 |
 Light the Valentine's fire at one of Canada's hot date spots. (Comstock Complete) |
|
You’ve lost that loving feeling, and it’s gone, gone, gone? If Canadians are any indication, couples worldwide need to take a break — together. Yes, three-quarters of Canadian couples know a getaway will stoke a waning relationship fire, but 54% haven’t vacationed together in the past year, according to an Expedia.ca/Ipsos-Reid survey. “The demands of daily life take their toll, leaving couples feeling distant and disconnected from each other,” says relationship expert Catherine Wood. The antedote? Pack the La Perla and take a hiatus with your guy/gal.
Here are our picks for Canada’s top hot-date spots.
Alberta — temperatures rise in the Rockies
Sleigh bells ring at picture-perfect Lake Louise. The snow sparkles. The chalet frames the wintry sky. Tuck under a thick buffalo blanket while munching on creamy Callebaut chocolates and sipping warm whiskey toddies — all you need, along with your honey, on a private horse-drawn sleigh. Two hours west of Calgary, nestled in the snowcapped Canadian Rockies, make a steamy après-ski rendezvous at the Banff’s Upper Hot Springs, a 1930s-inspired bathhouse where the water is kept a balmy 40 degrees C (104 degrees F). Add 10 degrees for the body heat.
www.banfflakelouise.com
www.horseback.com/sleigh.html
www.hotsprings.ca
British Columbia — Poetry in motion
At first, the couple’s massage at Poets Cove on BC’s sleepy south Pender Island defeats its purpose. Drift into a dreamlike daze as notes of lavender and cedar cloud your senses. The flickering light of the nearby fire warms the room to a snuggly temperature when you suddenly realize you’ve forgotten the person to your left. Just whisper “I’m sorry” at the base of the Susurrus Spa, where cascading waterfalls lead the way into a eucalyptus-filled steam cave.
www.hellobc.com/en-CA/SightsActivitiesEvents/PenderIslands.htm
www.poetscove.com
Manitoba -— prairie fire
With everything you need — private hot tub, roaring fire, alpine sauna, lover — take full advantage of the shorter days and endless nights of winter. Just 90 minutes east of Winnipeg and brazenly romantic, Tallpine Lodges is couples-only. Step out to immaculate cross-country skiing trails in Whiteshell Provincial Park. Or just stay inside.
www.travelmanitoba.com/default.asp?page=300
www.tallpinelodges.com/index.html
Newfoundland and Labrador -— open your heart
In Canada’s easternmost province, the name says it all. One hour from St. John’s, on the east side of Trinity Bay, is a cozy little town called Heart’s Delight — next to Heart’s Content, Heart’s Desire and Cupids. Folksy kitchen parties and screech (Jamaican rum bottled locally) liven an afternoon after hiking the seaside Baccalieu Trail. If all else fails, you’ll fall in love with the folks.
www.newfoundlandlabrador.com
New Brunswick -— swept to sea
Be a kid again. Remove shoes and socks, roll pant legs to knees, now dig. Not for fossils (although New Brunswick’s famed Bay of Fundy has seen dinosaur footprints from the long-ago past), but into the wet sand for a romantic, do-it-yourself foot bath along its slushy mud shores. Rinse off in the “world’s largest bathtub,” where 100-billion tons of ocean come crashing down. Just remember to check the tides schedule first; the world’s highest roll in twice a day!
www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca
Northwest Territories -— romancing the stone
Swish into your Arctic chalet via dogsled across frozen ice to Blachford Lake Lodge, accessible by bush plane 20 minutes from Yellowknife. For outdoorsy pairs with a penchant for the gourmet, the aroma of the north smells like fresh Arctic char, caribou, muskox, lake trout, white fish and bannock — grilled over the open fire. After dark, dip into the outdoor hot tub and catch the Northern Lights dancing across the sky.
www.blachfordlakelodge.com
www.explorenwt.com
Nova Scotia -— super nova
Up and down the rugged Highlands of Cape Breton’s northern shore, along the Cabot Trail, you’ll find one of the world’s most stunning coastal drives. No kidding. Follow the craggy coast through Cape Breton Highlands National Park. When the trail re-enters the park and the north and south bays part ways, you’ve found your luxury retreat overlooking the Atlantic at Ingonish Beach. Get lost on cloud nine up the crest of Cape Smokey, 365-m (1,200-ft)-high in a fog of misty white.
www.novascotia.com
www.kelticlodge.ca
Nunavut -— North Star
You’ve heard of the “mile-high club” — how about the top-of-the-world club? Inuit-owned Cruise North Expeditions takes thrill-seeking couples beyond the Northwest Passage to the south coast of Ellesmere Island, the most northerly island into the Canadian Arctic archipelago. Wildlife abounds: polar bears, caribou, bearded seals, beluga whales, muskox and walruses.
www.cruisenorthexpeditions.com
www.nunavuttourism.com/new/site/default.asp
Ontario — I heart Ottawa
You’re thinking romance, but where to stash the kids? Canada’s capital is perfect for G-rated romance on the cheap. Use the savings for the sitter. Relive your glory days as a carefree single skating, mitten-in-mitten, on the world’s largest rink, the historic Rideau Canal. At night, let the kids roam free at Winterlude while you two conveniently get lost behind an ice sculpture.
www.ottawatourism.ca
www.winterlude.ca
PEI — island aphrodisiac
For a little titillation with your tenderloin, start by sipping bubbly at Sims Corner Steakhouse and Oyster Bar, Charlottetown’s sexiest new eatery, while slurping oysters on the half-shell. Après dinner, travel horse-and-carriage-style through historic Charlottetown before bedding down at The Great George.
www.walkandseacharlottetown.com
www.thegreatgeorge.com
www.simscorner.ca
www.peicarriagetours.com
Quebec — French kiss
Live out your fairytale fantasy perched in your boudoir at the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, perched high atop a rocky bluff overlooking the Saint Lawrence River in Québec City. If Prince Charming fails to notice, make nice with Bonhomme at Carnaval de Quebec, the world’s largest outdoor winter festival. Then raise a glass in unison with your host as Canada’s oldest, most romantic city celebrates its 400th anniversary. Bisou, bisou
www.bonjourquebec.com
www.quebecregion.com
www.fairmont.com/frontenac
www.carnaval.qc.ca
Quebec — sex and the city
Montréal’s sex appeal (apart from its reputation of debauchery, raunchy strip joints and a roaring bar scene along Crescent Street and Saint-Laurent Boulevard) is notorious. Fall head-over-stiletto-heels in lust strolling the cobblestone rues of Old Montréal with your beau/cherie. Just be prepared for impromptu proposals — this was the site that swept Liz Taylor and Richard Burton away in 1964 for a spur-of-the-moment “I do!”
www.tourism-montreal.org
Saskatchewan — soak it up
Left foot, then right, step into the geothermal mineral-water pool on the roof of the Temple Gardens Spa for a special kind of couple’s therapy. Swish and swirl in a cauldron of therapeutic minerals drawn from 1,350 m (4,500 ft) below the earth’s surface and piped skyward. Moonlit midnight dips overlooking Moose Jaw’s Crescent Park below is a perfect nightcap.
www.sasktourism.com
www.templegardens.sk.ca
Yukon Territory — Northern Lights, naughty nights
Awake to a fluorescent green sheen cannibalizing the night sky. The mystical Northern Lights are eerily captivating, especially when dubbed to a soundtrack of howling wolves, so piercing your spine tingles with excitement as you seek protection under your sweetie’s winter coat. In Canada’s Yukon, 35 mi (55 km) from Whitehorse, Inn on the Lake is an ultra-luxe lodge (Martha Stewart filmed here) and ideal spot for midnight viewings of this supernatural light show.
www.travelyukon.com
www.exceptionalplaces.com/innonthelake
