If every Friday is set aside for the same ho-hum dinner-and-a-movie, “date night” will repeat like Groundhog Day and eventually become a grind. That kind of drudgery can derail even the most starry-eyed-in-love couple (think Prince William and Kate Middleton).

The good news: It’s not that difficult to turn up the heat. The trick, experts say, is finding new and exciting ways to bond with your honey — and trying to be a little spontaneous about it.

Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square, San Francisco

Our friends from SELF asked Tina B. Tessina, Ph.D. (aka “Dr. Romance”), psychotherapist and author of The Unofficial Guide to Dating Again, for five ways to bring back the spark. Oyster experts picked the best places and environments to rejuvenate your relationship, whether you’re on vacation or it’s just another night.

Get nostalgic. Think back to when you were first dating. Go back to the place where you first met, watch a DVD (complete with popcorn) of the first movie you saw together, hit Happy Hour at the bar near your old job or wander through the park with a picnic lunch.
Where to do it: Picnicking in New York’s Central Park is something special, anyone who has done it will tell you. The beautiful escape in the middle of a bustling metropolitan city has a unique and exciting feel; the setting ignited an appreciation for life’s simple things. Perfect for surfacing old memories that make you both smile, Central Park has got it all. The Excelsior Hotel on the city’s Upper West Side is just a block from the park, located in a quiet, residential neighborhood.

Central Park, New York

Take to the water. There’s something very soothing and seductive about water. Take a tour of fancy fountains, visit a restaurant near a lake, stream or the ocean or order a catered picnic and take it on a ferry ride. If you live on a coast, hit the beach with some cheese and wine (assuming it’s legal in your state/county). Live in a tourist destination? Take a gondola ride, complete with a singing gondolier.
Where to do it: We love the romantic, beachfront hammocks hanging over the sand at Ke Iki Beach Bungalows, in part because they match the hotel’s laid-back, bohemian vibe. They add to the low-key romance of this bungalow hotel, perfect for couples who don’t need much beyond a beach, a sunset, and a little privacy.

Ke Iki Bungalows, Hawaii

Act like a tourist. Even if your town is somewhat ho-hum, find the hidden treasures. Have dinner in a nice hotel with cocktails at the piano bar, visit local attractions like museums or the aquarium or take a stroll through art galleries in the area followed by dinner at a sidewalk cafe. Some towns still have drive-in movies — the most romantic date ever!
Where to do it: Whether you’ve lived in the same neighborhood for one year or one decade, there are always more hidden gems to be found. Los Angeles’s Santa Monica and Venice neighborhoods are perfect for discovering new places — Venice has evolved into a bohemian Shangri-la. A few canals remain and are worth visiting to see the period bungalows lining them, but the main draw today is Ocean Front Walk, aka the boardwalk, a stretch of sunbaked T-shirt shops, hot dog stands, and pizza joints along the beach. Check out The Ambrose, an off the beaten path boutique hotel for tourists who are looking for a fantastic, Zen-like alternative to Santa Monica’s enormous beachfront hotels.

The Ambrose, Los Angeles

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Get some culture: Search out small theaters, college events and speakers, even high school plays and sports. The energy in these less-commercial activities will inspire you and provide plenty of fodder for great conversation.
Where to do it: Washington, D.C. one of the most beautiful and inspiring cities in America, is the perfect city for stimulating conversation. Aside from its political vibe, the Capitol has a plethora of culture, events, sites and neighborhoods to stroll around. The George Washington University, located in the heart of the city, has regular events and speakers pertaining to a wide range of topics. The JW Marriott, steps from the National Mall, is a great pick for everything there is to do in Washington, D.C.

Washington D.C., Lincoln Memorial

The bottom line: Make a weekly commitment to doing something fun together. You pick one week, and he picks the next. Time together should open endless possibilities of fun — not endless dinners (and a movie) stuck on repeat.

Craving something sweet but don’t want to break the bank? Whether we’re talking food or hotels, we’ve got the perfect solution for you.

Our friends from SELF found the treat: satisfy your sweet tooth without guilt with these Plush Puffs fat-free marshmallows from DylansCandyBar. No fat, just flavors: Vanilla or caramel-swirl marshmallows step up s’mores; lemon meringue enhances tea. Or enjoy them plain for about 70 calories. (And you get five per serving.)

And as for hotels, the list is endless. But, we’ve picked our favorite budget-friendly hotels that will make you feel like a million bucks.

Hotel: Grano De Oro, San Jose, Costa Rica
Price: $130/avg. night
Pearls: Rating: 3.5 Pearls
This former Victorian mansion turned intimate, 40-room hotel features large, homey rooms, a rooftop Jacuzzi, and a renowned fine dining restaurant. Antiques, tinkling fountains, wood floors and artful flower arrangements make it feel like you might be staying in the home of a wealthy colonial-era plantation owner. But it lacks the features a larger hotel — there’s no business center, fitness center, pool or spa.

Grano De Oro, Costa Rica

Hotel: Doubletree Chicago Magnificent Mile
Price: $146/avg. night
Pearls: 3.5 pearls
This 500-room chain hotel two blocks from the Magnificent Mile is nicer than your average Doubletree, but still solidly mid-range. Rooms were renovated in 2009 and all come with 27-inch flat-screen TVs, Neutrogena toiletries, MP3 hookups and coffeemakers with free coffee and tea. It’s a pretty good value for what you get, but it’s worth comparing rates with the more charming Millennium Knickerbocker.

Doubletree Magnificent Mile, Chicago

Hotel: 3 Palms, Phoenix
Price: $71/avg. night
Pearls: 5.4 pearls
The 3 Palms may look like a motel on the outside, but this affordable Scottsdale boutique has tasteful, contemporary rooms, solid freebies (including self-parking and Wi-Fi), and friendly service. The big, heated pool is impressive, and downtown Scottsdale is only a five-minute drive away. The bathrooms are a bit small, though.

3 Palms, Phoenix

Hotel: The Sofia Hotel Downtown, San Diego
Price: $112/avg. night
Pearls: 3.5 pearls
The 211-room Sofia Hotel in Downtown San Diego features small, but stylish rooms, with mini-fridges, microwaves, and tiny flat-screen TVs. Use of the fitness center, yoga and pilates studio, Wi-Fi, business center, and even loaner bicycles is included in the $8 daily fee, and the American brasserie gets solid reviews. It’s more charming than the often similarly priced Holiday Inn, and the location is more convenient — but parking will cost you.

The Sofia Downtown, San Diego

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Hotel: Townhouse Hotel, South Beach, Miami
Price: $138/avg. night
Pearls: 3
Located right on the beach, the Townhouse offers bright, stylish rooms, but little else. Still, it’s a great, comparatively clean alternative to the sketchy, similarly priced hotels throughout South Beach. Young singles might appreciate the Townhouse’s proximity to clubs and the mix of good-looking Europeans spending the night.

Townhouse Hotel, South Beach, Miami

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It’s beach season! Who doesn’t love a day in the sun, lying out in the sand and playing in the ocean waves? The only thing that makes it better is getting lost in a juicy page-turner. And new research finds that reading makes us happier. Reason is, we get attached to the characters and feel a genuine connection to them. A book is no replacement for real-life friends, of course, but it can expand your horizons and let you get lost into a rich fantasy world. And that’s exactly the kind of escape you want on a lazy beach day.

To make your beach reading experience a social one, try what my family does and read as a group. Bring a few novels on vacation, then pass them around so you can all be on the same page and discuss them together. Instant book group! I’m currently loving Piper Kerman’s gripping memoir, Orange is the New Black: My Year in Women’s Prison and Jennifer Egan’s gorgeous Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, A Visit from the Good Squad.

Don’t know which book to stash in your beach bag? Our Facebook friends from SELF couldn’t put down these hot picks. Oyster helps you pick where to read them.

To really embrace the summer feeling
Read:

• Summer Sisters, by Judy Blume
• Summer Rental, by Mary Kay Andrews
• The Island, by Erin Hilderbrand

The Setai, Miami

For a good laugh from your favorite celeb
Read:

• Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang, by Chelsea Handler
• Bossypants, by Tina Fey
• Stories I Only Tell my Friends, by Rob Lowe

Where: Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino, Aruba
Clear water, plenty of chairs, and excellent people-watching opportunities. The broad, white-sand beach reminds us of Miami, only the water is even clearer. With plenty of chairs and a constant parade of tan flesh, you can kick back, read, and laugh to your heart’s content.

Aruba Marriott Resort

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For a deep, gripping story
Read: 

• Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese
• The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls
• My Hollywood, by Mona Simpson

Half Moon, Jamaica

For a fun, delightful read
Read: 

• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
• Nicholas Sparks’ novels

Loews Santa Monica, LA

Caribbean golfing at its best at Casa de Campo

Turns out Orlando isn’t the only place where hotels are handing out resort credits. The Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic has a new offer out, its “Go Green in March” deal, that’s designed to lure visitors to the resort’s awesome golf courses before April 4. With promised savings of a whopping $525 per stay, this package is ripe for a Bundle Breakdown.

Is it really that great of a deal? We do the math, after the jump.

The offer mandates a five-night minimum stay, and the deal grants a free upgrade to an Elite room — “subject to availability.” Herein lies the $525 savings the hotel brags about: An Elite room, at $450 a night, sells for $105 a night more than a Luxury room, meaning after a five-night stay, you’ll have “saved” $525. It’s a pretty specious claim since you don’t actually pocket the $525 price difference. If that’s what passes for savings these days, well, Superior rooms, at just $295 a night, have access to the same world-class golf courses, beaches, and restaurants as the higher-priced accommodation types.

As for the resort credit, which is worth $200, guests have to book at the Luxury level in order to qualify for it; at that level, the total bill pre-taxes and fees bill would be $1,725. The credit is good at the resort’s golf pro shop and restaurants, so it’s certainly a worthwhile freebie on its own merits, particularly here, where you’ll easily spend more than $200 on food and beverage over a five-day stay.

So if you’re headed to Casa de Campo for golf rather than the in-room comforts, is this package really worth the extra outlay? Not really: Staying in a Superior room for five nights will run $1,475, saving you $300 over the price of booking a Luxury room. You’ll miss out on the $200 resort credit, but by forgoing the package, you’ve just created your own, more substantial deal.

The JW Marriott Orlando, where the free resort credit really is free

Oyster just posted more than two dozen reviews of Orlando hotels and resorts, and the bundled “resort credit” is currently very popular among them. Basically, it’s a gift certificate to spend on resort services during — and only during — your stay. Sounds nice, but the catch is that booking one of these “specials” for a certain room category is sometimes more expensive than reserving just a room of the same type.

You’ll occasionally net a free drink or free valet parking — things that can indeed add up over a multi-day stay — but these so-called deals deserve particular scrutiny. Here’s a closer look at four hotels that are offering room-and-resort credit packages — and a breakdown of whether paying extra for is actually worth it. As it turns out, sometimes it is…

The Ritz-Carlton Orlando Grande Lakes

The deal: “Resort Reconnect,” includes a $50 resort credit and daily breakfast buffet for two at The Vineyard Grill

The price: In mid-March, $384 per night

The breakdown: A room alone sells for $309 a night, and the breakfast buffet for two is $46 a la carte. That means you’re only paying for $29 of that $50 resort credit, so if you use it all — on, say, frozen umbrella drinks at the pool — you’re coming out 21 bucks ahead per day.

Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

The deal: “Grand Getaway,” includes a $50 resort credit and free valet parking.

The price: $329 per night

The breakdown: The same “Disney View” room sells for $289, and valet parking is $20 a night. (Self-parking is $13 a night, so guests are locked into spending something to stash their wheels.) Booking this “getaway,” then, nets you a $50 credit for just $20 extra. That would, for example, save you 60 percent on a light lunch for two at the on-site Harvest Bistro.

Caribe Royale Orlando

The deal: “Hop into Spring Package,” includes a $30 food and beverage credit and late check-out of 1 p.m.

The price: $144

The breakdown: A call to the front desk revealed that while check-out is normally 11 a.m., they’ll extend that to 1 p.m. without additional charge; that so-called extra really isn’t. Still, booking this package nets you a rate much cheaper than the “best available” room-only price of $190 for the same mid-March dates. All told, you net $76 in savings and credits by booking this package instead of a room alone.

JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes

The deal: “$50 Daily Resort Credit,” includes simply the credit

The price: $269 per night

The breakdown: Like the Caribe, this promo — a room plus a daily resort credit — is currently the best rate the hotel offers, making it a total no-brainer. Spend your free loot on access for two to the steam room and sauna ($40) or on lunch for two at the charming Citron brasserie.

The funky, floral Ocean View rooms of the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel

We just got word about a new “Discover Oahu Package” from the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel, a property that made it onto our list of the best hotels in Oahu thanks to a spectacular beachfront location and great views of the ocean from the color-splashed rooms. But does the three-night bundle, which includes accommodations, tours of some of the island’s most important attractions, and a pre-packed picnic lunch, really “take the stress out of planning an adventure-filled vacation for two, while also saving valuable time and money?” Let’s take a closer look at the details.

• Three nights of ocean view accommodations
• Breakfast on the beach daily
• Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor, and city tour for two
• Polynesian Cultural Center’s Alii Luau Package for two, which includes round-trip transportation, admission, luau dinner, and preferred seating for “Horizons,” the center’s evening show
• Commemorative Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel picnic backpack, packed with lunch

The whole package starts at $782 per couple. But booking through the hotel’s website, ocean-view rooms are selling for $148 or $175 a night, with the lower price available if you book by January 31. With taxes, and at the higher rate, the room alone works out to about $600. Is the rest of that stuff worth $182?

It sure is – at least if you’re planning to check out the Polynesian Cultural Center’s Alii Luau. Tickets for two to the evening event, including transportation, run $225 including tax, meaning you’ll save $43 booking this package instead of buying a room and show tickets separately. A tour around Pearl Harbor with Roberts Hawaii, which normally costs $54 per couple, and a free picnic lunch add even more value.

This package, it turns out, is indeed a deal, saving guests who book it more than 100 bucks. Us? We’d put it toward another day in Hawaii – tacking another night onto the bundle costs just $148.

Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort in the Bahamas is offering a free roundtrip flight deal for guests who book a four-night stay.

On the surface, the Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort’s “Companion Flies Free” package announced yesterday sounds amazing: It offers a free roundtrip companion flight to the Bahamas for guests who book a four night stay, and 40 percent savings on room rates. But we at Oyster are always a little skeptical of hotel package deals, so we embarked on a fact finding mission to get the truth. Has the recession caused the Sheraton to resort to desperate measures to fill rooms, or is the deal too good to be true? Welcome back to Oyster’s Bundle Breakdowns, where we go through the painstaking process of (roughly) breaking down the costs of popular hotel bundle offerings to determine whether you’re getting a steal or getting robbed.

First, we called the advertised number (1-866-789-5485) and expressed interest in booking a four-night trip for two Jan. 28 – Feb. 1, with roundtrip flights from New York City. The price our helpful phone operative returned with sounded pretty steep, and she couldn’t give us an exact breakdown of costs (always a little suspicious), but she gave us enough information for us to figure out the basics:

Sheraton package breakdown

• Four night stay in a resort view room + ground transportation to and from airport + taxes: $1450
• Northwest Airlines roundtrip airfare for one + taxes: $384.40
• Northwest Airlines roundtrip airfare for one: Free
• Total: $1834.40

Hardly inexpensive, but we figured it might still be cheaper than paying for everything ourselves. To check, we turned to Oyster’s handy pricing matrix and picked the cheapest hotel rate listed, from Orbitz.com. We also used Orbitz to check rates for the same Northwest Airlines flight the Sheraton representative selected for us (which was indeed, as she promised, the least expensive option). Here’s what we found:

Booking engine breakdown

• Four night stay in a resort view room: $827 ($206.75/nt)
• Hotel stay taxes: $115.64
• Ground transportation to and from airport: $64
• Two roundtrip flights on Northwest Airlines, including taxes: $582.40
• Total: $1589.04

So there you have it: Somehow, the Sheraton’s free roundtrip flight deal is $245.36 more expensive than using a booking engine to pay for both flights yourselves. Pretty fishy, eh?

Still, sketchy offers aside, we like the Sheraton Nassau: It has great rooms, a gorgeous beachfront, three great pools, a top-notch gym, a friendly staff, and is, in fact, one of the best values in the Bahamas right now. Click here to see our list of ten more cheap warm weather getaways.

We like to keep abreast of the latest in hotel package offerings, and this one from the Hotel Diva in San Francisco is certainly titillating, if also a wee bit tacky: the boutique property, part of the (female-run!) small West Coast chain Personality Hotels, is shilling a hotel package that shamelessly promotes and encourages Cougardom. That is, the act of being a Cougar — a female on the prowl for younger male playthings. Stupid and gimmicky? Sure. But since the haters are probably gonna hate, we’re gonna tell you a little secret: it’s not a terrible deal.

You could spend 50 bucks on your monthly Botox injections (kidding, sort of), or you could add that 50 bucks to your room rate at the Hotel Diva and get all these Cougar-friendly amenities with the Cougars With Personality package — oh, and everything comes in pairs, so you can bring your wingwoman, too:

• A one-night stay ($159.00)
• Two Hanky-Panky animal-print thongs ($22.00 each)
• Two Lemon Drop cocktails
• Two $25 Gift Certificates for the Epi Center MedSpa ($50.00 – and yes, they do Botox)
• Professional bra fittings at Nordstrom (free, though the reminder that the ol’ ta-tas may be a bit closer to the waist than they were the last time you got a professional bra fitting is probably priceless…)
• “A list of San Francisco’s hottest Cougar bars” (we assume this is where young dudes hang out)

A standard room on October 30th is $159; with the Cougar package, you’re looking at a rate of $209. So for $50 you get at least $100-worth of goodies – who says an older woman can’t have a cheap, hot night if she doesn’t mind being a cliche and is prepared to take responsibility for causing irreparable psychological damage to her children by openly identifying as a Cougar?

The Wynn Las Vegas

We’re not usually proponents of forking over four figures for a hotel package (or for anything, really), but this — well, this is different.

Wynn Las Vegas is collaborating with ZERO-G weightless flights — yes, folks, that’s a flight on a Boeing 727-200 that’s been modified to replicate levels of weightlessness on Mars and the moon (as well as zero-gravity)– to offer a package that includes some sexy digs, a float-y flight with ZERO-G, and a spa treatment. And listen: it’s $5,746 per seat plus tax, but don’t roll your eyes just yet. You might actually be into this.

First (and least exciting) of all, your Wynn experience is going to include a two-night stay in a Tower Suite Room and a choice of either a Custom Massage or a Classic Facial. Cool.

But the ZERO-G flight. Oh, man. You’re looking at a two-hour(ish) flight that has “15 separate weightless intervals” that are each about 30 seconds. It departs out of The Signature Terminal at McCarran on Saturday, September 19, and the whole experience includes…

• Pre-flight training
• Private transportation to/from the airport
• ZERO-G flight suit and patch
• Personal photography
• A “post-flight re-gravitation party”
• Some little ZERO-G gifts

You can get more info on the package here, but there is fo’ sho’ limited space on the flight — so get on it. Or just admire the sort of person that would do this, like Martha Stewart. And Joey Fatone from ‘NSync, apparently.

The Franklin NYC

Ever wonder if those “romance” or “adventure” hotel packages are really giving you more bang for your buck — or if you’ve been suckered into booking a clever marketing pro’s cutesy champagne and chocolate-covered price markup? Welcome back to Oyster’s Bundle Breakdowns, where we go through the painstaking process of (roughly) breaking down the costs of popular hotel bundle offerings to determine whether you’re getting a steal or getting robbed.

Since, according to Gossip Girl, you’re “nobody until you’re talked about,” we’re going to take a hot time out to talk about this Gossip Girl package being offered by the Franklin NYC – but would any of the characters on Gossip Girl even bother with it? Most of them are rich and all, but, you know, we’re in a recession. Even they watch what they’re spending these days.

The Deal: 2 night stay in an Executive King Room; $100 Gift Certificate at Henri Bendel; $100 Gift Certificate for dinner and drinks at Mansfield Hotel’s M BAR; Two tickets to the Metropolitan Museum; a Gossip Girl Guide to NYC; Luxury Car Service up to 4 hours.

The Package Price: $999 for two nights, plus tax

The Breakdown (based on rates for Friday-Saturday October 9th & 10th):

• Executive King Room: $718 ($259 per night), plus tax
• Value of Gift Certificates: $200
• “Gossip Girl Guide to NYC”: The same info is Google-able for free
• Met Tickets: $40 ($20 each)
• Car Service: $260 ($65 per hour, based on rate quoted by Deborah – the Franklin’s car service of choice)

Total Non-Package Price: $1218, plus tax

Total Estimated Savings: About $220

Pros: Luxury car service! Gift certificates! Savings if you were gonna do all those things anyway.
Cons: You’re restricted to eating/drinking at the M Bar (and for under $100 – if you can) and there’s not a whole lot you can buy for under one-hundo at Henri Bendel (a necklace? A coin purse? A scarf?) Also, nobody ever really goes inside the Met on GG; they just sit on the steps and trash talk through mouthfuls of yogurt anyway.

Bottom Line: Meh. Maybe give it to your niece for her Bat Mitzvah.