What’s the Most Popular First Date Idea?

You may have noticed that we have been running a poll to find out what the most popular first date idea is with three classic options. The options included meeting for ‘coffee’, going out for an ‘evening meal’ or going for ‘a drink’ and nearly 6000 people responded to the question!

The most popular answer was going for a drink, with 2846 people choosing it at their favourite option, but meeting for a coffee was almost as popular with 2125 choosing the hot drink option.

Why is going for a drink so popular?

Both heading to the pub and heading to a cafe fit in which the three key elements of a first date:

1. Safety –  On a first date you should always meet in a busy public place.
2. Informality – A first date is nerve-wracking enough without having to worry about finding formal attire for the occasion. Meeting for drinks allows you to wear comfortable, but nice clothing.
3. Flexibility – Meeting for drinks allows you to extend the date if you are having a lot of fun or to cut it short if you aren’t as well matched as you had hoped.

The other benefit of going for drinks is that it’s not too costly when compared to an adventurous outdoor date idea like quad-biking or a high ropes course or going for a fancy dinner. You can also take it in turns to buy the drinks, which prevents any awkward discussions about splitting the bill.

The downsides of going for a drink

You do need to be vigilant if you are having alcoholic drinks as it can impair your judgement if you have too many. This might mean that you become too trusting, or just a case of ‘beer goggles’.

If you’re planning to drink, make sure that you’ve got a taxi number to hand or know when trains or buses are going.

In short, if you’re looking to ask someone out on a first date, it’s a good idea to go for a drink and save more imaginative ideas for further meetups.