20 for the feelgood factor

1. Sit upstairs at the front on an old Routemaster number 11, put your feet on the dash, and sail the diesel seas all the way from Fulham Broadway to Liverpool Street on a route that takes in all the sights: the Palace of Westminster, Trafalgar Square and the glories of the City.

2. Take the afternoon off work sick with your favourite person and head for the covered courtyard at the Sanderson hotel to eat the most expensive beefburgers in London and to play pool in the lobby.

3. Go skydiving in Oxfordshire. For £215, Evolution (0871 2221960) will give you training, a plane to fall out of, 60 seconds of freefall and seven minutes of what they call "the floaty stuff ", all with an instructor strapped to you. Speed, exhilaration, and you can do it on the day you ring. Best of all, they collect you from home and drive you there.

4. Window shop for diamonds on New Bond Street.

5. Manicomio is probably the best and tastiest retail experience known to mankind. This deli is full of artisan Italian meats and cheeses, and encourages you to try before you buy. An hour easily drifts by with delicious morsels in your mouth and quaint rustic tales of origin in your ears. A feast for all the senses, in fact. 88 Duke of York Square, SW3, 020 7730 3366.

6. Spend an afternoon at the Electric Cinema and watch films in huge leather armchairs, with a V&T in one hand and your lover (or some roasted mixed nuts) in the other. For £20 the sofa seats are the last word in movie romance. 191 Portobello Road, W11, 020 7908 9696.

7. Eat haute cuisine doughnuts filled with Valrhona chocolate with a glass of champagne in the divine drawing room setting of the Caramel Room at the Berkeley Hotel, Wilton Place, SW1, 020 7235 6000.

8. Kisses are sweeter exchanged in the Rose Garden at Regent's Park. The roses might not be in bloom but there are still lots of secret nooks and bushes to loiter in.

9. Spend quality time stroking your cat.

10. Have an anytime bowl of noodle soup with dumplings, at the Wolseley. Former Ivy proprietors King and Corbin's new Art Deco cafè is open 7am to midnight, serving simple dishes in a happy, buzzy, welcoming dining room. 160 Piccadilly, W1, 020 7499 6996.

11. Go dancing at YoYo - You're Only Young Once. More private party than club, the place is jumping. There is no VIP room, so everyone from Jade Jagger to Ms Dynamite gets on down together. It's the closest thing to the best private party you've ever been to. Every Thursday night at Cherry Jam, Porchester Road, London W2, 10pm-2am.

12. Have oysters and Guinness for no reason other than you fancy them at The Cow, 89 Westbourne Park Road, W2, 020 7221 5400. The pointless hour of 3.30pm is the optimum time and a seat by the wood-burning stove is the best spot.

13. Kick through the leaves at Highgate Woods, which is the prettiest and most varied woodland in London and the closest thing we've got to proper countryside in town.

14. Bask in the sun at Tate Modern. Olafur Eliasson's Weather Project installation recreates the light, warmth and awe of a setting sun in the vast Turbine Hall. You won't believe it's all lights, smoke and mirrors.

15. Do an Arabian cleansing ritual with your partner at the Elemis Day spa. In a steam room you apply different coloured chakra muds to each others' bodies in privacy, then sit on heated "thrones" and inhale relaxing herb-infused steam until it ends with warm "tropical rain" falling. It lasts 90 minutes and only costs £60 for two. Lancashire Court, W1, 020 7499 4995.

16. Find the perfect fuggy cafè, with steamy windows and a Gaggia machine constantly gurgling in the background. Arrive at breakfast and leave several hours later after countless cups of builders' tea with gossip. Try the New Piccadilly Cafè on Denman Street, M Cafè on Blenheim Crescent or E Pellicci on Bethnal Green Road.

17. Make like a tourist, but with style: skip Madame Tussaud's and plump a ride on the river boat between the two Tates, or an open-top bus tour à la Kylie and Olivier Martinez.

18. Follow Saturday afternoon shopping with cocktails at smart hotel bars with deep leather armchairs, super-attentive staff, tinkling crystal glasses and nibbles that come on silver plates. Such sumptuous luxury comes at a price, so you won't be tempted to overdo it. Favourites are the American Bar at the Savoy, Blue Bar at the Berkeley, and the Library Bar at the Lanesborough.

19. Give your feet a facial. "Foot-cials" at the Footopia clinic at Peter Jones deliver a cocktail of vitamins and oxygen deep into the skin and groom your toes to perfection. Try the Seasonal Foot-cial with oils of cinnamon, mandarin, lemon and nutmeg, or rose, for that "princess" aroma.
Prices start from £47.50 Peter Jones, Sloane Square, SW1, 020 7259 0845.

20. Splash out on new bedding in the softest Egyptian cotton and spend a weekend in bed, watching classic films like It's a Wonderful Life and Breakfast at Tiffany's, and listening to Dido.