Many University students associate three colors with Valentine’s Day: red, pink and more than a little green.

Ben Trice, a senior from Thomaston, felt the financial burn last year on a dinner date at the restaurant Five and Ten.

“We dressed up real nice,” he said. “We had an excellent meal that cost close to $70.”

Although the date went well, Trice said he felt he would have enjoyed the evening without the expensive dinner.

This year, couples and friends can celebrate a memorable Valentine’s Day together without ravaging their savings accounts.

Valentine’s Day concerts offer inexpensive date options.

The 40 Watt Club will host a Valentine’s party at 9 p.m. for couples and singles featuring performances by the Detroit Cobras, Reigning Sound and The Weight.

Tickets are $10 in advance.

The University chorus groups will also perform a free show at 8 p.m. at Hodgson Hall.

Eight groups – including the Men’s and Women’s Glee Clubs, The Accidentals and Noteworthy – will “sing selections about love in all of its stages,” according to the Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau press release.

For outdoorsy couples, Athens is full of romantic natural areas, such as Herty Field on North Campus and the State Botanical Gardens on Milledge Avenue.

Eating a picnic dinner is a good way for couples on a budget to enjoy the scenery and spend quality time together.

“You could prepare a meal together and then take it out,” said Bridget Goodman, a freshman from Atlanta who has enjoyed picnic dates in the past. “It doesn’t have to be gourmet.”

What makes a date special is the thought behind it, not the price tag on it.

A scavenger hunt can be a creative and thoughtful Valentine’s Day idea.

One year, Brent Allen, a sophomore from Valdosta, left clues for his Valentine that eventually led her to a special dinner.

“It’s all in the details,” he said. “She noticed the effort.”

But celebrating Valentine’s Day shouldn’t be limited to students with significant others.

Single men shouldn’t be shy about enjoying each other’s company on this special holiday.

Last Valentine’s Day, Nick Turner, a senior from Snellville, had a dinner date at Snelling Dining Hall with his roommate. The dinner was a prize awarded for a contest, and since both men were dateless, they went together as friends.

“On our table we had flowers in a vase,” Turner said. “They served us something in champagne glasses to make it romantic.”

For ladies, a trip to the nail salon to get pedicures together is an indulgent way to spend an afternoon.

Friends also could meet in the evening for a movie marathon or ice cream social, in which each person brings a different topping for a sundae.

Singles who feel bitter about their friends’ Valentine’s Day plans could host a “Down With Love”-themed potluck dinner party to boycott the holiday altogether.

No matter students’ romantic status, a festive Valentine’s Day does not have to mean an overdrawn bank account.

Save that green for St. Patrick’s Day.