Top Ten Romantic Hideaways

Ten places worldwide, the exotic and the down-home, where Hallmark Cards' honeyed tendrils are yet to exploit. And for that, we can be thankful.

By Ethan Gelber

Romance, best experienced through the lens of the exotic, the unfamiliar, the beautiful. (Abrahm Lustgarten)

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Falling in love is as much about the journey as it is the arrival, an addictive crescendo of feverish expectation that, like awaiting a first kiss, grips your nerves, hopes, and heart—holding you in thrall until that final arrival.

This gale-force moment is exuberantly enhanced when wrapped in the rose-red embrace of romance. It is also given even greater body when indulged at a far remove from the familiar. Slip off the ever-invasive grid and dip into a little piece of novel nowhere, where the passions can be enflamed by an exotically spiced breeze, the serenity of a deserted island cove, or the elemental climax atop a sun-kissed mountain's crown.

As the chocolate-lidded holiday approaches, here then are ten destinations, getting to which may require some gumption, but lacking none of the natural pomp that sets the blood cantering. It's high time you planned an outing (and a destination) that doesn't make light of your love of the journey or diminish your desire to be alone with your darling. It doesn't have to be plush, warm, and aquamarine. In fact, an outdoor tandem trip to some remote hideaway can be as riveting a romp as just being there with the right company.

Ethan Gelber, a freelance travel writer based in New York City, most appreciates the world from the saddle of his bicycle.

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Last Updated: 14 Sep 2010
Published: 9 Jan 2003
The details, dates, and prices mentioned in this article were accurate at the time of publication.