Valentine's Day: London in love

The London Eye gets loved up
Kate Whiting5 April 2012

Stuck for ideas on how to spend the most romantic

1 WHISPER SWEET NOTHINGS
What could be more romantic than you and your valentine making your very own box of chocolates together? Chocolatier William Curley is offering a unique chocolate making masterclass on Valentine's Day at his Belgravia store. The bespoke two-and-a-half-hour session starts with a tasting of award-winning couture chocolates. You'll then get to make a chocolate heart filled with framboise truffle, followed by a glass of champers.
198 Ebury Street, SW1. Tickets from £100 per person. Visit williamcurley.co.uk or call 020 7730 5522

2 SEE THE CITY FROM ABOVE
It may not be Manhattan, but London still has one of the most heart-stopping skylines in the world. Share an intimate moment during a Champagne Experience on the EDF Energy London Eye. This Valentine's Day, the Vernon Sisters will be serenading passengers from below. Alternatively, drink in the views and stargaze over a glass of
champagne at The Royal Observatory, Greenwich, which is also staging a special Planetarium show on Feb 14.

EDF Energy London Eye, Westminster Bridge Road, SE1. Valentine's Champagne Experience costs £70 per couple, including two glasses of champagne, a rose and two chocolates. Visit londoneye.com. Royal Observatory, Greenwich, SE10. An Evening With The Stars at the Royal Observatory costs
£28 per person. Visit www.nmm.ac.uk

3 PUT IT IN WRITING
Ignore your BlackBerry, hide your iPhone - this Valentine's Day send your loved one a real handwritten love letter. John Lewis has teamed up with romantic novelists Katie Fforde and Sue Moorcroft to offer a lesson in the art of love letter writing on Friday at Peter Jones, giving you a few days to perfect your message. On the day itself, follow in the footsteps of some great literary lovers by visiting The Browning Room at St Marylebone Church. It was here in 1846 that Victorian poets Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning married in secret after exchanging 574 love letters, some even before they'd met. The Browning Room is usually open only by appointment, but will be left unlocked on Monday. St Marylebone Church is open during daylight hours, seven days a week

Peter Jones, Sloane Square, SW1. Letters of Love workshop takes place from 5-6pm on Friday. Free entry. Call 020 7592 6003 to reserve your place. The Browning Room will be open from 10-4.30pm on Monday. St Marylebone Church, 17 Marylebone Road, NW1.
Visit www.stmarylebone.org.uk

4 HAVE FUN AT THE FLICKS
For a romantic night at the movies with an incredible twist, sign yourselves up for Secret Cinema, which returns from Feb 11 to 27. As always, the film and location are a closely guarded secret until the night itself, but we've been given the following clues: "beauty springs forth from the wells of love" and "we shall travel together as a company making a sacrifice of love". Intriguing. Previous nights have included Lawrence of Arabia at Alexandra Palace, where belly dancers performed and moviegoers dressed for the desert in Arabian headscarves, and an ultra-futuristic screening of Blade Runner, complete with wall walkers and space cadets. But be quick - tickets are likely to sell out.
Tickets on Feb 14: £27.50.
Visit www.secretcinema.org

5 WALK HAND-IN-HAND
One of London's most romantic walks takes in Regent's Park, the views from Primrose Hill and Little Venice. From Baker Street station, pass the Sherlock Holmes Museum then amble through the park to London Zoo. Now, take a brisk stroll up Primrose Hill for a fantastic panorama over the city. When you're ready, drop back down and take the canal path alongside Regent's Canal, which you can follow all the way to Little Venice. You'll be lucky to find any gondolas here, but you could still take the opportunity to serenade
your beloved at one of the pretty waterside cafés.

6 DINE IN THE DARK
For a real blind date or a way to put the spark back in your relationship, have dinner with a difference at Dans Le Noir. Diners are led into a pitch black room by blind waiters, where you then choose a menu based on four different tastes. For Valentine's Day, the restaurant is offering an aphrodisiac treat of champagne and canapés and a three-course surprise menu, with wine. While you grope around for your glass and cutlery, you might find your hand straying to remind your partner where you are.
30-31 Clerkenwell Green, EC1. The aphrodisiac menu costs £75, available Feb 13-14. Visit www.danslenoir.com or email booking@danslenoir.com

7 MAKE A BOND
James Bond never failed to get the girl, and we can bet some of his seductive chat-up lines were conceived over a martini at Ian Flemming's favourite London haunt, Dukes Bar. Slip into a tux or slinky evening wear, and impress your better half with 24 hours of borrowed luxury by booking the hotel's overnight Valentine's package. Dukes have launched a signature cocktail for the occasion, the Verona - a fine addition to their collection and the fuel for those 007 impressions.
Dukes, St James's Place, SW1. One-night Valentine's package, from £460 for a Superior Suite, includes breakfast and three-course dinner for two. Available from Feb 11-15. Visit dukeshotel.com or call 0207 491 4840

8 GO HEART TO 'ART
Impress a loved one with your appreciation of art by taking them to see Botticelli's Venus and Mars in room 58 of The National Gallery. The painting depicts Venus, the Goddess of Love, lying with one of her lovers, Mars, the God of War, in a grove of myrtle trees. Apparently, it's a symbol of love conquering war. If that doesn't pull at the 'art strings, nothing will.
The National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, WC2. Open daily 10am-6pm. Free entry. Visit nationalgallery.org.uk

9 TAKE TEA FOR TWO
If garlic breath, spaghetti-slurping and red-wine lips are causes for concern, then ditch the late-night dinner date for a relaxing afternoon sojourn. The Met Bar have a Valentine's De-Light Afternoon Tea, ideally suited to body-conscious couples and packed with aphrodisiacs. Add a bottle of Louis Roederer Cristal (£300) to any bookings on Feb 13, and the hotel will throw in a free room. So, take a leaf out of Audrey Hepburn's book and make time for a little Love In The Afternoon.
The Met Bar, 19 Old Park Lane, W1. Afternoon De-Light costs £27 per person. Visit www.metbar.co.uk or call 020 7447 4757

10 STAY IN
Why even bother to go outdoors when there's so much to do at home? All a couple really needs for a romantic night in are some supermarket treats. Start by heading to Marks & Spencer and picking up a bottle of its delightfully fresh and frothy pink Rosé Sparkling Bellante (£8.99). Then pick out a Valentine's Day meal deal from Sainsbury's, with three courses for just £15. Or if you're feeling really decadent, ignore dinner, cut yourself a slice of Seriously Chocolatey Tarte
Au Chocolat from Waitrose (£3.99) before retiring early with your bottle of fizz.

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