Top 5 Most Romantic Cities

Keep your pants on, Casanova. This is about romance. A little foreplay would be nice. (It is rumored that Casanova consumed more than 40 raw oysters a day. We’re just saying.) How about some music to get you in the mood? Seattle may have invented grunge, but thankfully the ’90s are over–there’s nothing unsexier than flannel. From June to August, the city sheds its winter plaid at dreamy Summer Nights at the Pier, where the likes of Chris Isaak and Carole King perform on an outdoor stage at sunset against a breathtaking backdrop of the Olympic Mountains and Elliott Bay. You can drink in the same delicious view from any number of restaurants–Elliott’s Oyster House, mmm–along the waterfront or in Pike Place Market. During cocktails on the terrace at the Pink Door, you might catch a lightning storm coming in over the mountains. If that feels too touristy, head to the Eastlake neighborhood, home to rows of houseboats along Lake Union, and Pete’s Super-market, which has an extensive collection of fine wines. Serafina, just a few blocks away, offers live jazz, decadent desserts, and a reputation as one of most romantic spots in Seattle. (No oysters, though.)

There are little hideaways in every city, but Seattle offers a chance for true, impulsive-as-you-wanna-be escape: hop a ferry at Pier 50 or 52 almost any hour, day or night, to any number of nearby islands. Steal away for a leisurely brunch on beautiful Bainbridge Island, or spend a long weekend whale-watching and beach-combing on the San Juan Islands. Bainbridge, San Juan, Whidbey, and Orcas islands are full of intimate bed-and-breakfasts (or boat-and-breakfasts, if you prefer), charming villages, and natural wonders to hike, camp, and explore. Bill Gates may have helped put Seattle
on the map, but there’s a reason Microsoft isn’t headquartered outside Boston. This is a city that doesn’t need to take its glasses off in order to steam up yours.

MEET in the Green Lake neighborhood, because you can’t not meet someone while walking around Green Lake, and there are dogs (dating gold), and toned, sweaty bodies. Or at Starbucks, because there are so damn many of them, and it’s sooo Seattle to meet over coffee.

FIGHT at Pike Place Market: You won’t see any of the tourists again, so it’s okay to get a bit hysterical. Someone might even videotape it, who knows? Crazy tourists.

HIDE & SULK inside the main branch of the Seattle Public Library. You can lose yourself in the art and literature of this architectural masterpiece. Seriously, you need a map in there. It’s really big.