Take your girlfriend to the award-winning Riverbanks Zoo and Garden (riverbanks.org), where you can see over 2,000 animals from around the world and over 4,000 species of native and exotic plants. The Zoo and Garden also hosts special events throughout the year, such as "Wine Tasting at Riverbanks Garden," "Brew at the Zoo", "Riverbanks ZOOfari," "Boo at the Zoo," "Springtime at the Garden Festival" and "Lights Before Christmas." Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is open daily except for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Fun awaits you and your girlfriend in Frankie's Fun Park (frankiesfunpark.com), a place where you can go on rides such as bumper boats and go-karts; eat burgers, hot dogs, pizza, nachos and pretzels; play in the arcade; or try your hand at miniature golf and laser tag. Frankie's Fun Park is a pay-as-you-play amusement park, so there's no admission fee and it's open every day.
Enjoy the outdoors with your girlfriend by taking her to one of the parks located throughout the city. Go for a walk along the walking trail or challenge her to a game of disk golf in 48-acre Earlewood Park. Have a picnic or attend a festival, such as the "Summer Concert Series" in June in 18-acre Finlay Park, one of the state's best-known parks. Granby Park is a dog-friendly park with boardwalks and lighted paths for mountain bikes and runners. Go jogging or take a stroll along a 2.5-mile trail with views of the river or attend annual events such as the "River Rocks" music festival in May and other concerts in 167-acre Riverfront Park. Sesquicentennial State Park (southcarolinaparks.com), known as "Sesqui" for short, is a place where you can take your girlfriend camping, fishing, boating, hiking or biking on trails.
If your girlfriend is a sports enthusiasts, take her to one of the dozens of sporting events in Columbia scheduled throughout the year. Cheer for Allen University's men's or women's basketball team. See the University of South Carolina's "Fighting Gamecocks" men's or women's teams compete in sports, including football, baseball, tennis, golf, soccer, softball, track and field, volleyball, basketball and swimming, in different venues in the city such as the Columbia Coliseum or the Colonial Life Arena. Take her to watch the East Coast Hockey League's "Columbia Inferno" play professional hockey in Carolina Coliseum.
Plan a date night at one of Columbia's theaters for a cultural experience. The Koger Center for the Arts (koger.sc.edu) is host to a series of Broadway shows, ballet and symphonic music events. See musicals, comedies and youth productions at Town Theatre (towntheatre.com), which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is the oldest community theatre in the U.S. in continuous use. You and your girlfriend can watch Broadway and off-Broadway plays in the award-winning Trustus Theatre (trustus.org), which features swivel rocking chairs, complimentary popcorn and a bar.
