Eight fun fall date ideas

Have you carved all your pumpkins?

Been on a hay ride and through a corn maze?

Walked through enough haunted houses?

Are you left looking for a way to combine the beautiful fall weather with a creative, inexpensive date idea?

As the weather becomes cooler and the leaves turn the colors of the harvest, couples can utilize the change of seasons to their advantage to explore all the autumn season has to offer.

Various places close to campus offer opportunities for the fall season that go beyond the normal dinner and a movie date.

Mini-golfing is one enjoyable date idea, which combines both the outdoors and a small amount of athletic aptitude.

Two facilities close to campus are Freddy Hill Farms & Freddy’s Family Fun Center in Lansdale and Tee’s Golf Center in Conshohocken.

Freddy’s combines miniature golfing with a visit to the farm and a zoo, while Tee’s offers two 18-hole miniature golf courses and batting cages. Both offer an exciting and diverse number of activities for an active outdoor date.

Or go to Valley Forge National Park, for various activities like biking, hiking or picnicking.

For a chance to go ice skating, the Blue Cross RiverRink opens on November 24th and is located at Penn’s Landing.

Shady Brook Farm, located in Yardley, Pa., offers a chance for an interesting date with a visit to the farm market and picnic areas. Starting on Nov. 22, they will open their outside Christmas light display, where you can either drive your own car through or take a hayride to enjoy the lights.

The Philadelphia Zoo, which is within close driving distance, offers another entertaining opportunity to be outside and a chance to view wild and unique animals. The zoo’s rate also becomes four dollars cheaper in the winter season, starting in December.

Another possibility for creative dates in the autumn are fall festivals, which offer various activities to highlight the season. Later in November, Christmas displays also become a huge attraction.

Longwood Gardens offers a fall festival, called the Chrysanthemum Festival, which started October 28 and lasts until November 19. This festival offers a look into Japanese culture and exhibits an expansive display of chrysanthemums.

The Christmas season also starts early at Longwood Gardens. Beginning on November 24 is the outdoor light festival and many live musical performances.

For indoor date ideas, Philadelphia hosts many fascinating museums and also theater opportunities.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art, which often hosts special exhibits, is currently specially displaying “Tesoros /Treasures/ Tesouros: The Arts in Latin America, 1492-1820.”

Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia is doing a production of 42nd Street until January, and offers tickets with prices as low as $10.

For more information and prices for these places, visit the following websites:

~www.phillyvisitor.com/pennslanding.php

~www.shadybrookfarm.com/events.php

~www.longwoodgardens.org/ChrysanthemumFestivalCalendar.html

~www.walnutstreettheatre.org

~www.philamuseum.org/

~www.philadelphiazoo.org

~www.freddyhill.com/

~www.teesgolfcenter.com/