If you want a Valentine’s Day your partner is guaranteed to appreciate, consider their love language.
Introduced by marriage counsellor Gary Chapman in 1992, the premise behind love languages is that we each experience and express love in five 5 ways: words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, physical touch, and gift-giving.
While there are plenty of resources online to help you determine your partner’s love language, sometimes all it takes is a discussion.
Here is where you can find some special things to do for Valentine’s Day in Toronto that also double as gift ideas based on the five love languages.
If your partner loves spending quality time
Partners who value quality time don’t even necessarily need to do anything exciting with their partner, they simply cherish the time that they can spend together and have their partner’s undivided attention. So make sure to silence those phones on February 14!
What better way to spend time together than staying at one of Toronto’s newest hotels?
Canopy by Hilton Toronto Yorkville, the first and only Canopy hotel in Canada, is ideally situated on Bloor & Sherbourne with easy transit access to Toronto’s Yorkville and Danforth neighbourhoods for shopping and dining, Church-Wellesley Village for entertainment, and just minutes away from cultural institutions like Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), Bata Shoe Museum, and more.
Throughout the hotel, you’ll find modern, organic motifs and urban design that make Canopy feel more like a cool neighbourhood hangout than a traditional luxury hotel. Each of the hotel’s rooms and suites is spacious and thoughtfully designed, featuring a distinctive and super comfortable canopy bed.
There’s a pool and fitness centre on-site, free bike rentals, and Virtu Café & Provisions on the ground floor (but we wouldn’t judge if you decide to spend your whole stay in the room—it’s just that comfortable!)
For Valentine’s Day, Canopy offers a FabuLOVEus stay package (available until February 29 with the code LOVE when booking, which includes a bottle of champagne and chocolate strawberries provided in-room.
The Cupid’s Kiss dinner package at Dia Restaurant & Lounge includes a candle-lit dinner of shareable dishes and a personal tarot reading with tarot reader Lori Dyan Simeunovic. The dinner package is offered for one night only, on February 14, 2024, with seatings at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., so make your booking today.
Otherwise, Dia is open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and offers a diverse menu of seasonal dishes inspired by global flavours.
If your partner loves acts of service
Partners who value acts of service appreciate when tasks can be completed without prompting and nagging—think cleaning and fixing things around the house. Of course, acts of service don’t always have to involve chores. Picking up new skills you can apply to everyday life is a great way to show that you care.
Book a cooking class with your partner at The Chef Upstairs, which offers interactive cooking classes led by dynamic local chefs. At their Valentine’s Day Tasting Menu, you’ll receive a sparkling beverage and cheese platter on arrival, and you’ll learn how to make some indulgent dishes, including a surf turf that you can enjoy during the 3-hour class.
As part of its lunch & learn series, Miku Toronto is offering a special luncheon on February 11, 2024, with renowned Ikebana artist Aya Sugino, where participants will learn the principles of Japanese Ikebana floral arrangement (which they can also take home in time for Valentine’s Day), and enjoy a lunch set featuring their Signature Aburi Sushi selection and topped off with their famous Green Tea Opera Cake and Macaron.
If you can’t make it out to the session, handling dinner reservations is an act of service, too! Book Miku’s Valentine’s Kaiseki Experience, a 7-course menu featuring some opulent dishes and pairings, or the Valentine’s Takeout Platter for Two, a romantic meal crafted with love.
If your partner loves to receive gifts
Gifts are probably the most traditional expression of love, and they don’t get any more classic than chocolates and flowers for Valentine’s Day. Luckily, Toronto has no shortage of local chocolatiers and flower shops. Just make sure to place your order well in advance!
If your partner has a sweet tooth, check out SOMA Chocolatemaker, which specializes in chocolate creations that are just as pretty to look at as they are to taste. They’re an institution in Toronto’s chocolate scene, with something for everyone, from bars to truffles to cookies to toffees.
Their Supergalactic Love Heart features a dark chocolate heart filled with malted chocolate milkshake and topped with crunchy pecan pralines. For something unique, check out Birch, a dark chocolate confection filled with hazelnut praline and sour cherry jam shaped like a realistic tree branch. Hard to be-leaf, we know!
Shop online, or visit their retail stores in the Distillery District, King West, or their Cacao Bean Lab on Brock Avenue.
For a gift that really lasts, go beyond the traditional bouquet with a whole box of roses from Prairies and Petals. These elegant and luxurious arrangements feature vibrant Ecuadorian roses (available in multiple colours and even gold) that can last up to a year thanks to a preservation process that slows the aging process.
Select from a single rose to a box of more than 150 that can also be customized. They smell great, and the best part is they don’t require watering or any maintenance. Shop online, or visit them in person at their retail stores in Yorkdale Shopping Centre and CF Toronto Eaton Centre.
If your partner loves words of affirmation
Partners who value words of affirmation love to hear about how much they are loved. They enjoy being told verbally and through notes and cards. While it may seem like a simple task, putting these words on paper can help to reinforce just how much you appreciate your partner, and it’s something nice to look back on.
Paper Plus Cloth is a stationery store and beloved local gem in Toronto’s Parkdale neighbourhood that offers a thoughtfully curated selection of unique paper goods and art supplies from Japan, Korea, and beyond, as well as workshops and meetups on various creative topics.
For Valentine’s Day, they offer a variety of cards designed by local artists. They’ve also put together special Valentine’s kits that you can complete on-site with embellishments like stamps, stickers & washi tape to kickstart the creative process. If you aren’t great with words or just want a second opinion, the staff here are super friendly and creative and a great resource.
Shop online or visit their location in Parkdale.
If your partner loves physical touch
Partners who appreciate physical touch value just that—physical intimacy and having their partner in close physical proximity. What better way to do that (at least, in public) than with a dance class?
Pick up a new skill and get up close and personal with your partner with a dance class at Joy of Dance, a studio in Toronto’s Danforth neighbourhood that offers classes in almost every dance style imaginable for all ages.
For Valentine’s Day, they offer an introductory private lesson with one of their skilled and friendly instructors. Continue your dance journey with private and group instruction and social events throughout the year.
Visit their website or pop into their studio in the Danforth to learn more.
Those are some of the many gift ideas based on the five love languages you can find for Valentine’s Day in Toronto. Have fun this February 14!