You’re giddy with excitement and everything is going brilliantly, and then there’s the pressure and anticipation that builds around where to go on that first all-important romantic weekend getaway.
We’ll assume you’ve already had a couple of sleep overs at this point so your fears about loos and number 2’s may or may not be off the drawing board. Either way comfort levels require some investigations as booking a room with a glass sliding door to a toilet with zero privacy is definitely not romantic. You can kill romance in a New York minute with the bassoon and tuba section of the London philharmonic emanating from the bathroom. Who does the booking and how do you settle the bill?
Think it through and start out like adults by having the conversation up front. You need to proceed as you plan to carry on especially if you are serious about relationship longevity. Start out with somewhere that being casual is de rigueur; it takes all the formality out of the situation. But if you both like to dress up, think about what you plan to wear. Maybe consider a romantic cottage so you can experience what it’s like to play at living together rather than the ubiquitous hotel weekend. What’s not to love about stoking an open fire or making pancakes together in a country kitchen?
Do your research and find something original that suits your partner and their style. Investigate what you can do outside or near your weekend home to add some activity and adventure to the experience. Don’t assume people love spa treatments. While your partner may be physical poetry in the bedroom they may in fact loathe strangers stroking their face and extracting black heads.
If you’re a London reader ponder the benefits of taking Monday off. Sunday lunch and a long languorous afternoon listening to logs crackle with the papers is far more romantic than literally spending hours inching your way back to London on a motorway car park.
Oh and Sunday nights are often one of the lowest room rates of the week, what’s not to love about being intelligent about the spend? Whatever you do, if it’s the first weekend, it will likely be the place that resides in your relationship forever more. Get it right the first time.
By Martin Turner
Martin Turner has had a 25 year global career in events which resulted in the book Travel Secrets in 2010 and a new career in journalism and lecturing. A recent graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Art, he has won his way into the heart of the VIDA team while zooming about the planet on new assignments and escapades.
