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101 Fun and Creative Date Night Ideas in The Greater Lansing Area

If you’re in a relationship, we all have the common goal of cultivating and keeping that spark alive. Sometimes keeping those date nights unique can be tough. In part because of wanting something new to do and other times because we are wanting to stay within our budgets. Afterall we still have to pay the babysitter, right? Well – we can help! We’ve made a list of 101 things to do in Lansing on a date night.

If you’re in the mood to go all out or just do something chill, here is a diverse list of things we think you’ll love doing together. We also like to use this list for fun things to do with friends.

101 Fun Things to Do for Date Night in Lansing

Listed below are 101 things to do in Lansing for a fun night out with your sweetie. In case you’re looking for something specific besides just going out to eat, we’ve sectioned ideas into these categories:

DATE NIGHT MENU

Eat
Watch/Listen
Relax
Explore
Tour
Taste
Cook
Create
Move/Play
Cheer
Lansing Date night ideas

Eat

Go to Dinner or Lunch, The greater Lansing area has exploded in the last few years with dining options. Here are some of our favorite locations for great food + fun atmosphere:

Fun Dinner Suggestions

**Writers note: This is NOT an all-inclusive list of the places around town. This list is suggestions our team knows you’ll enjoy. If you have a date night restaurant spot you’d like to see included, let us know by commenting below.

AI Fusion – make a reservation to hang out in your own unique Japanese-style seating room.

Art’s Pub – The tapas-style food and beverages are delicious with a really fun, chill atmosphere. Their patio faces the sunset and is great for those nice summer evenings.

The Avenue Cafe’/Ruckus Ramen – Arguably the some of the best ramen in town! But you’ll have to be the judge. Try the Okonomiyaki fries and your taste buds will be dancing all night long.

American Fifths Downtown Lansing

American Fifth Spirits – Play board games, eat delicious snacks, and try their rotating drink options. They also have a DD menu that is really tasty and fun, making this a perfect destination for all.

Arcadia Smokehouse – Amazing staff and live music nights. They have a walk up ordering station for those nice summer nights when we want to walk around and do a few things in one night.

BAD-Brewing-Company-Igloo

Photo courtesy of Rene E.

Bad Brewing Company – Igloos, drinks, and a great vibe.

Burgdorf Winery – A great choice for a chill and cozy night.

Blue Gill Grill – Summer nights are a dream when you sit on their patio watching the sunset over Lake Lansing.

Blue Owl Reo Town Lansing Patio with kids

Blue Owl Coffee–  They are known for their coffee but they have many other drink options as well as food.

Bridge Street Social – Wow! Their extensive knowledge of wine by their sommelier is a treat in itself.  Try the roasted Brussel sprouts – they are perfection.

The Cosmos – Funky and unique pizza. Order the “Trust Us” and you won’t be disappointed. Afterward, head next door to Zoobies for drinks.

The Creole – Their specialty is burgers, beignets, and bourbon. Try one of their unique burgers on a house-made bun.

Dusty’s Cellar – They offer three seating areas for dining. Plus, pride themselves in an outstanding beer and wine selection.

Eastwood Towncenter: Head to any of these corporate places for a nice and delicious night out. One of our favorites is Bravo. It’s cozy in the winter and so nice and breezy in the summer on the patio.

Ellison Brewery and Spirits – They call themselves beer scientists. At their East Lansing location, you can BYOF (Bring your own food) plus they have weekly food trucks. Watch for their new location coming soon to REO Town.

El Azteco Kids Eat Free Greater Lansing

El  Azteco  – Best cheese dip around! You can’t go wrong with complimentary chips and salsa. In the warmer months, it’s dreamy to sit up on the patio at the East Lansing location. Try their new patio at the westside location, as well!

Horrocks – Choose from their salad bar or hot food bar, then sit in the new lounge area on the north side of the building or on the patio in the summer.

Lansing Brewing Company – LBC is always a great choice for games and beers on tap. Also, enjoy their live music on the patio during the warmer months.

Looking Glass Brewery – This old church turned bar and hangout spot is really great and has games available.

Maru Sushi & Grill – Delicious, Allergy friendly, and a guaranteed delicious night out.

MP Social – A night out here is a win for lots of reason – read why here! You’ll love their drink menu and all around atmosphere.

Meat – Mmmmm, I can almost taste it now just thinking about it – We love going here because of all the fun sauces to try and rustic vibe. Copper cups and mason jar waters make this a really fun place to dine.

Naing Myanmar Family Restaurant – Head here for a fantastically authentic and delicious meal.

Nola Bistro – Pho’ and Po Boys! What more could you want?! Oh, maybe a Vietnamese coffee would top that off nicely as well.

El Oasis – In the summer this can be such a great place if you’re looking for a chill date night out. Sit on the patio, then walk over to Strange Matter for a coffee = date night supreme.

Lily Pearls Lounge & Lula’s Louisiana Cookhouse – Have you been here yet? Two sisters opened up two separate but connected restaurants right next door to each other. We could gush about this place but it’s better if you just go and try them out. It’s so yummy and the building is beautiful!

Michigrain Distillery – Fun, tasty, and lots of options!

Ozone Brewhouse – We loved hanging here this past summer to eat on their patio from the food truck parked on the grounds each day.

Persis Indian Cuisine – one word: delectable. Their butter chicken and naan are a 10!

Red Cedar Spirits This place is cool! Its darker and smaller quarters make it a great date spot.

Red Haven Farm to Table – There’s nothing not to love about Red Haven. Happy hour is great as well. Soooo good!

Sansu Sushi and Cocktails – Unique seating in the entire restaurant, but rent their special rooms for a unique and special time.

Sapporo Ramen and Noodle Bar –  This spot is off the beaten path in East Lansing. It’s got a great vibe and even better ramen. Gluten-free options available.

Soup Spoon – Have you tried the soup flight!? It seems like each time we go here there’s something newly delicious to try. You CAN NOT go wrong hanging here.

Street Kitchen – Their inside location newly opened this year and it’s getting rave reviews.

Tavern 109 – This is a gem in Williamston.

Tavern & Tap – We love going here in the summer when the walls open up to Michigan Avenue, but it’s just as yummy all year round.

Cosmos Pizza Patio in Lansing Old Town with Kids

Zoobies – Rain or shine this place rocks!

Back to Date Night Menu

Watch/Listen: (Enriching things to do)

Hear some amazing Jazz (Check these websites for their Jazz schedules)

Sing and listen to the Blues: (See their websites for their schedules)

Listen to Records together at Record Shops

blue owl coffee lansing reotown

Listen to live music, storytelling, poetry and more at Blue Owl and get an awesome coffee.

Go see a Flick together at these theatres:

See a FREE Movie:

See an older movie for $5 and under in these theaters:

Experience the wonder of the Theatre:

Go to Common Ground Plan a whole week of dates or pick one night of fun.  (End of June)

robin theatre reotown lansing

Laugh together at a Comedy night

Escape Together

Have a mysterious Dinner at The Murder Mystery Co

See the beauty of Dance

Catch a Drive-in-Movie Take a trip to US 23 Drive In.

Movie in the Park Lansing

See a Movie in the Park

Watch Independent or Foreign films

Go to a music show

old town general store lansing

Listen to live music in a unique venue:

Listen and enjoy Classical music at Absolute Music.

Have a blast from that past and go see an 80’s cover band.

Go to an event on Campus

Go to a Concert Series in the Park

Back to Date Night Menu

Relax: (Chill things to do)

Relax together at a Yoga class:

Get a Couples massage

See some beauty together at an Art Gallery or Museum

Drive Lansing Date Night Ideas

Drive.  This is one of my favorite things to do when I want to get out of town and spend some quality time with my guy. If you’ve never done this give it a try!

  • Old 127 starts at the end of Cedar St. running North. Breathe a little and take in the trees at each season and end up at Uncle Johns Cider Mill. You could walk the orchard, grab a glass of wine in their tasting room, or just keep on driving.
  • M-99 starts at the end of MLK running southwest. It will take you through some pretty green fields and plop you right in Eaton Rapids where you could get out and enjoy the view on a couple of their bridges.
  • Through MSU Campus. You could get lost in all the winding roads or just take in the beauty that is MSU’s Campus. Either way it’s a great way to have nice talks or just relax together.

Walk through flower gardens.

Chill at a bookstore together with a treat and drink at these locations:

Go to a Museum

horrocks lansing farmers market

Grab some goodies, kombucha, a beer, or a glass of wine at the wine bar and tavern at Horrocks and sit on the Patio. If you’re feeling really ambitious, walk/run/bike there from the Sharpe Park trail!

Back to Date Night Menu

Explore: (Adventurous things to do)

Detroit explore trips for date nights

Visit another city!

Take a nature walk/hike through:

Sit under the stars

Scooter through a portion of the city on Bird or Lime scooters parked around town.

Go Geocaching or letterboxing. Seriously, it’s so fun!

Take a ride on the Michigan Princess, Lansing’s Riverboat.

Go Fishing together

  • Park Lake, 6499 Park Lake Rd, Bath, MI 48808-9718
  • Lake Lansing, 6260 East Lake Drive Haslett, MI 48840
  • Sharpe Park, 1401 Elmwood Rd, Lansing, MI 48917
  • Crego Park, 1600 Fidelity Road,, Lansing, MI 48910

Pick Fruit at a local Orchard

antiqueing lansing reotown market vintage junkies

Go Antiquing Here are some of our top picks.

Date night ideas digging for records Lansing record shop

Go digging (searching) for records 

Visit some local artisans (open year round)

Check out an Arts Night Out. These nights  rotate venues and is a great way to explore new places and artists work in our city.

Visit and explore Old Town

Stroll through REO Town

Take a walking tour of MSU This place is so big that multiple dates doing this might be fun.

Old Town Lansing Scrap Fest Festival

Go to a Festival

Back to Date Night Menu

Tour: (Learning things to do)

Take a self-guided or guided tour of the Capitol building.

Tour the Trails of Lansing Making a list of scavenger items can be a good time during this as well.

Do the Lansing Historic Walking Tour This is on my bucketlist this year. If you get to it before we do, we’d love to hear about it.

Take a Craft Beer Tour Michigan is home to some fabulous breweries. Find out more about them on this fun adventure.

American Fifths Downtown Lansing

Tour American Fifth Spirits Distillery. Then play some board games or just enjoy the drinks and snacks.

Travel up the Beaumont Tower on MSU’s Campus and possibly get to play the carillon.

Take the Demented Mitten Tours

Back to Date Night Menu

Taste: (Things to do out to eat)

Eat on the patio

Have a Picnic

Old Town Lansing Scrap Fest Festival Food Truck

Try some fun or unique food at these restaurants:

Tell us your favorites!

Have some delicious snacks

Peruse the Farmers markets. We have so many options in Michigan for this.

Blue Owl Lansing ReoTown

Have a Coffee at one of these fun shops:

Indulge your sweet tooth with your sweetie at Sweetielicious!

Enjoy wine tasting

Grab a Beer from a Brewery

smoothies juice downtown lansing

Drink Smoothies/Juice/Bubble Tea

Back to Date Night Menu

Cook: (Things to do with food)

Williams Sonoma Learn fun new tricks at Eastwood Towncenter.

Al!ve Charlotte Take classes in  many types of cooking styles and techniques.

Le Chat Gourmet Eaton Rapids has a full list of fun classes to take with your sweetheart.

Back to Date Night Menu

Create: (creative things to do)

Pottery

Take a print making class with ALT Printing Co. It’s SO fun!

Take a Painting Class

Try out a variety of Art classes at REACH Art Studio.

Eli and Edyth Broad Art Museum Drawing Marathon

Create something great at the Eli & Edyth Broad Art Museum Call for information on class events.

Back to Date Night Menu

Move/Play: (Things to DO – actively)

Adult Arcade bar Have so much fun at The Grid!

kayaking lansing rivertown adventures

Go Kayaking with Rivertown Adventures. From hour rentals, to events they’ve got so much fun waiting for you!

Go to a Trivia night (Check location for times)

  • Claddagh, Eastwood
  • The Nuthouse, Lansing
  • Piazzano’s, Lansing
  • The Green Door, Lansing
  • Moriarty’s Pub, Lansing
  • Gus’s Bar, Lansing
  • Stage – 1785 W State Rd, Lansing
  • The Tin Can, East Lansing
  • Jimmy’s Pub, East Lansing
  • City Limits East, East Lansing, and Mason
  • Henry’s Place, 4926 Marsh Rd, Okemos
  • The Classic Pub and Grill
  • Buddies, Okemos and Holt
  • Charlie’s Bar & Grill, Holt, Diamondale, and Potterville.
  • Champions Sports Bar, Holt
  • Ryan’s Roadhouse, St. Johns
  • Sirens, St Johns
  • Wagon Wheel, Portland
  • Renucci’s Tavern – 540 N. State St. Ionia

Play board games at American Fifths while you enjoy the drinks and snacks.

Go Bowling.

Jump in and swim together.

sharpe park volleyball lansing play

Play some Volleyball

Play a pickup game of basketball

Pickup games of soccer

Bike on your own or with these rental spots:

Play Dodgeball at MiLife Sports

Lansing River Trail

Go Hiking at the many parks and trails around the Greater Lansing Area

Take a run together on one of the many trails around town. Use our trail guide for routes.

Take a dance class:

Take a Walk on the many trails in our area. Use our trail guide for routes.

Go golfing together. Here are some fun spots for dates:

Play some Tennis in one of the parks around town.

Hit the target (or at least try) at Bull’s Eye Axe Throwing in Lansing

Go Horseback riding at Sundance Riding Stables or Northfork Farms and Outback

Go Rock climbing at Al!ve.

Have a blast at a High Ropes Courses in Howell, MI

Jump for joy together!

Have some Horseshoe fun.

Sledding Tubing Birchfield Park

Sled, Go Tubing/sledding in the winter at Burchfield, Granger Meadows Park, or Hawk Island where all have snack bars.

Hold hands while you Iceskate

Ski at Mt. Brighton This is such a cool idea for close-by extreme fun!

Go Roller Skating and remember what it was like to be young again at Edru Skate

Back to Date Night Menu

Cheer: (Sports things to do)

Cheer on the Lansing Lugnuts At the Cooley Law Stadium

Check out our new soccer team Ignite Lansing at Cooley Law Stadium.

Catch all the action at a Roller Derby

Cheer on Cars, Buses and more at Spartan Speedway

LCC Sports support local talent.

Watch the Lansing Legends play an exciting game of basketball.

Spartan Basketball Get to the Breslin and cheer on this amazing team!

Spartan Baseball Take em’ out to the ballgame.

Spartan Hockey Ice fights and fast-paced fun at Munn.

Spartan Gymnastics Awe and cheer on the strength of these athletes.

Spartan Swimming and Diving Check out this cool experience in the beautiful old buildings on campus.

Back to Date Night Menu

Any of these sound fun? I can’t wait to get out there with my love and try out some more things to do in Lansing.

Have you done some of these already? We would love for you to share some success story adventures with us. Let us know in the comments below what was a blast, if you have tips, or if you have an idea or restaurant to add to the list.

Happy galavanting, Lansing friends and families!