WHERE TO STAY

Limestone Hotel (from £120; telegraph.co.uk/ tt-limestone) occupies a fortunate spot: a short walk from the shore but tucked away enough to feel calm in high season. The Purbeck stone building radiates a homely vibe – cosy nooks, comfy chairs – and plenty of nods to the rural location.

13. LONDON

Here’s to anti-Valentine’s in London; no hearts, no flowers, no sparklers in the food. Just the river – the sludgecoloured, un-twinkling Thames – the deck of the Mayflower Pub in Rotherhithe with the tide sploshing below and normal food. If you insist on romance, ask to book into the snug. The runners-up? Holland Park’s Kyoto Garden for a dusk walk before early dinner at Clarke’s; or a book of poetry from Sotheran’s in Mayfair and a walk through the rain-slicked streets of Soho to Andrew Edmunds for dinner. The Mayflower is doing a very cool, un-cheesy Valentine’s Night on Feb 16, tickets from £8.

14. LLANGOLLEN CANAL

Cruise on a waterway in the sky on a narrowboat for two with a woodburning stove. Thomas Telford’s Pontcysyllte aqueduct – 126ft above the Dee river – presents holiday boaters with a white-knuckle ride: you have to steer along an iron trough with no railings on one side. Once you’ve made the crossing, holding each other tight as you go, putter on through Whitehouses tunnel, moor up, open a bottle of bubbly, light the fire and snuggle up. Owls hoot from trees and stars shine brightly in the dark sky. The next day, cruise on to moor near meres full of bird life.

TO THE LIGHTHOUSELlanddwyn Island in Anglesey, a must for lovers on St Dwynwen’s Day; the opulent Torridon in Scotland, main