Valentine's Day Doesnt Have to Be Expensive - My Tips For A Cheaper, But Still Romantic Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and although it can be a lovely time to connect with your love or woo someone you'd like to be your love, but it can be very expensive, and these days, with the economy being what it is, you may well be looking for budget-friendly ways to show your love, over the more elaborate, and expensive options!
You may well be still paying for Christmas, and so the thought of splashing out on lavish romantic gestures, although lovely of course, maybe something you'd like to avoid, and if so, I've got a few tips for you, that will help keep your wallet happy, but also won't make you look like a cheapskate, which isn't a good look for Valentine's Day!
According to Finder.com 3 in 5 Brits (61%) will celebrate Valentine’s Day in 2025, around 32.7 million people, and the UK is predicted to spend a total of almost £1.5 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2025! That's a staggering amount of money, and I promise you don't need to spend the predicted £52 per person, or if you live in London, £69!
Money doesn't buy you happiness or friends; that's what my mum told me when I was a nipper, and she wasn't wrong! Thoughtful gestures and spending quality time with your special someone can be just as nice, if not nicer, than splashing your cash, or worse still, denting your credit card, spending a lot of money on a romantic dinner, a big bunch of roses or a trip to Paris!
Have a memorable Valentine's Day, by using these creative and thoughtful (not cheap) Ideas.
Flowers
I know that there is a big emphasis on a bunch of flowers being a big Valentine's Day gift; I have no doubt that you have been seeing adverts for floral delivery companies popping up on your social media feeds, emails, radio and telly over the last couple of weeks, and it's not surprising as Valentines is a big sales event for florists, as some 4 million bouquets of flowers are expected to be sold for Valentine's, with 5% of the total annual UK sales or red roses being sold on February 14th!
Valentine's Day doesn't mean you have to buy expensive bouquets of flowers from the traditional delivery-style florists, which, although they can be nice, can be costly. I've been disappointed with what actually turned up, for the price, on more than one occasion, so I'm not a fan of online florists. If you do want to buy from this type of florist make sure you sign up to the mailing lists for these types of companies and then watch out for discount codes to appear in your mailbox.
As I write this, I've just had a 15% discount code email come through, so these emails can save you some money! Look out for cashback offers for online florists from cashback apps such as Quidco and TopCashback; I'll eat my proverbial hat if there aren't some great cashback deals to be had in the run-up to Valentine's Day!
There was always a running joke in my house as a kid, that I wonder if dad will rock up on Valentine's Day with flowers he bought from the local petrol station, on the way home from work, for my mum; and he often didn't disappoint, (only my mum!), but actually these days you can grab some lovely bouquets of flowers from retailers that 20 years ago, you would have been laughed at for buying from! Look at supermarkets, for example, these days they have some amazing selections of flowers you can grab, and the prices are much more reasonable for our bank accounts!
There is nothing wrong with buying these cheaper bouquets/flowers; it doesn't mean the quality is any worse than buying from dedicated florists, the supermarkets have massive buying power and can buy from the same places as the dedicated florists, and offer great valuer options. I always buy from the supermarket these days, and my now wife, (recently married), doesn't care if they come from Tesco or Harrods, as they look nice, smell nice and show I've cared enough to choose the ones I think she'd like!
In fact, if I am honest, I don't really buy the big bouquets anymore, even the cheaper supermarket ones, because I know my wife isn't a big 'red roses' kind of girl; she is much more appreciative of me picking her up a big bunch of daffodils for her, maybe with a small bunch of flowers mixed into add colour (like a £3 bunch), as she loves her 'daffs' and gets a lot of pleasure from them, so don't be afraid of buying the flowers the person likes, over the ones the retailers are pushing you to buy! I spend about £8/£9 on my wife's flowers, which is a long way away from the £75 bunch of roses I'm getting emails suggesting I should buy!
If you are buying from supermarkets, don't forget to check your loyalty cards for any flower-type offers, and when paying, use a supermarket gift card app such as JamDoughnut to pay and then you'll earn some cashback on the purchase as well, and the recipient wouldn't be any the wiser that you managed to save some extra cash on those pretty flowers; savings you could put towards some extra goodies, such as some sweets or maybe a favourite chocolate bar, or box of chocolates, which will be much cheaper to buy from a supermarket than buying from dedicated chocolatier!
Oh, and on the flowers side of things, yes, it's ok to be like my dad and buy flowers from a petrol station, especially as many of the petrol station shops are owned by grocery retailers, so you'll often find the same flowers for sale on the forecourt as you will find in an actual store, so they are now decent quality, not the half dead flowers that used to be on the only choice!
Eating out or eating in?
Like flowers, many of us look to taking our love to a restaurant for Valentine's Day, as it is something we see in movies as being the 'done thing'. You don't have to do that!
Sure, it can be nice, but as someone that worked within the restaurant industry and worked many Valentine's Days, I can assure you that restaurants will be cramming in as many people as possible, (I've worked in restaurants where they've crammed in extra tables to maximise the amount of people they can serve, almost to the point where the diners tables were about 15cms from each other, which isn't that romantic when the stranger sitting next you can hear everything you say!
Cramming in extra diners maximises the restaurant's revenue, whilst putting a strain on the kitchens, which often means the food takes ages to arrive or is of poor quality), often with two or more sittings, (meaning you'll likely feel rushed, and that will kill the slow romantic dinner vibe), whilst the 'special Valentine's Day menu' isn't that special, as it's expensive and the food is pretty quick and easy things for the restaurant to prepare, with higher margins and probably worse meal options for the diner than had they celebrated a day earlier or later!
Actually, if going out for dinner is your thing, then do just that; try and go before or after Valentine's Day, not actually on Valentine's Day, as it'll be easier to get a table, and the food will likely be better and cheaper!
Like the flowers, if you are looking to go out to eat, make sure you have signed up for newsletters so you can receive discounts, look out for loyalty deals and again, see if you can grab cashback as well; you could save a fair bit, especially as the cashback apps will probably have boosted restaurant cashback rates; as an example JamDoughnut is offering 20% of a Tastecard subscription, and 10% cashback on restaurants such as Pizza Express!
Look at cashback on takeaways as well; services such as Deliveroo and Just Eat are often around 4 or 5%, which can make a difference to how much you spend!
But you don't need to go out to eat to have a lovely Valentine's dinner! In my experience, there is just as much romance in cooking together, setting the mood with music and candles, and enjoying a special homemade meal at home, than that of going to a restaurant, although I appreciate that if you have kids, that may be less easy, but cooking at home is far less expensive than eating out!
If you'd prefer not to be cooking from scratch, which will be cheaper, of course, or perhaps you're not the best cook but would still like to cook for your partner, then look at the supermarket 'dine-in deals'.
Food retailers such as Marks & Spencer have seen a big increase in sales performance of the type of dine-in deals where you can choose a starter, main course and dessert, from a decent selection of dishes, that can be simply thrown in the oven and be ready quickly and are easy to serve. As an example, M&S Food has a Valentine's Day three-course, 'dine in' meal deal, which includes a bottle of Prosecco, wine or cocktail cans for £25, so £12.50 a head, which is much cheaper than what you'll pay for a meal in a supermarket or a similar takeaway, and has lots of different choices.
If you want to spend less, they offer cheaper alternatives (without any booze), from just £7 for 2 people, and many other supermarkets have similar offers.
Again, with the 'dine in' deals, take advantage of cashback offers to lower your restaurant costs.
Recent Data from data company NIQ showed that half of all UK households now say they cook from scratch every day or most days, with around 16% doing so more due to the rising cost of living, so if you can cook from scratch, then go for it; it'll be cheaper again, and as I suggested, maybe team up and cook together; just spending time together can be as big of a gesture as an expensive gift!
Even if it's just a couple of £1 frozen pizzas, some garlic bread, and your favourite dessert is eaten at your kitchen table, it doesn't have to be an expensive dinner to have a romantic evening; it's very much just the thought that counts, and your bank account will love you for it too!
When shopping for food, keep your eye out for yellow sticker goodies as Valentine's Day can serve up increased amounts of yellow sticker bargains, and yes, I know that a yellow sticker Valentine's Day dinner doesn't sound like it's going to rate that high on a romantic Valentine's day idea list, it's all about saving money on food, (and yellow sticker reductions is a great way to save money of food), you were going to buy anyway!
Does it matter if the steak you're buying for your Valentine's dinner is dated the same day and so is reduced? No, of course not. It tastes the same and costs you less. I've done this several times, having found some brilliant reductions on food I can use for a Valentine's Day dinner! It makes sense to take advantage of clearance bargains, and if it bothers you, don't mention that the food is a yellow sticker bargain (possibly more so on a first date); you can still have your romantic meal; it'll have just cost you less to produce!
In the past, when times were really financially tough for my family, I picked up everything I needed for a Valentine's Day dinner for under a fiver. I grabbed steak, veg, potatoes, and even a dessert in a lucky trip to Morrisons, just being in the right place at the right time for the yellow sticker reductions as they were brought out, and it tasted great, and you wouldn't have know if that meal for two cost me £5 or £25, it looked and tasted great, and as it was so cheap we could afford a nicer meal, over the cheaper pasta meal we would have likely had if I hadn't been so lucky, as I wouldn't have been able to afford the full price!
You'll likely find that supermarkets will be packing the shelves with extra romantic meal offers and Valentine's type food, with use-by dates that run up to around the 15th/16th February, so keep your eyes peeled from ther 15th of Feb, as you'll likely find lots of yellow sticker deals to be had, and they'll likely be the nicer food items too!
Gifting
Gifts are another expense that might not be compatible with your bank balance. We've covered flowers already, and in the same way gifts can get out of control! Talk to each other about gifting, especially if neither of you can afford an all-singing, all-dancing gift for the other. My wife and I have decided we won't buy each other gifts this year (I will, of course, still come home with some daffodils, which are only £1 bunch, so I'll get her 5, as I'm never certain what would happen if I didn't come home with something, and I'm not brave enough to find out!), we don't need to spend extra money on each other; we're both still paying off our wedding last year, and that was the ultimate 'love you' gift to each other, and perhaps you'll decide that gifts aren't that important too.
If you would still like to buy each other something, and assuming you're not celebrating something out of the ordinary, set a realistic budget and stick to it. Maybe set a low budget such as a fiver (think chocolates, a bottle of their favourite wine, a new mug, a book), or if you'd like to spend a bit more, maybe £10 or £20.
Perhaps you won't buy an actual gift as such, but instead, head to the cinema and watch a movie with some popcorn, or if you can't go out, rent a movie from the likes of Amazon Prime or Sky and eat some nice snacks and have a favourite drink? I know my wife would much prefer me to organise a nice movie to watch at home, with some of her favourite snacks, than for me to buy her a gift she may or may not want/need/ever use, and would rather have memories of us snuggled up on the sofa watching a film!
Thoughtful gifts such as homemade sweets, a homemade card, a framed photo of the two of you, perhaps a personalised photo album, a pamper set, or maybe a little hamper of their favourite snacks and delicious treats can be inexpensive and well-received.
If you don't have much in the way of money, make up some homemade cards that offer that other person a 'favour' for redeeming as and when they want. It might be a card that gives the recipient a foot massage, a I'll do the washing up even though it's not my turn card, a lie-in card, a breakfast in bed card, we'll watch a chick flick card, an IOU a cinema trip or meal out card, the list is endless! You can make your own coupons, or Amazon has some cheap options, too.
As a couple, we've gifted these cards to each other in the past, and actually, it is pretty good as you can pull out the card of choice when it's helpful to you, and that can be worth way more than money can buy! And, of course, we are talking Valentine's Day here, so those cards can be a bit more 'adult' in nature if that floats your boat (s).
Other ways to spend less
Can't afford a proper meal out? Maybe go get a coffee in a coffee shop or a pub; a romantic night or day out doesn't have to be expensive or even elaborate; the simpler dates or trips out can be just as nice as a big, expensive one! Check your loyalty apps for cheap drinks or food, you might be able to score. I'm with Octopus Energy and get a free coffee every week at either Gregg's or Caffè Nero; O2 Priority customers can get Greggs food or a coffee for £1. If you both join the Waitrose loyalty scheme, you can both grab a free coffee from a Waitrose store, but you'll need to take your own cup!
Those freebies might not sound that romantic, but they all help, and I'm sure you can romanticise them by drinking them somewhere nice!
Maybe go somewhere that is special to you both, special spots such as maybe going back to where you first met or had your first date or first kiss, or maybe visiting the church you had your big day in, or re-visit your wedding reception venue; revisiting memory lane can be a joyous experience.
Going to the cinema? look for discounted tickets online. You'll often find deals such as 2 tickets for £8 from your mobile phone loyalty apps, or if you have Sky VIP you'll get two tickets free every month for the cinema (Monday to Thursday only)
I'll be going to Southsea with my wife, (a couple of days before Valentine's Day), as that is where we had our second date and is somewhere we both like to go to; plus, we'll take our son, and it'll be a lovely day out for us all, but will hold special meaning for us both, and that will be cheap, (as long as we keep our son out the arcades! )
Even going out for a walk can be a lovely romantic experience, and of course, that can be free! Take a look around locally for nice places to visit for free, perhaps a river walk, tourist attraction, maybe a free museum or gallery; I'll bet you'll find plenty of great spots you can head to for date ideas that won't break the bank! Maybe do something you don't normally do, perhaps you go ice skating or bowling, go to a local arcade (the ones where you pay £10 for an hour of unlimited use of all the arcade machines are great value and great fun too!).
Maybe go to a local swimming pool for a swim, or see if there's a local sauna you can go to. Some gyms, like a local one to me, have a pool and a sauna, and they offer a free one-day pass for prospective new members, so you might be able to blag a free pass to the pool and sauna, which would be great. If not advertised, email the gym and ask if you can have a free one-visit trial to 'test the facilities'. They'll often say yes!
February being February, you may find that the weather isn't that great, so going out may not be as romantic as you'd like, so switch to things you can do together at home. Sometimes, the simplicity of sitting and listening to a playlist of songs you both enjoy or sitting in front of the fireplace with a cup of tea or glass of wine can be lovely.
Taking time to play board games or have a chat can be fantastic; we live in busy times, and I'd personally prefer to have an hour of peace and quiet with my wife, where we can chat and laugh together rather than receive some new socks or a box of chocolates; maybe organising someone to look after your kids for you for a couple of hours to give you some time together would be the best gift of all!
A memorable Valentine's Day is about love and connection, not money; you can celebrate your love for each other without spending a penny; there are some things money can't buy; the Beatles had it right: money can't buy me, love...