Yes, it’s brimming with a glamorous history, rolling Royal Parks and amorous artistry in its great galleries, London then really is the ideal locale for a romantic couple. Here’s how to enjoy a Valentine’s Day full of love – and more – in the UK capital.
Glory in Royal Greenwich
One of London’s most beguiling districts, Greenwich is the utterly charming ‘Royal Borough’ on the banks of the Thames that’s chock-full of Restoration/Georgian architecture, art and landscape design.
If you’re staying in the centre of the city and it’s a fine day, take a Thames Clipper down-river and check-out Christopher Wren’s Royal Observatory and the exquisite painted ceiling in the Old Naval College, not forgetting to playfully straddle the Prime Meridian line and picnic on the luscious rolling green of the Royal Park.
Drink in the charms of Kensington
As mentioned, you may have chosen the base for your stay somewhere central (and you’d be well advised to do so – with so much to do in the middle of the city), like the Grand Royale Hyde Park, for instance; one of the many 4 star hotels London.
And, if that’s the case, you’ll find the exquisite Kensington district just a short journey away. Admired as one of the most prestigious, privileged, elegant and – yes – expensive parts of the capital, it’s also home to the glorious Hyde Park and the wonderful Kensington Gardens – and, within the latter, the supreme Serpentine Gallery. Indeed, with all their lakes, ponds and Italian-style flowered nooks and crannies, these two Royal Parks can make for the perfect romantic refuge.
Discover the marvels of Marylebone
For sure, art in its different forms is the appeal of Marylebone for the amorously inclined. One of the biggest draws of this graceful district slightly north of the centre is the outstanding fine arts gallery that’s the Wallace Collection – its many paintings making for a genuinely very romantic demonstration of artwork across 400 pivotal years in art history (the 15th-19th Centuries), thanks in no small part to glorious works from Rembrandt, Reubens, Caneletto, and Velasquez.
Following this, it has to be on to the delight that’s Regent’s Park and its peaceful and beautiful Queen Mary’s Rose Garden (perfect this time of year) and then the Open Air Theatre for a fantastic theatre performance under the stars while sipping a chilled ‘G and T’.
Partake in Richmond Park’s riches
Alternatively, you may like the idea of getting out of the hustle-bustle of the city altogether for some quiet(er) time. If so, there’s nowhere better than Richmond Park. Why? Because, being the largest of London’s Royal Parks (at whopping 2,000-plus acres), it’s a place of outstanding natural beauty, so much so it’s classified as a National Nature Reserve and a European Special Area of Conservation.
Most significant of all, though, it’s over-spilling with fantastic flora (including the botany treasure trove that’s the Isabella Plantation) and fabulous fauna, chief among the latter the graceful deer, of whom around 600 walk freely throughout the parkland.
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