With February beginning, it’s time to start making plans for you and your Valentine. Whether you’re thinking of impressing someone with a formal dinner experience or opting for a laid-back date night, there’s no need to drive far. Both Allendale and Grand Rapids have accessible options to explore for the upcoming holiday. Though the ice and snow may leave students wanting to stay indoors, there’s plenty of activities and events that are only a bus ride or a walk away.

Romantic stroll through the Grand Ravines

The Grand Ravines is a public natural area located in Ottawa County, just a short drive from the Valley Campus. The park features a network of trails that run through forested ravines carved by the Grand River, offering visitors views of steep wooded slopes, riverbanks, wetlands and open clearings.

As a date location, the Grand Ravines offers an experience shaped by movement and environment rather than scheduled activities. The trails encourage walking at a comfortable pace, with gradual changes in scenery that create natural pauses for observation. Since the path unfolds over time, visitors are not confined to a single setting, and the experience feels less formal compared to a dinner date. The outdoor setting also reduces social pressure; walking side by side allows conversation to flow, and moments of quiet are easily absorbed by the surrounding sounds of water, wind and wildlife.

Dinner at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

For those willing to venture beyond the confines of campus, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park offers a seasonal event that blends fine dining with the institution’s characteristic integration of sculptural art and nature. On Saturday, Feb. 14, the Gardens will host a Valentine’s Day Dinner from 6-9 p.m. The event will begin with a sparkling wine welcome and cocktail hour in the Garden Pavilion, followed by a themed four-course dinner in the Huizenga Grand Room. Attendees must be 21 or older.

The menu is composed with a nod to classic love songs, and each course is described as a culinary interpretation of a title or theme. Live music by the Kimmie Horne Band is scheduled to provide a backdrop of vocal jazz and instrumental accompaniment.

The dinner’s setting within Meijer Gardens includes an expansive indoor conservatory, seasonal horticultural exhibits and outdoor sculpture collections. In winter months, the indoor gardens provide one of the few opportunities in the region to experience lush plant life and sculptural work in a heated environment, contrasting with the surrounding winter landscape.

Students at GVSU give high praise to the location.

“I love going to Frederik Meijer Gardens, and my girlfriend especially loves it, so I think it’s one of the best date locations in Grand Rapids,” said Tyler Clemons, a senior student studying communications. “My girlfriend loves to do photoshoots in front of the flowers and look through the gift shop.”

Grand Rapids Downtown Market: Love’s Ice Cream & Chocolate

Love’s Ice Cream & Chocolate is located inside the Grand Rapids Downtown Market, an indoor public space that houses a variety of artisan food vendors and shared seating areas. For GVSU students, the vendor’s location in a mixed-use market space means it can be combined with other downtown activities such as browsing additional food offerings, attending events and using public transit connections that between the Valley and City campuses.

Love’s Ice Cream & Chocolate periodically participates in public events hosted through the Grand Rapids Downtown Market. One such event is Ice Cream for Breakfast Day, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 7 at the Downtown Market. This event could be an early Valentine’s getaway, and encompasses free waffle cones or bowls with scoop purchases, complimentary Michigan maple syrup toppings and buy-one-get-one offers on affogatos and coffee-flavored ice cream pints.

Valentine card printmaking with Friends of Art

Students are able to engage directly with the GVSU Art Museum and Friends of Art group through hands-on programming. On Wednesday, Feb. 4 in the Mary Idema Pew Library, Friends of Art will host a Valentine’s-themed printmaking event, in which participants can create their own handmade cards. Visiting artist Alynn Guerra will guide students through the process of carving linoleum blocks to produce original prints. Participants will leave not only with finished Valentine’s cards, but also with their linoleum block to reuse for future printmaking projects. The event is scheduled for 6-8 p.m., and free of charge for Friends of Art members.

The Grand Valley State University Art Museum holds a distinctive place among collegiate museums in the United States. The museum oversees the second largest art collections in Michigan, housing over 27,000 pieces. Works from the collection are displayed across campus locations, most notably in the Calder Art Center and the Kirkhof Center. Beyond Valentine’s Day, students and their partners have ongoing opportunities to engage with the museum through its year-round exhibitions and programming.

“Art gives you something to talk about without forcing it,” said Isabella Delgado, a junior and art education major. “You can walk, stop, think and just exist together for a bit. I occasionally like to stop by the galleries, whether by myself or with others.”