61 Most Romantic Ways

to Propose
1. Choose a favorite place -- whether it's a fountain, hotel
rooftop, monument or national park -- that has personal
significance to the two of you. Once you're there, ask
someone nearby to take a picture of you together, and
instead of posing, drop down on one knee.
2. Have a choir, brass band or drum line show up for a
surprise performance of your fiance-to-be's favorite love song
in a park or public location for your proposal. For a really
personal touch, ask the performers if they can incorporate
your fiance's name into the lyrics.
3. Get in touch with the stage manager of your favorite
production and propose after the cast's curtain call. Call
ahead and see if you can have a special note or ad placement
added into the playbill, so you have a keepsake of the
proposal.
4. Arrange a surprise proposal with a street caricaturist. Have
the caricaturist sketch a picture of you two with word bubbles
that say, "Will you marry me?" and "Yes!"
5. Ask the divers at an aquarium to put on a proposal show
inside their biggest fish tank. Give them a (waterproof) sign
that says, "Will you marry me?" to hold up against the glass
and then position yourselves for what will, at first, seem like
feeding time.
6. Send your unsuspecting fiance-to-be on a treasure hunt
that ends with your proposal. Start with a clue at home (a

handwritten note or text message) that leads to a tour of

your favorite spots all over town.
7. Go out for a night of dancing and ask the DJ or bandleader
to pass you the mic so you can dedicate a song and propose
on the dance floor.
8. Hire a skywriter to spell out your proposal for everyone
around to see.
9. Take out a full-page ad in a newspaper, and then pick the
perfect spot to have a relaxing morning of catching up on
current events. Another twist on this idea is to call into a
radio station and then make sure your fiance-to-be is
listening when your proposal is on the air.
13. Plan a romantic destination getaway for two. When you're
on the plane, use the loudspeaker system (of course, run
your plan by the flight attendants first) and propose at 35,000
feet.
14. Rent a Vespa, scooter or bikes to tour the city and invite
your soon-to-be fiance for a ride, but remind him or her to be
safe and wear a helmet. Hand over the helmet (with the ring
box already in it), and then you can zip around town to
celebrate!
15. Go to the beach and build a sandcastle together (at a
safe distance from the ocean!).When your partner isn't
looking, put the ring on the highest tower.
16. After a long day of sightseeing, have a drink in the hotel
bar. When it's time to go, have roses, candles and
champagne all set up in your hotel room -- everything for a
perfect surprise proposal.
17. Gather a bunch of your friends and family for a party and
have everyone put on a T-shirt or carry balloons filled with
helium (otherwise they won't float) bearing one of the letters

in the phrase, "Will you marry me?" Then during the party
suggest a group picture to reveal the message.
18. Spell your proposal out in glow-in-the-dark star stickers on
your ceiling. Get into bed, turn the lights off and wait for the
gasp. Refrigerator magnet letters work too!
19. Throwback to your childhood with a proposal written in
sidewalk chalk on your street or driveway.
20. Create makeshift letters that spell out, "Will you marry
me?" using anything from colored duct tape (against a wall or
a piece of poster board) to scrapbooking materials. Surprise
your partner with your creation at work, home or the park.
(Not crafty? Hire a graffiti artist to write out an artistic
marriage proposal in huge letters!)
1.

21. Fill a favorite room in your home with photo memories

from your relationship; you can hang them from balloons or
cover the walls with them for a jaw-dropping surprise.
22. Turn off all the lights in your apartment and make a trail
of candles that leads to a circle of votives positioned around
the ring.
23. Slip the ring on while your soon-to-be fiance is sleeping
and then do a romantic morning wake-up call with
champagne and strawberries.
24. Tie a red velvet ribbon from one spot in your home to
another. Attach little notes recalling perfect moments in your
relationship along the way. Wait for your partner at the end of
the ribbon with the ring in hand.
25. Cook a five-star-worthy meal of all your fiance-to-be's
favorite foods, or hire a personal chef for the night. Propose
over dessert!
26. Have a custom jigsaw puzzle made with your picture and
the words "Marry Me?" On a rainy day, suggest this activity,
and when you've finished enough that you can clearly see the

photo and read the words, it's time to propose! (Hint: This
works well with Scrabble too.)
27. Add a custom proposal "song" to his or her go-to playlist
on iTunes, or record an unexpected proposal podcast.
28. Have a friend take photos of you with posters that say,
"will," "you," "marry" and "me?" Then make plans to meet up
in a special spot, and before you arrive, text the photos in
order. When the last message goes through, show up and get
down on one knee.
29. Create a web page declaring your love and proposal, and
leave a clue with the web address written on it -- don't say a
word. After the proposal, announce the good news by sending
the link to family and friends.
30. Set up a live-stream channel (on Ustream.tv) and invite
all of your friends and family to watch the proposal live from
wherever you choose to pop the question!
31. Make the box holding the ring a selection on the dessert
tray at your favorite restaurant.
32. Put together a gift basket of yummy treatslike dark
chocolate, coffee or fresh fruit-- and hide the ring among the
presents (in its box, so it doesn't get lost in the goodies).
33. Ask the pastry chef to write, "Will you marry me?" in
chocolate sauce around the rim of a dessert plate.
34. Ask a baker to make a custom cake with the proposal
written in frosting. Then, have the cake displayed in the
storefront and take your partner window-shopping. Bring the
cake home to share and celebrate afterward!
35. Sneak into your soon-to-be fiance's office or classroom
before they arrive in the morning and write your proposal on

their desk or blackboard. Stay hidden from sight until they

show up.
36. Before your partner leaves for work, offer to heat up their
car and scrape the ice and snow off their windows. Then
scratch your proposal into the ice.
37. With the help of your soon-to-be fiance's coworkers,
schedule a last-minute meeting toward the end of the day.
Then whisk them away to a romantic spot to propose.
38. Hire a photographer to capture your proposal, but tell
your partner you've won a romantic couple's photo shoot. Get
dressed up and then propose mid-shoot, and follow it up with
a romantic engagement shoot.
39. Pick the perfect spot to propose and have a photographer
hide somewhere discreet. After your proposal, your
photographer can snap some posed photos too.
40. Tell your fiance-to-be that you've been selected for a
couple's "casting call" at a studio, and then propose in front
of the cameras.
41. Pull off a tiny fake out by asking for your partner's ring
size in obvious ways (bringing home a ring chart is one).
When they accuse you of ruining the surprise that you're
shopping for a ring, say, "Okay, try this one instead."
42. Cut out the bottom of a huge refrigerator box, wrap it
with pretty paper and ribbon, and attach a card that says,
"What's inside the box is a gift to last a lifetime." Then,
"deliver" yourself to your soon-to-be fiance's doorstep.
43. Make the ring the surprise in a box of Cracker Jack or in a
Kinder Egg.
44. Reenact the scene of their favorite romantic movie. If it's
Pretty Woman, go for the ending of the movie: Rent a white

limo and climb through the sunroof with flowers in hand to

proclaim your love as you arrive at her place.
45. Rake the leaves in his or her yard to spell out your
proposal.
46. During the holiday season, use outdoor string lights to
write out "Will you marry me?" on the front of your house,
apartment or lawn. Station your friends and family secretly
inside and come up with an excuse to linger out front. Then
have someone flip the switch to reveal the message.
47. Build a scene of a snowman proposing and then tell your
soon-to-be-fiance to look outside. When they see the
snowman, get down on one knee.
48. Write, "Will you marry me?" on the underside of a kite and
take flight on a breezy afternoon.
49. Propose in a flower or botanical garden when everything
is in bloom.
50. Have a friend or family member set up a picnic -complete with wine and cheese, of course -- for you in a park.
Then come up with an excuse for taking a hike where you'll
stumble upon this surprise proposal picnic.
51. Pick a spot for some summer stargazing (it's even more
perfect if there's a meteor shower or lunar eclipse expected)
and propose under the night sky.
52. Suggest a berry-picking excursion to make some fresh
summer pies. Once you're out there, tell your partner you've
found the most perfect berry they have to see. Instead of ripe
fruit, they'll find you and the ring.
53. On the night before a beach day you've planned, write a
love poem on a piece of parchment paper, roll it into an
antique bottle with a cork and bury it in a well-marked spot in

the sand near your towels. Be sure you "find" the bottle as
you dig together -- and be ready with the ring.
54. On your partner's birthday, plan a "surprise party," and
then pretend to ruin the surprise by having him or her get
there early. The real shock will be when you propose and all
of your friends and family show up afterward to celebrate.
55. Plan a party filled with friends and family at a bar near
where you'll propose and then suggest a celebratory drink
after your partner says "yes."
56. Have your proposal in a park, with friends and family a
safe distance away. Once you've proposed, have everyone
show up for an impromptu celebration.
57. On New Year's Eve, sneak away to a romantic spot just
before midnight and propose as the perfect start to the new
year. Then celebrate with a kiss and plenty of champagne.
58. Surprise your fiance with a pet you've always wanted to
get together (bunny, kitten, puppy) under the Christmas tree
and tie the ring around its neck. Or substitute a stuffed
animal -- still cute, but less maintenance!
59. On the days leading up to February 14, plant Valentine's
Day cards (like the ones you used to give out to classmates in
third grade) with sweet messages written inside around the
house. Then on Valentine's Day, present them with a box
chocolates containing, you guessed it, the ring.
60. Propose during your local fireworks show on the Fourth of
July. Work with a professional to set up a private message in
sparklers that spells out "Marry Me?"
61. Throw a Halloween jack-o'-lantern carving contest for
friends and family where everyone reveals their designs.
Unveil your pumpkin carved with your proposal last.