Long-distance relationships can be difficult, especially if your lover is abroad due to family obligations, travel, education, or simple living elsewhere. Yet, while the oceans may separate you, it might not affect your love. If your love is still burning with passion—if with anything else, consider having it looked at—the following question has possibly popped into your head: Is now the right time to propose?
If you’ve thought about it, your gut instinct is trying to tell you something. Take the hint and ask them to marry you! There’s no time like the present, and there is no use in waiting for the ideal time. Because, truthfully, it’s always the ideal time if you’re truly in love. But an overseas proposal is not a common thing—you haven’t seen it portrayed in a million romcoms, so what do you do?
Uncommon circumstances call for inventive planning. Proposal ideas vary across the spectrum, from the wacky to the purely wholesome, but there are some excellent ideas you can turn into a reality when proposing to your overseas lover. The sky is truly the limit, whether it’s presenting a set of custom rings or posting a YouTube video of you declaring your love for them. Here are some of our favorite ideas to finally steal the heart of your lover.
1. Make it into a Zoom party.
Zoom has become popular, thanks to COVID-19, but it’s long been a favored tool for long-distance couples to have romantic getaways. Plan a big night with all of your closest friends, getting together to share some drinks, catch up, and play some games. But leave the best news for last, taking the party by surprise with one big question.
2. Make it old fashioned with a handwritten letter.
The sweetest gesture is often the one that takes the most effort. Handwritten notes are a thing of the past, thanks to technological updates like texting and email, but they sure are romantic. Why not let your partner live out The Notebook in real life? Begin writing love letters back and forth once you’re separated, to create the magic you’ll soon need.
After enough correspondence, you can finally take measures to propose. Make the climax even more exciting by pairing a ring along with it, possibly in a package titled “Don’t open until this letter has been read.” Not only will it build suspense, but it will make the closing of the letter that much sweeter.
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3. Surprise them in person.
The best gifts are those we least expect. Consider surprising your lover in person, traveling to them to pop the question in person. There are numerous ways you can approach this, such as getting to know their schedule and surprising them during their usual day, or you could get their friends in on it—having them plan a night out where you meet them at dinner and ask for their hand in marriage for dessert.
4. Pop the question during a getaway trip.
Even though you’re on separate sides of the globe, it doesn’t mean you have to be apart forever. While you may have different commitments keeping you tied down to one spot, you and your soon-to-be spouse should regularly meet up for getaway trips. You might think about visiting them or vice-versa, but why not make it fun? Plan a trip somewhere entirely new for the two of you!
And, while you’re at it, plan to propose while the two of you are on this excursion. What they might expect to be just a wonderful vacation together will become a memorable event: a surprise proposal and engagement. Whether you’ve traveled to Paris, Stockholm, Tokyo, or Miami, there are many ways you can pop the question in style, all while taking them by surprise.
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