Anti-Valentine's Day

Bored by the commerciality, offended by the overall crassness, or just sick of the forced romantic sentiment, Time Out air kisses the face of rebellion and offers you a selection of original Valentines day ideas to help you survive the tackiest holiday of the year.

For a group of mates The limousine ride

Chances are you won't be one of the only people not in a relationship this Valentines day, and being chauffeured around in your own stretch limo all night for no special reason with a group of your friends isn't just gloriously nouveau riche, but it effectively gives you a portable party place, and will ensure you get the kudos you deserve when you saunter into your favourite hot pot restaurant.

Beijing has a fleet of limousines to rent at affordable prices but be sure to book well in advance. For eight hours, Beijing Limo offers a 2005 Lincoln stretch limo for 4,500RMB including a driver. (To book and for more options call 6546 1588 or go to www.beijinglimo.com).

For those interested in a more cultured tour, the Red Capital Club also offer a 40-minute long drive in their Red Flag limo, the 1,888RMB trip includes Russian caviar and plenty of history – built in the forties, the car was used to drive the former vice premier and foreign minister Chen Yi. The Red Capital Club 66 Dongsijiutiao, Dongcheng district (6402 7150). Open 6-11pm daily. 新红资俱乐部, 东城区东四九条66号

For the stuck in a rut singles The new clubbing experience

Keep going back to the same places, attempting to seduce the same person week in week out? Or maybe you were successful and would rather eat your own feet than go back and risk seeing them again? While many of Beijing's clubs cater strongly to Western audiences, there are still a number of great venues that research – coupled with a fair amount of speculation – tells us our readership aren't likely to visit. By far the best of all of these is Rumours, located next to the new 'Birds Nest' Olympic stadium.

The club features a walkway above the dancefloor, unisex toilets, flashy barmen fond of setting things on fire, and one of the swankiest VIP sections we've ever seen. Tables with a bottle of Chivas go for 800RMB, the DJs spin commercial house, R&B and hiphop, and you can get as stupidly wasted as you want without fear of running into somebody you know and seeing embarrassing photos of yourself on Facebook the next day.
Rumours 69 Banjian Lu, Haidian district (8846 6377)

For the love-haters The city's only 'Anti-Valentines' night

Sanlitun's raucous Rikshaw bar refuse to let themselves be dragged down into the ersatz world of cheesy celebrations by holding Beijing’s only anti-valentines night. While other bars are content to play ballads all night and offer drinks specials to couples, the Rickshaw want you single and cynical people to have a hinterland away from all the loved up banality. With a ban on love songs throughout the night, drinks promotions centered around being single and proud, and the promise that scorn shall be poured on anyone who comes in twirling a rose wrapped in cheap plastic – the Rickshaw remains the number one spot to have an unpretentious, fun time.

Rickshaw 30 metres South of the Gongti Bei Lu and Sanlitun Nan Lu intersection, Chaoyang district (6500 4330). Open 24 hours. 朝阳区三里屯南路.

For girls who just wanna have fun The ultimate pampering packageFor all the girls who would rather spend Valentines with their friends being pampered, China World hotel are running a stunning month-long girls only promotion which, over a one night stay, includes facials, breakfast, massages and martinis, a personal shopping butler, a 'Girls Night In' package (which includes girly DVDs, a bottle of bubbly, sweets and personalised pajamas with your monogrammed initials on!) and a limousine at your disposal for three hours. What's more, leaving the boyfriend at home while you're luxuriating gives him time to reflect on his performance over the last year, hopefully edging him closer to the realisation that the key to a woman's heart is perpetual sycophancy.

China World Hotel, 5,088RMB for two people (plus 15 per cent service charge) per room per night. For reservations call the hotel directly on 6505 8885; email reservations.cwh@shangri-la.com or book online at www.shangri-la.com.

For people who don't do sexy
The game of bowling. There's nothing less sexy than bowling; the bright lights do nothing to make people look attractive, you look stupid while you do it, and the inevitable competitive streak (smug victors gloating over their winning scores) will ensure your evening retains a healthy level of animosity rather than anything resembling sappy or romantic.

The Gongti 40 lane bowling alley is a popular place where an hour's play will cost you 150RMB per lane after 5pm, and 100RMB before. Further embarrass friends by liberally quoting from the Big Lebowski to ensure one of the mleast romantic nights possible. Gongti 100 Bowling Gongti Xi Lu, Chaoyang district (6552 2688)

For the boycotting couple
The perfect antithesis to what a Valentines night traditionally entails, Me:Mo playing D-22 should put you in a distinctly unromantic mood. For them, music is the food of being aurally perplexed, the random bleeps and dark industrial swirlings would only inspire the most twisted audience participant towards love, while the generation X crowd will be the kind of bitter angry teenagers that hate everything anyway. Dipping a toe into the dark waters of Beijing's experimental music scene has the chance to open up a new world to many readers who traditionally shun this kind of event. You never know, you might discover the next Aphex Twin on the stage of Beijing's best live music venue.

D-22 8pm. 20RMB, Students 10RMB.