As a general rule, dating costs money. There are two costs associated with dating. There is the cost of meeting people (ie. to join the dating site) and there is the cost associated of getting to know people (ie. the dinner or movie ticket). This often puts people off dating. They just cannot afford it. As such, I have written this article to help you meet and date people, without spending any money at all.

You don't actually have to spend a cent meeting people. It really is very easy. All you need to do is lose your nerves and become chatty. Talk to everyone no matter where you are. Try and have a conversation with every single stranger who drifts past. If you do this you will pretty quickly become an expert at ice breaking and conversing.

Start this tomorrow. Just start talking to all the people who almost touch your life but don't quite get there. If you start practising this now you will get more and more comfortable with it. You will become skilled at it. It will soon become an action which is within your comfort zone. Then, when that potential date comes along, it will be easy to meet, strike up a conversation and organise a date.

There are so many situation in every day life that give you these opportunities. Some examples include: Sitting on the bus; having a coffee at a cafe; Shopping; Walking the dog; Posting a letter. Every moment you spend outside your front door is a moment that exposes you to the world of meeting people. So get out there and start saying "Hi".

Once you have met someone and have agreed to see them again, your options on where to take someone are virtually limitless. Most of the dates which cost money are "old hat" anyway, so often a cheaper alternative stands out and is much more successful. A great example of this was in the movie Josh Hartnett stared in, called 40 days and 40 nights. In this movie, he simply took a girl (the girl whose heart he ended up winning (played by Shannyn Sossamon)) on a bus ride. That was his idea of the perfect first date. If you haven't seen the movie, get a copy if for no other reason than to see how successful this date was.

So stop, think and be imaginative. It is sure to impress. Here are some ideas to get you thinking: If you are an expert at something (Ie. dancing, surfing, cooking) give your date a free lesson or experience. If you are not an expert, suggest you learn something together. (cooking is great in this regard) Hit your local council up for their local or community events. Go to the beach and have a sand castle building competition (try to lose this one :))

All a free date requires is some imagination and some planning. We hope we have given you a few ideas to play with or develop. Good luck, and remember to have fun and be yourself, no matter where you take your date.