Spread Love, Not Germs: Your Guide to a COVID-Safe Valentine’s Weekend

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By Alex Teerlinck

As the pandemic barrels on with no real end in sight, we’re coming up on almost a year of social distancing and masking up. We’ve gone through birthdays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas in pandemic fashion but we’ve yet to hit one holiday: Valentine’s Day. Whether it’s the highlight of your month or the bane of your existence, it’s coming up quick. However distracting rom-coms, lost loves, new dates, and CVS candy aisles are, let’s not forget our responsibilities to keep our community safe. Without further ado, here’s a singles and couples-friendly guide to staying COVID safe over Valentine’s Day weekend.

If you’re meeting up with someone new for a date- now is the time to start to limit your bubble/get tested if needed. Unfortunately, meeting a new person in a pandemic means meeting the germs of everyone they’ve been around. Super romantic, right? While D.C.’s COVID cases per 100K fare lower than a lot of current virus hotspots, no one is immune. Talk to your date about what you’re comfortable with! GW does free student testing. If you’re off campus, here’s a more comprehensive guide of free testing sites.

Buy into the TikTok trends… cheesy, I know. Whether you’re spending the holiday with your friends or your significant other, the Target challenge and the “four course meal” challenge have been all over my for you page (spoiler: they look really fun).

The Target shopping challenge goes as follows: you and your partner buy four items for the other person: one item that’s their favorite color, one item that reminds you of the other person, one item that the other person needs, and the other person’s favorite food. Target’s dollar and beauty section makes this a great way to have safe and affordable fun on Valentine’s Day weekend. You can also get creative with this challenge!

The four course meal challenge is great for supporting local businesses in D.C. You and your date play rock paper scissors four times: once for drinks, once for appetizers, then dinner and dessert. The winner picks the restaurant for each course- I would definitely recommend doing this in Georgetown or Downtown D.C. if you are here to maximize your options.

Stay home and join Whole Foods’s Gourmet Date For Good virtual cook-along! On Valentine’s Day weekend, three celebrity chefs will lead virtual cooking classes in support of the Independent Restaurant Coalition. It’s for a great cause and there’s nothing more romantic than staying in to cook and stopping the spread of the virus! Plus, it’s for a great cause. For more information, go to the Whole Foods Instagram page.

What would Valentine’s Day weekend be without a movie marathon? Whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day or Galentine’s Day- gather some of your bubble and have each person pick their favorite rom-com! (Bonus points for some Valentine’s themed desserts or even a charcuterie board). If you’re a strict social distancer like me and don’t feel comfortable meeting up with your friends, Netflix party is now Teleparty, meaning you can now watch and chat about anything on Netflix, HBO, Hulu, or Disney+ in real time with your friends. The extension is downloadable via browser- all you need are account credentials to login and get watching!

Do a game night! Also friendly for friends or significant others, this can be done in person or online. If you’re one for online get-togethers, Houseparty, Jackbox, and Psych! are some of my favorite apps I’ve used for game nights with family.

This year makes us think outside of the box for Valentine’s Day. Of course staying in and limiting your contact with others is the safest option. If you do choose to meet up with friends or a new date, remember to be smart – get tested, monitor symptoms, and limit your bubble. No social gathering is worth putting yourself and others at risk! Be honest with the people you’re planning on spending Valentine’s Day (or Galentine’s Day) with in regards to your comfort level. Masking up and keeping six feet is nothing to be ashamed of! Flattening the curve is cool.