You've both got some free time. Someone says, "Shall we do something?" Then you spend half of it trying to decide what that something should be.

Having a few date ideas to hand makes that bit easier. These ten give you a mix of cheap afternoons, evenings out and things you can try together. Pick one that fits the time and energy you actually have.

1. Take a walk with a destination

Choose a park, a riverside route or a part of town you rarely visit, then give yourselves somewhere to finish. A bakery, a coffee shop or a bench with a view will do.

Agree roughly how far you want to walk before leaving. "A short stroll" means very different things to someone wearing walking boots and someone wearing their new trainers.

2. Make a picnic from your favourite snacks

Each bring a couple of things you love, plus something you think the other person should try. You can buy everything on the way; nobody needs to spend the morning making tiny sandwiches.

Find somewhere you can comfortably sit, take a blanket and check the weather. If it turns, have the same picnic on the living room floor.

3. Browse a bookshop together

Give each other a small mission. Find a book you'd recommend, a cover you love or the most oddly specific title on the shelves.

Then compare your choices over a drink. Buying a book is optional, which makes this an easy date to keep within a small budget.

4. Try something neither of you can do yet

Look for a beginner session in pottery, dancing, cooking or another skill you've been curious about. Pick something you both want to attempt and check what's included before booking.

Being equally new at something takes a bit of the pressure off. You have permission to be terrible, and something to laugh about afterwards.

5. Have a proper board game evening

Choose a game you'll both enjoy, sort out snacks and clear enough space to play. A cooperative game is a good choice if competitive Monopoly has previously ended in a formal inquiry.

At home, start with something you already own or can borrow. If you're heading to a board game café, check how its table bookings and game charges work.

You don't need to know about art to have an opinion. Each choose something you'd put in your home, something you don't understand and something you keep coming back to.

Check the exhibition and admission details first. Keep the visit short if that's what suits you, then leave time to talk about what you saw.

7. Go out for breakfast

An evening date can feel like a lot after a long week. Breakfast gives you a reason to get out together before the rest of the day takes over.

Choose somewhere within easy reach and check whether it takes bookings. Even toast and coffee can feel like an occasion when neither of you is rushing off to work.

8. Cook a new dish together

Pick one recipe, read it all the way through and shop before you're hungry. Split the jobs so one person doesn't become the chef while the other becomes an extremely attentive spectator.

Keep the first attempt manageable. Fresh pasta might be fun; fresh pasta, homemade bread and three courses could be a very long Tuesday.

9. See a film and leave time afterwards

Choose the film before you leave, then plan a little time for a drink or a walk afterwards. That's where you get to disagree about the ending.

For a night at home, put your phones away, make popcorn and commit to watching one film. Scrolling through trailers for an hour is its own genre of evening.

10. Explore somewhere nearby as visitors

Pick a neighbourhood or nearby town you usually pass through. Find one thing you'd like to see and one place to stop for food, then leave the rest open.

You don't need a packed itinerary. A change of scenery and a couple of hours together are enough to make the day feel different.

Keep a few ideas for next time

If several of these sound good, save them to your shared ideas in Unfaff. Next time you have a free afternoon, you'll already have a few things you both want to do.