If you are a Latina entrepreneur who travels frequently for business, chances are you might be away from your loved one on a special occasion like Valentine’s Day. Many people are on a business trip by that time; you are not alone. Being lands and seas apart on this very day can be daunting for most couples.

Eating alone on Valentine’s Day when you are travelling for work, with an extremely love-charged aura in every restaurant you visit and a huge crowd of couples all around would make you miss your loved one even more. You’d probably avoid looking at people holding hands and kissing. It might just trigger second thoughts about your new career, or regret having accepted this new position in which you need to travel for business constantly.

Before you just swear not to travel again, here are some real life ideas that will suck the glam out of you. It just takes a little bit of preparation but can be done

1. Be open to a sweet surprise and trust your better half
Five years back, a friend of mine was really upset about her business trip because she had to be away from her hubby on Valentine’s Day. However, after coming to her hotel, when she unpacked her suitcase, a heart shaped box of her favorite chocolates awaited her with a handwritten note on top. She still finds that note and box of chocolates to be her favorite Valentine’s Day gift of all times.

2. Hotel accommodation team could be of help
If you won’t be able to celebrate Valentine’s Day together with your significant other, there are no obstacle for showing how much you love and care for him/her. Five days before their flight, call the hotel staff where your “better half” will be staying. Ask them to make a customized special arrangement right before he or she reaches the hotel. When they’d open the door, they’d have a surprise gift, rose petals, hand-written card and a scent of his favorite perfume all around the room. Here are some nice Valentine’s Day gift ideas and a reliable shipping service that will send your gift ahead of time. Make sure the hotel knows they will be receiving it.

3. A mighty escape
A couple I know, married for more than twenty years, really wanted to spend time together on Valentine’s Day. Knowing they both would be away on a business trip their separate ways, they simply planned a long weekend gateway, starting from the business places they were working at and meeting each other at a location they have longed visiting since they started dating. They hired a local travel agency to make the arrangements and coordinate their respective trips and stay. Now that became a really special celebration for the couple who long intended to visit that place together.

4. Communicate love through cyber space
Taking advantage of all the ways we can connect over the Internet these days using our phones or tablets -I’m crazy about my new IPad!-  traveling couples might decide they can simply spend the evening talking to each other. Most important is keeping the conversation romantic! Keep it out of the everyday domestic routine or telling each other about work. Talk about what made you fall in love with each other or just simply go down the happy memory lane of your relationship. Dare each other to remember first kiss or first date, first funny encounter with the in-laws or any other comforting memory. Order room service with champagne in each other’s hotel room and drink, eat or let your imagination play your evening together!

5. Go a little out of the way to make it happen
If you know you both will be traveling at the same time, dare your spouse or significant other to prepare a mutual surprise. Count on the hotel crew to help you prepare yours, they are always willing to help on these special occasions. If there is a time difference, plan to have it at a time that works for both. It can go from staying in to taking each other out to a local restaurant, a spa and massage session, ordering each other’s favorite meal or buying tickets to a special event.  Combination of all these options is also accepted!

Now what do you think would be your best options?

Do not get upset if everything doesn’t run the way you expected. The unpredictable can also be fun! Just keep in mind that Valentine’s Day is a celebration to pamper yourselves and to show each other’s love; do not try to run the occasion as you run your business!