Tired of the same routine every Valentine’s Day? Whether you’ve been happily married for 15 years or this is your first Valentine’s together, we understand, it’s hard to do something other than dinner and a movie with Roses at the door for Valentine’s Day. However, just because it’s hard, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t or can’t be done. It MUST be done. Here are some great ideas that can take you off the beaten path of sweet romantic cards and a tasty steak dinner:
Find a unique town or spot a couple hours away. Make sure no one knows you there, and you know no one there. If everyone is a stranger, it’s much easier to be cheesy with your googlely eyes in public. Plan to stay at a bed and breakfast or a local inn. This is something close, convenient, and inexpensive; but you’ll feel like you’re a million miles away if you’ve never been there before. Call ahead and ask for any favors you wish. We suggest chocolate covered strawberries waiting on the desk, or mailing a love note and having it put on the pillow when you arrive. You might even want to ask that the television be removed from the room if one comes in the room. (You want no chance of distractions for this night!) Warm up with a bubble bath together, no need for a crowded hot tub. Go antiquing, hiking, or take a bike ride. The activities don’t necessarily matter, only that you are together and having alone quiet time. Click
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If you’re an active couple go outside! Hike, walk, play, find away to relate romance to your favorite activities. Plant the roses or even the entire rose bush in the garden! If you have a body of water near you, take a boat out and just sit together. Watch the sunset, eat a picnic style meal, bring dessert, have an intimate moment our on the water. Any time you’re away from home, it can be a mini vacation. Step outside, enjoy the day, and make the wait to get home worth it!
Barrels of fun? Make your partner giggle! Maybe the cutesy romance isn’t quite your style. Go to a comedy club or a concert in the park. If you don’t get to spend time together to take advantage of all the things your city has to offer, now is the time! There’s no time like the present and not better present than a Valentine’s Day adventure! Clubs, bars, and parks may not sound romantic, but your actions and words definitely can be. Make the entire night about the other person. The more you show you care the more he or she will be floored. Try to plan more than one activity to prolong the night and spike curiosity. Once the surprise and excitement settle down, you can go home and watch a movie you’ve rented in the candlelight.
If you feel like you’re too busy for an entire day away from the desk, first, you’re wrong, second, we have suggestions for you!
Come home early, every minute counts, don’t waste a minute arguing about the time and plans, spend it all in passionate kisses. If you get home first spell our “I love you” on the garage, sidewalk, front of the house, anywhere that fits your life. If you live by the beach, write it in the sand. If you live with snow for four or more months each year, then write it in the snow. The key is to be big and over the top, you want to make it the talk of the town. Whatever you have planned after an entrance like that has got to be fabulous!
In the morning before you leave for work, leave hidden notes around the house. Make a little game out of things you have planned for your partner to do. Things like go to the spa, meet me for lunch, buy yourself something sexy for tonight. We want you to be very specific. The more it seems like you’re in control the more time and effort your partner will think you’ve put into this little project.
Go in late. OK, we all have to work, but all day? No. Get up the same time, even do your same routine, but cook, or have delivered, a wonderful breakfast. Bring it to your loved one, and feed him or her. Yes, the entire meal. If you can be spontaneous and go into work a couple hours late, then you surely know what you’re doing for the evening, or so they think!
OK everyone does little games. We’ve all made, “I’ll do the dishes tonight” passes or “Free massage” cards, etc. But spice it up a little! Give your partner the intimate and sexy ones when your at dinner or in a public setting. Make the cards something you both can enjoy. If you have a girls or guys night card, how is that going to remind them of the love you possessed this special day? Instead we suggest things like “Margarita night!” or “Weekend getaway to _____”
Approach routine things, differently. Even if you don’t write it out, most couples have similar Valentine’s checklists. You do the same things, every year. Well you’re going to, or already have married this person. That speaks volumes about your relationship. If you’re going to do dinner, do it on the roof or in the park. If you exchange presents, exchange them in a different manner where the physical presents are not the focus, and the time spent together is the highlight. If you’re going to wear lingerie wear a completely different style. The adventure is really what matters. If you enter the bedroom in your grandmother’s slip, but with a ten surprises coming his way, the slip will be the greatest hit.
We've all had the fight with parking vehicles since we were 16: who's in who's spot, who parked too close to your side, you know your own personal tif's with parking. Instead of parking in your lover's spot this Valentine's, fill the garage with love. If you want to be simple you can fill you garage, or at least the other side, with balloons. Use the weighted sand bags to prevent attack when the garage door opens. If you want to get a little bit romantic, tie a note to the bottom of one or some of the balloons explaining how much your love means. If you want a present involved, tell him or her that there is a piece of jewelry in one of the balloons and they have to guess which one. (A ring could also be tied to the end of the balloon where the string begins.)
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1. Plan a treasure hunt. Set the clues in place and when he/she gets to the last clue, you will be standing there with both champagne and a proposal they can't refuse! Kapalua Villas in Maui, Hawaii is the perfect location for an adventurous couple! You can start with a morning game of golf. Plant your first love note or clue on the ninth-hole flag pole. From there she will be directed to go down the zip line in the beautiful forest to find her next clue. Once the adrenaline settles from 4,000 feet of zipline action, she’ll be dizzy with excitement when she finds the next note sends her to her own suite’s safe, where the ring awaits!
2. Make your own message in a bottle. Write a love poem on a piece of parchment paper, roll it into an antique bottle with a cork, and bury it in a well-marked spot in the sand. This surprise is definitely worth digging for! Although there are a lot of great beaches out there, you want this to be perfect and the Ponta dos Ganchos Luxury Resort in Brazil provides you with the ideal scenery and accommodations for this. Once the message is delivered, Ponta dos Ganchos offers a variety of exclusive beaches to hide away, disappear, and rediscover each other.
3. Want to create a moment where your lover will feel on top of the world? Take her to a romantic destination and propose at the top of a landmark skyscraper with the twinkling lights of the city below. These destinations can range from New York to Paris. But if you want to think outside the box, try a Castle in Prague or on the rooftop of the Banyan Tree Hotel in Bangkok.
4. Write "Will you marry me?" with a heart around it in the sand at the beach. Fill the heart with candles and rose petals. Just make sure the tide is going out and not coming in! This is a real life story from a client of ours Joe. He woke up early claiming to go on an early morning jog but instead had the hotel in San Diego, California assist in smoothing out the sand and writing his message. He brought breakfast home and insisted she eat it in the fresh crisp air. When she drew back the blinds to the balcony her message was revealed!
5. Slip the ring on her finger while she's sleeping and wake her with champagne and strawberries. At first, the gesture will simply seem romantic -- the real surprise comes when she notices her new piece of jewelry. Any hotel will do but why not make her feel like a celebrity? Take her to the Sunset Marquis in Hollywood where even among the fast-paced city life of L.A., you can completely relax and indulge in your new beginning.
6. Take a wine tasting tour in Tuscany, Italy where you can stimulate your taste-buds. At the end of the tour, when you purchase a bottle, she will be given a special bottle. She'll be drunk with happiness when she reads the hand-made label (that you made) on one of the bottles that says, "Will you marry me?" This will take a little bit of planning. Make sure you call ahead and arrange the label.
Starting here you will have plenty to do to fill your days and nights. We suggest taking a tour of the breath taking Blue Mountains. You will head west to discover a piece of Australia that never entered your dreams. You will see unusual plants and wildlife, enjoy luscious barbecue, and observe kangaroos in their natural habitat in hidden valleys and much more. When in the mountains stay at Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort and Spa. The resort is located on two acres of English-style gardens on the cliff tops adjacent to The Three Sisters. The breathtaking Lilianfels is perfect for your celebration. If you want to take a day to wine and dine we suggest a tour of Hunter Valley's Resort, Wine School, and Brewery. The resort has wine tasting, private 2-bedroom cottages, a massage center, biking and walking paths, and access to tennis courts and pool and Jacuzzi units. Stays include breakfast and dinner daily, wine school and one additional activity.
A stay in Sydney would not be complete without a visit to the Aquarium and even a VIP Aquarium Tour. It is open from 9:00 AM to 7:30 PM, with tours lasting approximately 90 minutes. This is a perfect private tour, specially designed for you and your partner. You will have a behind the scenes look at the shark tanks, the Great Barrier Reef Exhibit, feed tropical fish from above the tank, and have an educational explanation of the platypus, crocodile, touch pool, seal sanctuary, oceanarium, and the Great Reef exhibits.
If you like to be swept off your feet you can pass up this next experience. Board a twin engine petite aircraft and fly low over the Blue Mountains to your first landing point. Spend half the day exploring and experiencing life on an Australian sheep ranch. After your barbecue lunch, board again to fly to the picturesque Hunter Valley for wine tasting and sightseeing. The finale is low-level flight down the coastline, over the beaches and spectacular harbor, or over the city of lights.
Any and all of these are experiences that will be unique and special for you on your special occasion. They will put you to your limits as you reach across the limits of the country, flying over mountains and observing wildlife in the valley. You have plenty of time and leverage to relax and unwind with romantic trails and smoothing spas. You will instantly fall in love and insist on returning every year to remember this special time in the beginning of your lives together.
