The best Valentine's Day stays in the UK: from star gazing to couples' therapy
Whether they're the love of your life – or simply your latest match on Hinge – you can roll out the romantic red carpet with an overnight Valentine's package at one of these UK hotels.
The Ritz, London
They say that the way to the heart is through the stomach. If you agree that romance is best served via a joint intake of excess calories, you and your paramour can hardly do finer than the Ritz, where decadent V-Day themed afternoon teas and four-course dinner menus take centre stage this February 14th. The former (from £110 per person) includes delicate finger sandwiches, flaky scones, rosé Champagne and live music in the foliage-lined Palm Court; the latter (from £395 per person) has chef John Williams MBE’s culinary wizardry and the swoon-worthy surrounds of the Ritz Restaurant – all gilded chandeliers, swirling frescoes and flickering candlelight. Later, stuffed and tipsy, your twosome can lovingly bed down in an elegant Louis XVI-style room.
From £1,550, theritzlondon.com
St Michael’s Resort, Cornwall
Spa breaks are dead sexy, right? (So much steam, so little clothing.) They’re even sexier when the spa-ing takes place in a sub-tropical corner of Cornwall, steps from the beach. St Michaels Resort in Falmouth has a couple’s spa break including a filthy 40-minute rhassoul mud experience in a Moroccan steam chamber, a muscle-melting 55-minute massage and a sultry soak in the south west’s largest hydrotherapy pool for you and your plus one. You’ll also get brekkie, two-course spa lunch and three-course dinner overlooking the water to enjoy.
From £796 for two, stmichaelsresort.com
Grosvenor Pulford, Cheshire
You’ll find the perfect V-Day break for swingers – that is, lovers of swing music – at this four-star hotel outside Chester, where the evening of February 14 is soundtracked by a live Rat Pack and jazz performance from Matt Roberts. The ‘King of Swing’ will play crowd-pleasing tunes oozing romance from 7pm until 10pm, as you sip a welcome cocktail and enjoy a three-course set menu featuring truffles and lobster by candlelight. A package also includes an overnight stay in a plush room, a full English the next morning and time enjoying the onsite spa facilities (treatments cost extra).
From £295 for two, grosvenorpulfordhotel.co.uk
Glennapp Castle, Ayrshire
Classic romance is on the menu at this 21-bedroom historic pile on the western Scottish coast. Book a two-night All You Need is Love package and not only do you get the rich fairytale atmosphere of turrets, towers and whiskies by a roaring fire, but also bucket-list lovey-dovey touches like rose petals on the bed, breakfast under the covers and a bottle of fizz on arrival.
Spend days exploring the 110-acre estate of gardens and woodland – you and your other half can enjoy anything from falconry to Scottish fiddle lessons, for an extra fee – then tuck into an included cream tea or three-course dinner with canapés and petit fours. Your ultimate Scottish fling ends with a late check out, so you can make the most of a next-day lie-in.
From £428 for two, glenappcastle.com
Inhabit Hotels, London
Whether you’re a singleton seeking self-care or a couple needing a relationship overhaul, Inhabit Hotel in Bayswater is offering a unique twist on the V-Day period — with soul-searching therapy sessions. In conjunction with Self Space, a series of workshops focused on self-love, communication and emotional availability will be held by mental health experts and a psychosexual therapist, leaving you with an inner loving glow. An overnight stay in one of the Scandi-chic rooms also includes a bottle of Provence rosé, plant-based macaroons, a healthy brekkie at Yeotown and a School of Life Intimacy Gift Set that helps you build on what you’ve learned in the session.
From £295 for two, queensgardens.inhabithotels.com
Bovey Castle, Devon
A hiker’s delight, Dartmoor National Park is the perfect fodder for couples who like to get deliciously sweaty in the great outdoors. And set on 275 acres in the heart of the moorland’s rolling valleys, neo-Elizabethan Bovey Castle is an ideal country house pile to retreat to once the al fresco workout is done. Book into one of the 60 rooms or 22 self catering lodges from 14 to 17 February and you can continue to stay active on the estate with croquet, tennis, biking, golf. Later there's the Elan Spa for a sauna session and a tête-à-tête dinner.
From £374 for two, boveycastle.com
Carden Park, Cheshire
When it comes to couples with eclectic interests, Carden Park ticks the boxes — it has a bit of everything, including a spa, golf course, vast sculpture garden and even adventure course with a zip line, a climbing wall and a giant stunt pillow for would-be daredevils. Though when it comes to V-Day, slow seduction comes via a Twilight Spa Evening under the stars, combining soaks in frothing outdoor hot tubs, cuddles by a fire pit and sips of the hotel’s own sparkling wine (made from grapes harvested right here on the estate). You’ll also get a grazing platter to share, with the likes of chicken liver parfait, potted salmon, baked Camembert, strawberry mousse and chocolate hearts.
From £125, cardenpark.co.uk
Culloden Estate & Spa, Belfast
Can’t decide which will most knock your love off their feet: a break in the city or country? You can get both at Culloden Estate & Spa, a 1876-built palace on the forested slopes of Holywood Hills only a short train ride into Belfast. By morning you can take in the cultural riches of Belfast, from the Titanic Museum to St George’s Market, then in afternoon enjoy the 12 acres of gardens overlooking Belfast Lough and the hotel’s on-site health club and spa. A Love Sweet Love package includes Prosecco and chocolates on arrival, plus full Irish brekkie.
From £305 for two, cullodenestateandspa.com
Claridge’s, London
Nothing says ‘I love you’ like a monogrammed bathrobe. That, and an overnight at one of London’s most exclusive addresses: Claridge’s in Mayfair. The hotel’s Room for a Little Romance package includes the opportunity to bed down in one of the luxurious Art Deco-inspired rooms with a bottle of Laurent Perrier Rosé fizz, and to wake up to a full breakfast in bed. And (really) you’ll also be given two plush hotel bathrobes monogrammed with your initials — so the indulgent memory of life in W1K can endure even back home in your zone 3 flat.
From £1,210 for two, claridges.co.uk
Montigo Resorts at Charlton House, Somerset
For singles looking to mingle ahead of the big day, this Grade II-listed Regency hotel near Wells and Glastonbury offers elegant surrounds in the wilds of Somerset in which to do it. On Friday 9 February it will host a speed dating night (£20 including cocktail) with eligible local bachelors and bachelorettes. Ideal if you see a Countryfile lifestyle in your future. For those already coupled up, a Romantic Vintage Cinema Night package on the 17th February includes a two-course dinner and a film screening in the elegant orangery, complete with cuddly beanbag loungers and bottomless popcorn.
From £360 for two, somerset.montigoresorts.com
Roch Castle, Pembrokeshire
For the curb appeal of a 12th-century castle with the comforts of a modern hotel, this six-bedroom stay in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park fits the bill. Panoramic views from most of the bedrooms out across St Brides Bay and into the Pembrokeshire countryside is enough to make you go weak at the knees — and that’s before you've even enjoyed the handmade truffles, bottle of Prosecco or three-course dinner at nearby sister hotel Twr y Felin. You’ll also get rose petal décor in the room, and your very own love spoon (it's a traditional Welsh craft) to take home.
From £310 for two, rochcastle.com
Hotel 41, London
If your other-half has you seeing stars - or they’re just a massive astronomy geek – then show them you care with a themed break at intimate Hotel 41 near Buckingham Palace. The Night Under the Stars package features a night in the Conservatory Master Suite - fitted with a glass roof so you can gaze up at the twinkling sky – plus a ‘name a star’ certificate, a telescope for star-gazing and astronomy star book. You also get a bottle of Champagne and a selection of sweet and savoury treats served between 8pm and 1am to power you both all through the night.
From £3,264 for two, 41hotel.com
