27 Things to Do This Winter That Feel Cozy, Not Obligatory

This winter is about feeling cozy, not productivity guilt or forced rituals to show how “good of a time you’re having.”

You don’t need to maximize this winter. In fact, you’re allowed to skip half of these ideas and still be doing the winter season right. This isn’t performative, this is just you relaxing, taking up new hobbies, having fun, and staying comfortable.

And now that we’ve got that settled, let’s get into making your colder months feel not so cold. It may be frigid outside, but that just means you need to enjoy solo date ideas, winter outings, cozy indoor vibes, comforting dishes, romantic date nights, and other fun winter activities.

The chilly months are here, so let’s help you make the most of this season with these 27 things to do in the winter.

1. Romanticize the Early Night

Lean into darkness being a luxury.

I know that the cold winter months bring shorter days, but your mindset and actions will determine a lot about your mood throughout the season. And because the winter doesn’t last all year long, start seeing what it brings as a luxury. Create rituals and habits around longer nights that’ll make things feel cozy and have you looking forward to the evening time. Here are a few things you can do to romanticize the darkness:

• Dim lights at 5pm
• Use table lamps + candles instead of overhead lighting
• Do “nothing” without guilt
• Put on a good playlist
• Read a good book
• Use the fireplace on a nightly basis
• Listen to a good podcast or audiobook
• Bake and cook cozy, delicious meals and desserts

2. The 4PM Reset Walk

Not a workout, not a stroll, just a time to warm up on a frigid day, decompress, and save your mood. This is your time to take care of your mental health by getting out of the house and changing things up. So grab your coat, scarf, headphones, a warm drink, listen to one wintery playlist or a really good podcast, and no doomscrolling.

It’s the perfect way to do a seasonal reset when you’ve hit that winter slump.

3. Create a Winter Signature Drink

Probably one of my favorite things to do in winter is to make cozy drinks. And while a normal hot chocolate is great, creating your own winter signature drink is even better (and more fun).

Here are a few drink ideas:

• Your own spiced tea
• Coffee + orange peel
• Warm apple, lemon, and cinnamon water
• My creamy honey, nutmeg coffee as pictured above
• Caramel vanilla hot chocolate

And anything else that’ll help you enjoy a cozy night in or a cold winter morning just a bit more.

4. Create Your Own Winter Soundtrack

A few albums and/or a few composers on repeat all winter long.

Each season deserves it’s own soundtrack that instantly helps you change moods, keeps you relaxed, and makes things feel just a bit more romanticized. So if you’re looking for things to do on a cold day, then creating your own winter playlist is the answer.

Look for jazz numbers, instrumentals, soundtracks, famous composers, and your personal favorite artists that help make the cold winter days a lot more relaxing.

Also, if you’re listening to the same music every winter (alterations allowed), you might get some emotional time travel to good memories from previous years.

5. Have a Two-Hour Cozy Block

This might just be one of my favorite winter activities for adults on this list.

It’s a scheduled block for slow living. So think, reading, writing, crafting, listening, drinking, snacking, and absolutely no productivity allowed.

This is just your time to decompress on a snow day or do nothing important on cozy winter evenings.

6. Dress for the Life You Want, But Indoors

Winter outfits don’t just stop at pajamas, and if you need some simple winter ideas that don’t require leaving the house, then this is your answer.

Wear cute wool slippers, a pretty knit set, a silk scarf, cozy but semi-formal outfits, and enjoy your time inside. You are the occasion; you don’t need plans to dress well during winter.

7. Make Meals Feel Like a Nancy Meyers Dinner

This is more of a mood prep than a meal prep.

One of the best ways to beat the winter cold is of course comfort food. And what better way to escape the cold than to put on a good playlist and start planning meals that put you in a relaxed, cozy mood all season long?

This is your chance to make some really good soup, make or grab some sourdough bread, light candles, put on some 70’s bossa nova, and enjoy a rich and dark dessert immediately afterwards.

8. Start a Winter Notebook

This is a low pressure winter activity with no aesthetic rules. Just dedicate a notebook for the winter and write down random thoughts, lists, quotes, intentions, successful cozy dinner recipes, beautiful moments, and anything else you can think of.

9. Bring a Cafe Ritual Home

If you have your own weekly coffee ritual, then bring it home. So instead of walking or getting in the car to head to your favorite spot, use that pretty cup and saucer, enjoy an espresso drink, sit by the window, put on a good playlist that makes you feel like you’re in a European cafe, and maybe make croissants or cookies.

Also, if you’re looking for fun things to do with friends this winter, then this is the perfect ritual to start once the cold weather hits.

10. Use Winter as a Skill or Interest Building Season

You’re being quietly productive, but not pressuring yourself to be perfect or turn your new skill into some sort of side hustle.

Basically, you’re using chilly weather as an excuse to stay indoors and learn something you’ve been wanting to try for a hot minute. So think language study, reading books on philosophy, deep diving into an art movement, handwriting, bread shaping, flower arranging, or studying one composer deeply.

It’s a time for building out your own lowkey personal curriculum.

11. Start Your Own Weekly Winter Rituals

One thing. Same day. All season.

So think cozy soup Sunday, at home spa Wednesday, movie Friday, and anything else that makes your week feel more cozy and carries you through the winter season.

12. Create Winter Uniforms

Three (or more) outfits on repeat. This is your season to make the most of your look and feel chic. So this year, you could create an amazing coat + scarf combo, have a statement piece, or wear the prettiest winter layers.

It’s your time to feel like you just walked out of some high-end fashion magazine.

13. Treat Winter Like a Chapter, Not a Season

I feel like one of the best ways to stop hating winter is to treat it like a chapter. But you need to ask yourself what this chapter is about. So for instance, is it about rest, learning, resetting, or just being cozy?

And once you’ve figured out what you want it to be about, plan out what would help you make the most of this themed chapter.

14. Have a Cozy Slumber Party With Good Friends

If you’re looking for things to do this winter that give you a bit of nostalgia and include friends, then having a slumber party is the perfect activity.

You can grab some Trader Joe’s snacks and drinks, order a pizza, put on a playlist and/or movie, enjoy some good conversation, bake cookies, and avoid the outdoors.

15. Stock Up on Seasonal Snacks and Drinks

This is your excuse to go to Trader Joe’s (or your favorite grocery store) and stock up on those seasonal items you’ve been seeing on the shelf. Also, if you do this regularly enough, this might just count as a cozy winter hobby. 🤷‍♀️

16. Go on a Winter Solo Date

I love solo dates; you get to try new things without having to sync up with your friends’ schedules. And whether you wanna go on a winter outing, try a new coffee shop, or start a new hobby, you can do it whenever you want. No waiting, just you, your own personal time, and a bit of spontaneity.

17. Sledding

Another great cold-weather activity for when you need a bit of nostalgia in your life. Either grab the sled in your garage or buy one, head to the nearest snowy slopes, and enjoy the afternoon. Maybe stop for a cozy coffee afterwards?

18. Host a Winter Dinner Party

I love hosting dinner parties; they’re a great excuse to enjoy good food, good company, and really good conversation. Also, it’s probably one of the best things to do when there’s snowy weather. There’s comfort food involved, your own playlist, maybe a fire, candles, and hot drinks.

Also, you can keep it casual or choose your own theme. And if you do choose your own winter dinner party theme, then here are a few ideas:

• Candlelight supper club
• Après-ski without the ski lodge
• Midnight dinner party
• French winter bistrot night
• Film noir
• Mediterranean winter escape
• Old money winter formal
• Winter citruses
• Fireside supper

19. Make Your Space More Cozy

It doesn’t matter if you’re reading this at the beginning of winter or somewhere in the middle, it’s always a good time to make your space cozy.

You can buy more candles, put some soft textures on your couch, create a cozy window lounge situation, bring out some winter reads, fill the rooms with more warm accent lighting, change up the wall art, and do anything else that’s gonna make you enjoy staying in just a bit more.

20. Romanticize Errands

Winter can make mundane things feel cinematic. So think doing grocery runs in a good coat, coffee stops on the way home, walking slower to take in the winter scenery, buying one nice thing (ex. a baguette or bouquet), or having signature winter errand outfits.

You could even treat errands like a route, not a task. So for instance, it could be market, bakery, bookshop, and then home. It feels more European and less like a chore.

21. Build a Personal Cold Weather Menu

This isn’t meal planning or being productive, but more like mood lifting.

You have 5 (or more) meals you rotate through all winter long. They’re comfort foods you genuinely crave and make you feel happier even when it’s cold and dark outside.

22. Have One Signature Winter Scent

Candles make winter more cozy, but what makes it even better is having your own dedicated wintery scents.

And these don’t have to be things like “peppermint” or “evergreen.” They’re just scents that feel right to you for the winter season. Also, this doesn’t have to be candles, it could also be your favorite incense or a warming essential oil blend.

Think of it as that scent you bring out every year that instantly makes it feel like winter.

23. Do a Sunday Reset That Feels Gentle, Not Productive

Sunday resets are such a great way to start the week, but I feel like they’re even more essential when the days are cold and dark.

And for a soft winter Sunday reset, you can light that aforementioned signature winter scent, put on some fresh sheets, make a simple but cozy soup, and do a bit of light planning (but not hustle).

24. Ice Skating

Ice skating is nostalgically fun and I’d honestly feel strange leaving it off this list of things to do in the cold.

Just grab a friend or your significant other or make it a solo date (up to you). And once you’re done, you can maybe get some hot chocolate to warm up.

25. Have a Dedicated “Winter Book” and Read it Slowly

Not binge reading, just picking one really good book that lasts the whole season. Read it in tiny daily doses and allow it to carry your entire winter mood.

It’s a nice way to have a relaxing winter ritual that you look forward to every single day.

You could also do this with your friends and have a recap session at the end of winter to compare notes.

26. Book a Short Winter Getaway

Whether it’s for the weekend or a whole week, you and maybe a friend or two could book a pretty winter getaway.

Also, my initial thought was to suggest staying in some sort of cozy, snowy location, but you could always make it into a roadtrip and head somewhere sunny.

27. Take a Snowy Train Ride

I’ve done this before (see photo above) and it really is worth it. You don’t have to keep your eyes on the road, you just have to relax with a cozy drink and watch the beautiful scenery go by. It’s not just a winter activity, but a way to build new memories and maybe a yearly ritual.

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