Best Halloween date ideas to woo your boo

This article was originally published October 19, 2017 and was updated October 3, 2019.

There may be no better time to go on a date than Halloween. It's the beginning of "cuffing season" so everyone is looking for someone to keep them warm, and forget fingers touching as your reach for popcorn — a frightening flick is a great excuse to cling! A night at the movies is just one option. If you're in need of a little more gothically romantic inspiration, allow us…

Seance, if you dare

It's one thing to tell a ghost story, it's another to be in it. Whether you believe in them or not, a seance is an intimate and immersive experience that will either put you in closer proximity to the other side or just leave you amusingly creeped out. Finding out who you were in a past life, or who has been trying to contact you from beyond the grave, is bound to reveal some interesting answers. It's also a morbid way to get to know your date; getting to know about important people in their life who have passed says a lot about them as a person. Or you could try to get in touch with a dead celebrity, like Marilyn Monroe or even William Lyon Mackenzie King. Finding a seance may be an adventure in itself; they are usually performed by local mediums or illusionists, but a quick online search can bring up some creepy characters. If you want to be on the safer side, you can always DIY your own ouija board and do all the talking to the dead yourself, and in the comfort of your own living room.

See a psychic

Why look at the past when you can uncover the future? A couple's reading could tell you a lot, both who you are as people and where the relationship is headed (or maybe you just want to get some dirt like Jessi did).  Psychics are always game to answer whatever questions you have — the prospects of your career, finances, sex life — through a variety of ways; tarot cards, palm readings or the classic crystal ball. Having your partner with you can be a cute and coy way to share thoughts and desires together.

Plod along a pumpkin patch

A decidedly safe idea for those of us who scare a little too easily. And a classic date idea, especially when you can get there on one of those perfect autumn days that aren't too cold. It's also a prime opportunity for adorable couple photos than you can taunt your Facebook friends with. You're always bound to see a few mutant pumpkins (like this one in B.C.) and if the regular pumpkin patch isn't doing it for you, there's plenty of pumpkin-related events, like Operation Pumpkin Drop in Saskatoon.

Enter a haunted house

The haunted house industry is bigger than ever, it's truly embracing the art of the scare and there are so many ways to do it. Classic track haunted houses at fall fairs, amusement park haunts, pop-up houses or hayrides in freaky fields or location-specific ones like Casa Loma (just ask the hosts of The Goods) offer a few options for screaming the night away. And there's no better way to show your partner how brave you are... before that guy with the chainsaw jumps out at you.

Check out a vintage horror flick

Whether you want to watch the classics in your home or you want to seek out the latest slasher film, horror movies are hard to watch, but impossible to stay away from. More and more, art houses and local cinemas are falling back in love with showing the classics. See the original Dracula or Frankenstein restored on the big screen, or seek out a midnight sing-a-long screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Some cinemas are also repurposing the classics: playing silent films with modern soundtracks, marathon screenings and hosting post-screening talks, so there's plenty of new (and often inexpensive ways) to enjoy these again.

Make your way through a corn maze

Depending on what time of day you go, this can be enjoyably autumnal or a bone chilling experience. Canada has a lot of corn and, as such, has a plethora of corn mazes across the country that are easily to (figuratively and literally) lose yourselves in. Even better than the mazes themselves are their aerial view designs, which can get very specific.

Catch a magic show

Canada has a long history of successful magicians, whether it's the iconic Doug Henning, or Darcy Oake who recently performed for the Queen. Those who perform magic clearly care about their craft and there are tons of local performers (traditional magicians, comedy magicians, modern illusionists and hypnotists) that are willing to put on high quality shows anywhere and everywhere they can — just try not to get called up on stage.

Get a guided ghost tour

Many date ideas on this list have been illusory in nature, a Halloween facade made solely to entertain. But Canada has a rich history of actual scary stories and ghost tours stationed across many iconic sites. Whether they be historic forts, haunted battlefields, jails where infamous criminals were once held or landmarks that once saw ominous deaths, there's plenty of creepy Canadiana just waiting for you and your date to explore.