Oh, get a room! Where to spend Valentine's night

LE MEURICE, PARIS

THE SETTING On Rue de Rivoli with the Tuileries Garden opposite and the Louvre a few minutes away. Stepping inside the Baroque interior is like entering the court of Louis XVI.

THE VIBE Stylish lovers from the Continent mill around the seven plush floors, while foreign dignitaries stalk the corridors with their designer-suited henchmen. The bathrooms are clad in marble and if you get a suite, make sure it’s got a view of the Eiffel Tower.

THE DATE Start in the wood-panelled 228 bar where fashion designers meet over cocktails. Then dine on scallop carpaccio under the painted canopy in the Dali restaurant, with surrealist furniture courtesy of Philippe Starck. Inter-table conversation is encouraged, particularly if there are dogs in the room (this is a canine-friendly hotel). Then breakfast in the Restaurant Le Meurice, a three Michelin-starred grand siècle establishment, modelled on Versailles.

THE DETAILS Rooms from £480 per night (lemeurice.com)

LUCKNAM PARK, WILTSHIRE

THE SETTING In the middle of 500 acres of parkland, a few miles from Bath, sits Lucknam Park, an 18th-century house, now a 42-room Relais & Chateaux property with a Michelin-starred restaurant, and everything from tennis to cookery to keep you entertained.

THE VIBE For all its country house grandeur, Lucknam can be cosy. The place oozes romance with its pretty old paintings and softly lit, intimate corners; settle down by the fire in the library for tea and a plate of homemade shortbread.

THE DATE Start with a massage in the spa — there’s a double treatment room if you don’t mind your partner hearing you moan as your muscles are unknotted. Then have fun with the jets in the outdoor hydrotherapy pool, and try out the various ‘experience showers’. You’ll be transported straight back to the first flush of romance — just in time for lunch and champagne in the spa’s brasserie. After that, get the blood pumping with a hack around the park on two of the 35 resident horses. You’ll need to work up an appetite for dinner in the Park restaurant, after all.

THE DETAILS One-night Valentine package (13 to 15 February) includes dinner, use of the spa, breakfast, and champagne and a rose on arrival, £490 per room. Two-night package (11 to 16 February) from £450 per room, per night (lucknampark.co.uk; relaischateaux.com)

45 PARK LANE

THE SETTING In the heart of Mayfair, with Hyde Park across the road, this is one of London’s most romantic spots. The sleek 45-room hotel is glamorous without being vulgar, intimate without being stuffy, and Hollywood’s favourite chef, Wolfgang Puck, does the cooking. Don Draper would definitely stay here.

THE VIBE From the elegant mezzanine bar overlooking the lobby, to the Damien Hirst-decorated restaurant and the red leather and velvet bedrooms, everything about 45 Park Lane screams money — but oh so quietly. It’s the sort of place you’d end up having a sexy assignation even if you just meant to sweep in for a breakfast meeting.

THE DATE Meet for cocktails (try the Forbidden Love concoction, which features Hendrick’s gin, raspberries, rose elixir and lemon juice) in Bar 45, where the soft lighting gives you that healthy, just-got-out-of-bed glow. Then head down for dinner at Cut, and follow it with a private screening at the hotel’s in-house cinema — Last Tango in Paris might get you in the mood. Then head up to your room — book one with a balcony for the best views over the park — and order a nightcap. Don’t skip breakfast the next morning as the American-style menu is to die for, and it would be sinful to miss out on the buttermilk pancakes and brioche French toast, especially after such a busy night.