15 Best Proposal and Romantic Engagement Ideas

Most people seem to think that Christmas and New Year are the best-known times for engagement proposals, but did you know that proposals that happen during that time of the year only makes up for 16% of all engagements during the year? What does that mean? Well, it means that love is happening all year round with the remaining 84% of engagements happen throughout the rest of the year!

With that being said, we have compiled 15 romantic ways to propose to your significant other all year round. You are bound to find an option that will work for you if you are looking to do a holiday/winter proposal, a spring proposal, summer or fall proposal.

We also broke down the investment and effort level it takes into each proposal option, so enjoy the read and congratulations in advance!
Low Cost – Under $1000
Medium Cost – $1000 – $3000
High Cost – $3000 and upwards

1) Treasure Hunt
Cost – Low to Medium depending on the clues
Effort – High

If your significant other is a person who loves solving puzzles and is into clues and riddles; this may be a fun proposal for them. Start the clue off at your home and lead her through a personal and intimate experience leading to the last clue which would be at the location you wish to propose. This scores major points for being romantic, putting a lot of thought into it and giving it a personalized experience. It takes a lot of effort to put the scavenger hunt together and the cost is average depending on if you have to purchase/pay for the clues or if they are items you already own.

2) Sky Sign Writers (Aerial Advertising)
Cost: High
Effort: Average

There are two types of sky writing proposals; there are companies who actually use actual smoke to write the “…… Will You Marry Me”; typically more expensive and there are planes who just tow a banner that spells the word. Either option you select will be very romantic and definitely a surprise to you fiancée to be. It does take some effort in the planning, as you may have to call around to find aircraft companies who offer the services, you would have to plan around the weather as a few seconds delay on a windy day could ruin your perfect proposal moment. Since the planning is so intense, make sure that you have all the details ready and that you can get your significant other to that perfect spot at the right time with any media coverage ready on stand by. The fees for this type of proposal are usually high. If interested, check out Air Sign aerial advertising for more information.

3) On A Romantic Getaway:
Cost: High
Effort: Low

We know that the Eiffel Tower in Paris is one of the top spots for an engagement proposal. There are several other romantic locations in the world that you can consider taking your fiancée to be, to pop that question. This will usually be a private one as chances of getting people to travel with you due to the cost may not be feasible. Other places you can research traveling to are Santorini, Greece, Verona, Italy, Cliffs of Moher, Ireland, Paris, France, St. Lucia, Ashford Castle, Ireland, Venice, Italy, Havasu Falls, Arizona, Tulum, Mexico, Sitka, Alaska, Hawaii and who can forget the beautiful city of New York, New York. If you aren’t far from the location you want to travel too, maybe you can even charter a private plane or an helicopter flight to get you to your destination. Check out our international friends at Private Jet Charter and our local friends in Dallas at Fly Jet for an estimate. There is nothing more surprising and romantic than flying solo while enjoying the scenery in a luxurious style to your destination. The cost to travel to any of this location could be significantly high but the effort to book a flight, hotel and scout proposal location could be very low, especially if you get a travel agent.

4) Take It Back to the First Date
Cost: Low to Medium
Effort Level: Medium

When you finally get the balls to ask the girl of your dreams out on a date, where did you go? Hopefully a place that was quite worth remembering and was meaningful. If you can’t recreate the first date due to other reasons beyond your control, think about the location you first kissed or first met or a first moment that was significant and recreate something magical with that first! The effort level may be low or moderate depending on what all you have to do and the cost varies depending on how much you have to put into the planning.

5) Plan a Private Dinner
Cost: Low to Medium
Effort Level: Low

Not everyone loves a public proposal, sometimes, your significant other may prefer something intimate with just the two of you. This makes having a private dinner a private way to propose. Hire a chef to come into your home to prepare your significant other’s favorite cuisine. You can splurge some more by hiring a florist to design and decorate your home or perhaps booking a suite at a nice luxury hotel; btw, the suites at The Ritz Carlton Dallas and Westin Downtown Dallas are to die for!!! This is an option if you are not comfortable with people coming into your home as well. If you do not want to give away the secret, you should plan this around a birthday or holiday to disguise the real reason. We love using the services of our local chefs Taste by Kevin and T and K Hospitality and our local florists Eminent Avenue and Nicole Smedley Designs for our client’s private and public proposals. The effort is low, as you only have to call and book the chef and the cost is average depending on the cuisine of choice and if you want to splurge on a hotel or décor.

6) Hot Air Balloon Proposal
Cost: Medium
Effort Level: Medium

This is one of the most classic proposal options over the years and It provides a mix of private and public proposal. It is private when you are up in the air with just the two of you and public in the sense that the whole city is looking up in the sky wondering what’s going on. This is a perfect way to view the beautiful scenery all around you and take it all in when you say YES! The cost is medium and the effort is very minimal. All you have to do is make sure she has her hair and nails done, have the perfect outfit to go on the ride and call and make reservations for the best time of the year.

7) Traditional Cards, Flowers and Chocolate
Cost: Low
Effort Level: Low

Surprise your fiancée to be at work (or maybe not) lol, or better yet, show up to the thanksgiving or Christmas dinner where all the family are gathered. I’ll let you figure out the best location to show up at; but be sure to come bearing a hand written card that professes your love for her along with her favorite blooms and a box of the best chocolates. You may be dramatic and have the ring inside the box of chocolate so that when she opens it, she sees the ring and you’re on your knees. The cost is low and there isn’t much effort to purchase these items and put it together.

8) Underwater
Cost: Low
Effort: Medium

We definitely recommend that you know how to swim to engage in this proposal idea and this is for couples who love to explore in water. Scuba-diving requires you to go undersea and the idea is to dive into the water and produce a ring out of your pocket for a unique proposal to the woman of your dreams. You can go the scuba-diving route or just regular swimming under water; be sure that you have a 3^rd party that can come under with you with an underwater camera to capture the moment. The cost level is low as you only need to pay for the scuba-diving equipment and the effort is not too strenuous.

9) In a Scenic Location
Cost: Low
Effort: Medium

Scenic locations are also another popular proposal option. Figure out what your significant other loves to do; are they an outdoor or indoor person, do they like thrills or nature? Once you narrow down what you think they’ll love most, get to booking your reservation and calling ahead to inform of your plans. This will ensure that you plan accordingly and follow any rules needed to make sure the proposal goes as planned. Some scenic locations include amusement parks such as Disney, Rain Forest adventures, Flower/Nature fields like the Arboretum, going hiking on the Grand Canyon, on the beach, waterfront locations, animal lovers may propose at the zoo, in a shopping mall in front of her favorite store after dropping a dime on shopping and so many more scenic options.

10) Buy out a Movie Theater
Cost: Medium to High
Effort: Medium

Is there a movie your fiancée has been dying to go to see or an all-time favorite movie? Plan a pretend birthday movie showing and invite family and friends to the theater you’ve bought out to witness the proposal. If you prefer a private proposal, it could just be the two of you alone in the theater. The idea of this is to have a pre-recording of your love story provided to the theater ahead that will be intertwined with the movie being watched. In the middle of watching the ‘pretend’ movie, this pre recording will be inserted onto the big screen to catch her off guard and by surprise. Before she realizes what is going on, there you are on one knee with family and friends around to capture the beautiful moment of her saying YES! The cost may be somewhat high depending on the theater and time of the year you choose to make the reservation. The effort level is medium because you have to find a way to pre record the footage that would be played at the movies as well as coordinate perfect timing with the theater.

11) With the Kids
Cost: Low
Effort: Low

Marriage is a huge step to take once you have decided that this is the person you want to spend the rest of your life with. It is even more meaningful when you have beautiful kids that will be witnessing the beautiful union of their parents; so why not involve them in the proposal. Have the kids depending on their age hold custom signs or have them create the art to say something like “Mommy will you marry daddy” or something fun. You score major points and it is so heartfelt when the kids are involved. If you have pets, you could use your pets for the proposal as well. Cost is non existence and it shouldn’t take much effort to gather the kids/pets together.

12) Ring it in with the New Year
Cost: Low to Medium
Effort: Medium

Literarilly RING it in and propose to your significant other as the clock strikes 12! This will be a remarkable way to start the New Year and a New Chapter in both of your lives. The great thing about this proposal is that you can incorporate any of the above proposal ways or location into making it an extra special New Years.

13) During A National Game
Cost: High
Effort: High

This proposal takes a lot of gut as you would be doing this in front of hundreds of thousands of people both live and on screen; so before you embark on this option, be sure that you girl would say yes! There is nothing more embarrassing than being rejected in front of all these people. Also be sure that your fiancé is not a shy person, this could be overwhelming and result in a run-away fiancé lol. This proposal requires a lot of effort as you have to decide what game you want to propose at and reach out to the stadium public relations team and follow through with the process. The cost could be astronomical depending on which game you want to propose at. A college football game would not be as expensive as if you chose to propose at the NFL super bowl game. A less expensive option would be like one of our grooms who held a sign at a play off game in the seats and later got picked by the cameras and projected on the big screen during half time!

14) Sailing Away Together
Cost: Medium
Effort: Medium

What other romantic way to propose to your fiancée than sailing away in the middle of the sea/lake/ocean. This is a memorable way to pop the question and get a yes. You can sail away privately or get close family and friends to be there when you pop the question. You can decide on how big of a boat/yacht you want to rent and what experience you want to create on the boat, that will determine the cost.

15) Hire a Planner
Cost: Medium
Effort: Low

There is always to option of paying someone for time and stress! If you cannot decide what option or you need some professional help and guidance to help you surprise the love of your life, you can always reach out to our team or any event planners in your area to help you execute your proposal.

Whatever proposal option you choose above, don’t forget to go the extra mile to hire a professional to document the moment for you via photography or video. This will be memories that can be re played on the wedding day and beyond into years of celebrating countless anniversaries with one another. When you get to the point in your marriage when you question why, take a look at your proposal pictures and videos and remind yourself of the ‘WHY’! Here’s a list of our favorite Photographers and Videographers that can help capture the moment well.

James Willis Photography
Stanlo Photography
Bomaone Photography
Joshua Dwain Photography
Imagery by Jules Photography
Ada Lee Photography
Teshorn Jackson Photography
Inspired Effects
Malekfoto Weddings
PremiereFoto
Henry Adewale Films

Images posted on this page are not owned by Touch of Jewel