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Top 6 Romatic Getaways Around the World
by
Amanda Castleman
From
the Queen Mary 2 to a French Kissing Festival, Claddagh
rings to Crusaders' castles,
here are ROAD & TRAVEL Magazine's top picks for
romance in the stone streets of Europe.
Romantic
gestures run the gamut from gas-station teddy bears
to grandiose diamonds and golden cuff links. Each February,
the dilemma returns. How to say it: With flowers? A
carefully scripted, marketing-group-approved, mass-manufactured
card? Maybe even chocolate body paint?
No.
Drop the bon-bon box and get out of Dodge. Cupid's arrows
fly faster on vacation: a principle of passion confirmed
by "Roman Holiday," "Shirley Valentine"
and "Before Sunrise".
Plus,
spring boasts bargain airfares, lower room rates and
balmy breezes across the pond. Alone or accompanied,
what better time to kindle a new spark in the Old World?
Looking for love
Savor schnapps and sparks on Austria's Kitzsteinhorn
glacier. An Alpine village - a scene straight off a
hot cocoa packet - hosts a SpeedDater package tour.
Singles meet-and-greet in a series of three-minute encounters,
then hit the slopes.
While
not quite love at first sight, a pairing's potential
is obvious immediately, say scientists. "It's almost
a self-fulfilling prophecy. We make a prediction about
what kind of relationship we could have with a person
and that helps determine how much effort we are willing
to put into developing a relationship," explains
University of Minnesota professor Artemio Ramirez.
The
British-based company trumpets encouraging statistics:
half its clients go on dates, 200 couples bloom each
week and 20 engagements clinch every month. The long-weekend
tours - which also matchmake in the French Alps, Barcelona
and Ibiza - include three-star accommodation and airport
transfers.
Easyjet
and other no-frills airlines sweeten the deal with roundtrips
under $100 via London.
Queen
for six days
Lounge on a liner across the Atlantic, cruising from
the Statue of Liberty to Southampton, England, on the
Queen Mary 2. Cunard's new flagship is the largest passenger
vessel ever, a golden-era echo of crystal, claret and
transcontinental chic.
Tiaras
and tuxes. Champagne and caviar. Sea breezes and sweeping
staircases. Promenade like a princess aboard the QM2.
This floating pleasure palace includes five pools, a
cabaret, casino, basketball court, spa, planetarium
and virtual reality golf course, plus Oxford University
lectures and performances by the Royal Academy of Dramatic
Art.
Visiting
Valentine
A rebellious clergyman inspired our hearty holiday.
The emperor Aurelius - discouraging early Christians
- martyred the first bishop of Terni, Italy, in 273
A.D. Valentine died, but his legend survived and evolved:
he became the much-mourned patron of lovers.
Some
claim he secretly conducted marriages, despite an imperial
ban. Cast into prison for this impertinence, he fell
for the jailer's daughter - and cured her blindness.
His farewell note concluded "from your Valentine,"
sparking a tradition spun into paper and lace castles
by the Victorians.
Italians
prefer a more florid version of the story: the good
bishop bestowed a blossom on two young visitors, who
grew enamored and made a famously happy match. So many
hopefuls followed suit, he dedicated a day to blessing
matrimony.
Terni
still boasts the bishop's bones, along with the majestic
Marmore cascade, Europe's largest waterfall. Nearby
Narni, a medieval maze atop a crag, makes a better base
for exploring Umbria.
Todi, Gubbio, Spoleto, Orvieto and Assisi, the splendid
home of St Francis, crown the region's attractions.
The "green heart of Italy" is famous for dry
white wines, Perugia's hazlenut-chocolate "kisses"
(baci) and musky truffles (tartufo), said to spark sexual
appetites. An hour-long train trip links Rome and Terni
from Ferrovie dello Stato.
French
kissing
Valentine, like many saints, is hot property. European
towns squabble over relics like fishwives - and body-snatchings
abound. Despite Terni's tenacity, a Provençal
village argues that his earthly remains saved its vineyards
in 1868 and still rest in peace there.
"Rest"
being a relative term, of course. Over 800 costumed
celebrants parade his relics through the winding, medieval
streets - named after famous lovers - on Valentine's
weekend. A ball, fancy-dress competition, street fair
and open-air concerts round out this "Festo di
Poutoun" (Festival of the Kiss) in Rouquemare,
an ancient Rhone port near Avignon, France. Ryanair
flies into Nimes Garon, the nearest airport, which has
bus connections and a Hertz outlet.
Fellowship
of the ring
Two hands clasp a crowned heart on the famous Claddagh
ring, celebrating love and friendship. The symbol's
story is lost, but its charming birthplace remains:
a fishing village just outside Galway in western Ireland.
Cobbled streets, seaside sunsets and, jewelry stores
make this a sweet retreat (not to mention some of the
world's best oysters, those classic aphrodisiacs).
Wash
down local mollusks with a creamy pint of Guinness at
Moran's Oyster Cottage, a thatched cottage on Galway
Bay.
Then spy limestone cliffs, wild flowers and bottle-nosed
dolphins on the swooping coastal road from Galway to
County Clare, one of the Automotive Association's top
ten drives in Europe. Budget Car Rental
has rental offices in Dublin and Galway (linked by a
three-hour train journey).
The Galway Airport is 6km from the city center,
serviced by Logan Air
and Aer Arann.
Groom
with a view
Follow in Brad Pitt's footsteps (sans battle skirt,
perhaps) on the idyllic Mediterranean island where the
star filmed "Troy". Malta, a new EU acquisition,
enchants visitors with turquoise seas, silver domes
and sun-bleached, sandstone streets.
Valletta, the country's capital and World Heritage site,
was the height of Crusader chic - and remains an
option for destination weddings.
All-inclusive
packages often prove cheaper than the average $40,000
urban-American celebration and honeymoon. Thomas Cook
offers Maltese nuptial deals that include the officiant,
bouquet, one-tier cake, candlelit dinner and government
registration fee.
Air Malta flies to 40 European capitals and partners
with Delta, Northwest and Virgin Atlantic for smooth
overseas connections.
If You Go...
Speed Dater
23 Manor Place
Ediburgh
EH 37XE
Phone: (845) 838-5600
Easy Jet
Cunard
Phone: (800) 7-CUNARD
Bella Umbria
Ferrovie Dello Stato
Piazza della Croce Rossa, 1
00161 Rome
Italy
Phone: +39-06-44101
Ryanair
Hertz France
Phone: ++33 139 38 38 38
Galway County Coucil
Phone: +353 (0)91 509000
secretary@galwaycoco.ie
Morans Oyster Cottage
Phone: +353 91 796113
Budget Car Rental Ireland
Athone Road,
Roscommon Town,
Co. Roscommon,
Ireland
Phone: +353 (0) 9066227711
reservations@budget.ie
Galway Airport
Phone: 00 353 91 7555 69
info@galwayairport.com
Loganair
Phone: 0844 800 2855
customerrelations@logainair.co.uk
Aer Arann
Phone: +353 1 844 7700
info@aerarann.com
Visit Malta
Auberge D'Italie
Merchants Street
Valletta VLI 1170
Malta
Phone: (356) 22915000
info@visitmalta.com
Thomas Cook
Air Malta
Phone: 1-866-357-4155
airmalta.usa@worldaviation.com.mt |
