, which usually takes a break for winter but is returning for Valentine’s weekend only - there’ll be family screenings of Frozen, Grease and Guardians of the Galaxy (if you can’t get away) and a later screening of Dirty Dancing on Saturday.
Get competitive in a round of mini golf
This mightn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but nine times out of ten a round of mini golf will stoke some healthy competition and lots of flanter*.
There a few indoor mini golf courses in Ireland, because our weather isn’t all that forgiving to the crazy golfer:
- Unigolf in Limerick
- Rainforest Adventure Golf in Dundrum, Dublin
- Indoor Mini Golf in Naas, Co Kildare
*Flirty banter.
Gaze at the heavens
OK, so it may not be traditional stargazing, but if you’re in the south of the country this Valentine’s Day go to Blackrock Castle Observatory in Cork and check out a planetarium show. Rosemantical.
