Travel Tips

Valentine’s Day Travel: Romantic Vacations for Couples

Locations in this article:  New York City, NY San Diego, CA Santa Rosa, CA

Valentine’s Day Travel - A RoseIt’s not too late for a vacation this Valentine’s Day weekend. We dug up 10 unusual romantic destinations that—at press time—still have availability remaining for a romantic vacation. Can you feel the love?

Let the Jailbirds Sing

Are you a prisoner of love? The Liberty Hotel, housed in Boston’s old Charles Street Jail, is offering two Valentine’s Day packages. The An Affair to Remember package starts at $295 per night is valid on February 13 and includes overnight accommodations, two glasses of Champagne in-room, two psychic readings, a copy of An Affair to Remember to view in your room, and a late checkout.

Couples TravelThe Guilty Pleasures Romance package starts at $435 per night, and includes overnight accommodations, a split of Champagne, breakfast for two, chocolate-dipped assorted fruit, an intimacy kit, and late checkout. Don’t miss the hotel’s quirky homage to its historic roots, with a restored jail cell, a restaurant called Clink, a bar called Alibi that used to serve as the prison’s drunk tank.

Scoring a Hole in One

Whack it down the fairway with the Dine, Stay and Play Package starting at $349 per night, at The Millennium Resort Scottsdale McCormick Ranch. This golf lovers’ escape includes overnight accommodations, two rounds of golf at the Resort’s 18-hole PGA Championship course, and a $100 food and beverage credit redeemable at the Resort. As the only lakeside boutique resort in Scottsdale, guests have enviable views of the Camelback and McDowell Mountains. The property also offers lighted tennis and sand volleyball courts, fishing, biking, paddle-boating, and canoeing.

Standing Tall on a Butte

Chocolate heartsIt seems unlikely that romance could be dead at Spring Creek Ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Located on a butte standing 1,000 feet over the town of Jackson, overlooking the Teton Mountain Range, this resort’s Valentine’s Day Package is for the true romantic. Starting at $185 per person, and valid on February 14, 2010, couples can stay in a hotel room with a wood-burning fireplace, have breakfast and dinner at the hotel’s Granary Restaurant, receive a split of Champagne with truffles, and weather permitting, a sleigh ride on the property. Whether you choose to quietly watch the sunset, or experience the vast selection of outdoor activities—dog sledding, ice skating, skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling—the views of the Teton Mountains are sure to light your fire.

Pet TravelGive Your Dog a Bone

No need to exclude your best friend this Valentine’s Day! Kimpton Resort’s Vero Beach Hotel & Spa, located on an island community in Central Florida’s Treasure Coast, in is offering the Pooch n’ Smooch package during Valentine’s Day weekend. Starting from $368 per night, the package includes a picnic at the dog park (including a basket packed with a blanket, human and canine treats, toys, and clean-up bags), plus Champagne and homemade dog treats in the room, and a $5 donation to Indian River County Humane Society. The package has upgrades available including a photo shoot with your canine companion on the beach for and additional $75. With an ocean-front restaurant and free hot chocolate in the lobby, this package is as delicious for the owners as it is for the dogs.

Floating hearts & romanceSlide Your Way to Love

Stay in sync with your sweetie at La Costa’s Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California by entering in The Couple’s In Sync Sliders Cup. The event will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 13 and Sunday February 14 at the Resort’s Splash Landing Pool, featuring a 100-foot water slide, where couples have to work hard to hit the water at the same time. All participants receive hot chocolate, and the winning couple gets a bottle of Champagne and appetizers at La Costa’s Legends Bistro or Rancho’s bluEmber restaurant. Starting at $210 per night, La Costa is offering up to 20 percent off a two-night stay, 30 percent off three-night stay, and a $50 resort credit for each stay. With this package you can say bye, bye, bye to a boring Valentine’s Day.

Adventurous CoupleWild Things in the Jungle

Experience wild jungle love with Safari West, an African wild life preserve located in Santa Rosa in Northern California. The risqué Sex Safari is an all-inclusive getaway for $227 per person. The experience begins with a wine and chocolate reception followed by an open-air safari where guest learn all the intimate details of animal mating habits, followed by a dance party and overnight accommodations in an safari tent. On the uncensored tour, learn all the dirty deeds that go on in the animal kingdom while getting an up-close view of African mammals, including giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, cheetahs, and more (no guarantee of actually viewing a mating session).

Solo Travel - Single travelers on Valentine’s DayStanding on Your Own

You may be single, but you don’t have to be alone. Grab a friend and enjoy the Cupid is Stupid package, starting at $239 per night at Kimpton’s The Muse Hotel in New York, available on February 14. Celebrate being single with two free cocktails, a wine reception from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., a list of hotspots and bars for singles, and a complimentary in-room movie. The hotel is in walking distance to the city’s major sights, including Times Square, Rockefeller Center and Fifth Avenue shopping, so whether you stay in or go out, it’s easy to enjoy your autonomy in Manhattan.

Fly High in the Sky

Cozy up in the Canadian Rockies with the Banff Ptarmigan Inn’s Sky High Valentine’s package. The $803 per night price tag (and two-night minimum stay) may seem steep, but it includes accommodations in a fireplace suite in-room Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries, breakfast in bed, and the real kicker—a private helicopter tour to the top of the Canadian Rockies that includes a one-hour mountaintop stop with Champagne and chocolates.

Couple in loveFeel the Love

Keep the romance going all year long with a massage Rub the One You’re With at the Hotel Solamar in San Diego. Starting from $269 a night, the package includes a private, one-hour, in-room massage class taught by a certified massage therapist, a take-home massage kit, a bottle of Champagne, yoga accessories, and parking.

Luck Be a Lady (and a Gentleman)

Party the night away with your friends and lovers at Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. The Sweet Romance Package starts at $999 per night and includes a suite, Champagne with chocolate-covered strawberries, $50 credit for breakfast in-bed, $50 coupon for each to La Perla and Hugo Boss when you spend $100 in either store, and a couples in-suite massage; The Single & Fabulous deal, starting at $389 per night, includes accommodations for four people, entry to MIXX nightclub for all four, a “recovery breakfast” in the Metropolitan restaurant or in-room,  and a $50 coupon to La Perla or Hugo Boss when you spend $100 in either store (one for each guest).

Don’t miss other travel adventures sure to kindle romance:

By Jessica Kate Soberman for PeterGreenberg.com