We’re sure your significant other appreciates the chocolates and candle-lit dinners every year, but predictability isn’t necessarily the most attractive trait in a person. To mix things up a bit, our editors have found five elaborate getaways — indulgences include a $20,000 package in New York and a couples pampering sojourn to Thailand — to rekindle any dying flames this Valentine’s Day. You can thank us later.
Warwick New York Hotel
According to legend, William Randolph Hearst built the Warwick New York Hotel for his love, actress Marion Davies. In celebration of his touching tribute, the Manhattan hotel proposes the extravagant Big Heart, William Randolph Hearst-Style package for couples who want to spend a romantic weekend in the Big Apple. For $21,400, you’ll enjoy a two-night stay in a recently renovated suite that features a stunning view of the Avenue of the Americas. The package also includes a personal photographer to document your stay, an in-room massage for two, a private dinner in your suite, a welcome bottle of Cristal—with monogrammed champagne flutes to take home—and a late checkout. And to make Valentine’s Day even more romantic in the City that Never Sleeps, stroll over to Cartier and put the $10,000 gift card included in the package to good use.
L’Ermitage Beverly Hills
Channel Old Hollywood romance where iconic couple Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor once resided. The ultra private L’Ermitage Beverly Hills’ Ultimate Romance package gives you that chance; it’s an all-inclusive experience that includes two nights in a suite, private car service from LAX (and other destinations around Los Angeles), as well as a breakfast for two in the comfort of your own room or at Livello, the Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star hotel’s restaurant. The $7,000 package also provides a four-course dinner at Livello. In addition, you can have a private consultation with Neil Lane Jewelers or get your hair styled at Salon Benjamin of Beverly Hills. But the most memorable part of your stay will be the 50-minute helicopter tour of Los Angeles and your alone time on a Santa Monica mountaintop overlooking Malibu, the ideal spot for a proposal.
Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, Thailand
If you have time for a long retreat, venture to Koh Samui, Thailand for a romantic sojourn at Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui. You and your better half can spend your down time soaking up the sun by your villa’s private pool, and then unwinding with the Divine Night Ritual at Spa at Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui. The covered veranda spa suite is a short stroll away through the tropical forest; once there, you’ll be massaged with hot coconut and ylang-ylang essential oils. Sound-healing techniques and Tibetan singing bowls aid in balancing your body, while crystals work to energize your swadhisthana chakra—it controls relationships and sensuality. End your treatment with your partner in the spa suite’s private outdoor tub soaking in coconut milk, ylang-ylang oils, honey and pink lotus petals.
Mandarin Oriental, San Francisco
The City by the Bay is romantic on its own, but relaxing in one of the guest rooms at the Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star Mandarin Oriental, San Francisco, is an entirely different experience—the hotel occupies the top 11 floors of 345 California Center, the city’s third-tallest building. Book the Romance in the Sky package for a one-night stay and you’ll get incredible views of San Francisco, breakfast in bed—with chilled champagne, of course—and a two-hour Time Ritual treatment in the spa’s Couples Harmony Suite. The Mandarin Oriental signature service starts with a foot massage and is then tailored specifically to your needs. Romance in the Sky is available throughout February. But even if you don’t book the package, you can still enjoy a special Valentine’s Day four-course prix-fixe meal at Brasserie S&P, the hotel’s signature restaurant, on Feb. 14 or 15.
Acqualina Resort & Spa, Miami
Fly south to Miami for a romantic beachside escape—and get an enviable wintertime bronze—with the Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star Acqualina Resort & Spa’s Romance Inspired package. You’ll be greeted with a bottle of champagne in your oceanfront room, and the only thing that will top your dinner for two by the ocean will be the rose petals sprinkled on your bed when you return. Keep the romance going at Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star Acqualina Spa by ESPA’s three-hour couples’ class, where you’ll learn the tricks of the trade from a therapist so you can give your partner a Valentine’s Day massage back in your room.
Photos Courtesy of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Acqualina Resort and Spa, Four Seasons and Warwick New York Hotel
