5 Ways to Create an At-Home Couples Retreat Staycation

Is your love stuck in lockdown? It can be tough to keep the fires burning when temperatures are dropping or when all your communication wires are fraying.

If you’ve been fantasizing about heading out to parts unknown for a romantic vacation or couples retreat for you and your honey to relax away from the busy world, you’re not alone. According to Expedia, Americans are planning on taking more vacation time in 2021, to celebrate the ability to travel.

So what can you do when you’re stuck inside (beyond Netflix and chill)? When it comes to getting away from home, even if it's in your imagination, desperate times call for creative measures.

Here are five ideas for creating an at-home couples retreat or a staycation that feels (almost) as good as a trip out of town.

Massage for two

A spa package for couples can cost $200 (or more) but oh, it can be so worth it. Okay, so your home doesn’t have two massage tables where therapists can rub you down in tandem but you can replicate the experience with a little ingenuity.

Light some candles and then set a timer for a full-half hour. Cue the calming ocean sounds or whatever soft music makes you feel like you’re far away from home. Break out the massage oil and take turns rubbing the other down. (No skimping on shoulders or peeking at phones!)

Create a relationship soundtrack

A shared playlist of songs you listened to and loved over the course of your relationship is like a photo album for your ears. Not sure where to begin? Start by Googling songs from the year your relationship began and see if anything jogs a memory.

Think about songs that played while you were on vacation, when you slow danced at a wedding, or played in the background at an event when you were falling in love (or shared a laugh together).

Take in a show (at home)

Stuck inside and wishing you could experience the joy of live theater? The lights may be dark but there are still lots of ways to experience the best of Broadway, opera, ballet, and classical performance from your living room.

Put on your best clothes, enjoy a quick pre-theater dinner, and log onto BroadwayHD for a Tony award-winning musical, The Metropolitan Opera House for a performance of Il Trovatore, or live ballet or chamber music at Lincoln Center.

Play Zeta’s 20 Questions

Many couples retreats offer exercises to help partners, even ones who’ve been together for years, get to know each other better. One activity we recommend is to know each other’s Money Stories, a game aimed at helping you both understand your financial beliefs and where they came from.

We’ve created a list of 20 essential money questions that we believe that every committed couple needs to ask each other in order to get on the same page about their financial future (and stay there).

Give the gift of alone time

A way to promote the most beneficial relaxation and meditation on your partnership may be to just take time apart. Give your partner six hours to take a walk, have a cup of coffee alone, read a book, write in a journal, or whatever activity offers the most peace and time to collect one’s thoughts.

Even a short time apart can foster appreciation for the other person and give a reason to toast to all the good things in the relationship on your next Money Date.