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5 Reasons Not to Miss Colorado’s Loveland Sweetheart Festival

Find romance and fun with the Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights.

Get ready for a sweetheart of a destination just 45 minutes north of Denver with these 5 reasons (with more reasons added each year) to make Loveland. Colorado events for your Valentine’s Day destination. Loveland transforms into Colorado’s romantic getaway of the season in February. Known as the nation’s Sweetheart City, in Loveland, Valentine’s Day is more than a day. It is a 2-day, action-packed event with romance and fun during the Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights. (And did we mention it’s FREE?!)

Find romance and fun with the Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights.
Find romance and fun with the Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights. Photo Credit: Loveland Sweetheart Festival

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5 Reasons to LOVE Loveland Sweetheart Festival

For 74 years now, Loveland has offered its valentine re-mailing program.  For those who prefer romance in person, spoil your sweetheart with live music, craft beer, coffee, romantic overnight stays, love, love notes, and love locks. And if you can’t (or don’t want) to leave the kids at home, how about an adventure on Snowzilla Jr., the only inflatable toboggan slide?

All this and more in America’s Sweetheart City, Loveland, Colorado and all for free at the newly imagined romantic weekend, launched in 2019 and returning in 2020, the Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights.

When and where is the Loveland Sweetheart Festival?

From love locks to romantic stays, Colorado's Loveland Sweetheart Festival returns again to keep the romance in Valentine's Day. #lovelandsweetheartfestival #colorado #lovelandcolorado #romanticgetaways

When: February 14 from 5 – 9 PM and February 15 from 2 – 9 PM
Where: Downtown Loveland 

Imagine romantic heart-shaped love notes on lamp posts. Declaring your affection in a love lock. Art and sculpture at every turn. Local craft brews are transformed into a love potion. And the newly launched in 2019 Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights. The year’s Loveland Colorado events again feature something for everyone – families, couples, beer, and chocolate lovers, running lovers, art lovers, those who have lost a loved one, and forever loves. Which really means this is truly a celebration of “love” for all ages.

We give you these 5 reasons (and a few more!) to LOVE Loveland Sweetheart Festival for your Valentine’s Celebration.

Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights

Declare your love at the Loveland Sweetheart Festival with a love lock.
Declare your love at the Loveland Sweetheart Festival with a love lock. Photo Credit: Loveland Sweetheart Festival

From Feb. 14-15, 2020,  U.S.’s Sweetheart City just this annual celebration of romance with the launch of the inaugural Loveland Sweetheart Festival – Love Locks and Lights. For more than 70 years, Loveland has embraced sweethearts near and far and invites families and lovers across the world to gather in downtown Loveland to celebrate Valentine’s season for free!

This festival not only celebrates love, but it also celebrates the city’s rich history as the nation’s Sweetheart City and one of the top small art communities in the nation through art installations, attractions, and contests.

Love Lock Sculptures

Anchoring the Valentine's event is one of the largest love lock sculptures in the U.S. Photo credit: inaugural Loveland Sweetheart Festival - Love, Locks and Lights
Anchoring this free Colorado Valentine’s event is one of the largest love lock sculptures in the U.S. Photo credit: Loveland Sweetheart Festival

Last year, Loveland presented another new celebration of romance when introducing the largest love lock sculptures in the U.S., produced by longtime Loveland resident, Doug Rutledge. This 10-foot-tall, 30-foot-wide steel LOVE sculpture weighed 24,000 pounds. Attendees honored their loved ones by purchasing a customizable love lock ($20 at visitors’ center) to lock on the sculpture and this new tradition continues.

This year, Loveland unveiled its second love lock sculpture located in the Foundry Plaza downtown for six weeks, through the Sweetheart Festival. After that, its permanent location will be along the south shore of Lake Loveland near the American flag and Statue of Liberty sculpture. The 12-foot-3-inch-tall, 14-foot-3-inch-wide steel sculpture is a simple, heart design created and constructed right in Loveland, again by Doug Rutledge.

The unveiling of the newest Love sculpture in 2020. Photo: Loveland Sweetheart Festival
The unveiling of the newest Love sculpture in 2020. Photo: Loveland Sweetheart Festival

Love locks sell for $20 at the Loveland Visitors Center, or visitors can bring their own. Locks will also be for purchase during the Sweetheart Festival in the 4th Street Gallery. The love locks can be customized with a paint pen or hand carving to include names and dates of those locking their love.

What are love locks?

A symbol of love and commitment, Chinese ancient custom inspired love locks, where lovers lock a padlock on a chain or gate and then throw away the key, symbolically locking their love forever. Loveland Sweetheart Festival is the perfect place to express your love with your own love lock.

Spoil your Sweetheart with an Overnight Stay in the Sweetheart City

Create a romantic vacation for you and your sweetheart with these Valentine places to stay in or around Loveland.

The Townplace Suites by Marriott – Loveland’s first downtown hotel – has a “Leave the key to your heart in Loveland” hotel package for valentine weekend. In addition to a one night’s stay in a luxurious suite and complimentary breakfast buffet, guests will receive a bottle of Champagne, a sweet treat, discounted movie tickets, and a love lock to place on Loveland’s two love lock sculptures.

Enjoy Townplace Suites By Marriot Loveland’s best rates and free breakfast with Visa! *Code C9E (T&Cs apply).

A romantic stay in downtown Loveland at the new TownePlace Suites Loveland.
A romantic stay in downtown Loveland at the new TownePlace Suites Loveland.

Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch Romantic Sweetheart Getaway packages include a one- or two-night bunk and breakfast package Feb. 14-16 in a cozy fireplace cabin at the ranch complete with a dinner for two, hearty ranch-style breakfasts and access to 3,000 acres of hiking trails, game courts, game room, and horseshoe pits. Trail rides will also be available by reservation, weather depending.

Custom Love and Love Notes on Lamp Posts

Custom messages from the "heart" on lamp posts throughout Loveland during Loveland Sweetheart Festival.
Custom messages from the “heart” on lamp posts throughout Loveland during Loveland Sweetheart Festival. Photo credit: Visit Loveland

It’s a romantic road trip anywhere you turn in Loveland. Gant red hearts with love notes hang on lampposts, and red and white twinkling lights line downtown when Loveland transforms for this romantic holiday. Make it a very special Valentine and order your own love note. Then search the city with your sweetheart to make the day extra special.

Experience the Nation’s Largest Valentine Program

Volunteers from Loveland, the Sweetheart City in Colorado, pen special messages. P
Volunteers from Loveland, the Sweetheart City in Colorado, pen special messages on Valentine Cards. Photo: Visit Loveland

For 74 years, Loveland has been the nation’s home for Valentine’s Day. Visit in early February and experience the internationally recognized Valentine program. Bring your valentines to receive a special message from the Sweetheart City by their of our ‘angels on earth’ who lovingly hand-stamp valentines from all over the world each year.

Introducing the 2020 Loveland Valentine card.
Introducing the 2020 Loveland Valentine card. Photo credit: Visit Loveland

To learn more about this historic program while in Loveland, take a walk through the extensive Valentine’s Day exhibit at the Loveland Museum/Gallery to explore Loveland’s fun valentine history.

More to Love during the Sweetheart Festival in Downtown Loveland, Colorado

The Loveland Sweetheart Festival also includes art installations and interactive art displays
The Loveland Sweetheart Festival also includes art installations and interactive art displays. Photo Credit: Loveland Sweetheart Festival

Additional festival highlights include:

  • Art installations and interactive art displays, including a lit-up 25-foot heart and a display of the complete Loveland With HeART collection

  • A mapping projection laser show each night

  • Sweetheart Love Art Show at the 4th Street Gallery

  • For the Love of Chocolate, Beer and Wine tastings including local valentine beer Bleeding Heart (a delicious Baltic Porter brewed with Blackberry and Tart Cherry), produced by Grimm Brothers.

  • Sweet Heart Winery in Loveland has produced Loveland’s first official valentine wine – a Valentine’s Day 2020 special edition 2017 malbec
  • Snowzilla Jr., the only inflatable toboggan slide in the U.S. and Canada – adults and children will both love!

  • Sweetheart Classic 4 Miler

  • Light the Lovely Luminarias exhibit to honor lost loved ones

  • Bands & other musical performances

  • Photo booth with digital gif videos emailed to you

And for the kids:

Scenes at the Sweetheart Festival in downtown Loveland Saturday Feb. 9, 2019. Photo credit: Visit Loveland
Scenes at the Sweetheart Festival in downtown Loveland Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Photo credit: Visit Loveland
  • Little Miss Valentine and Little Mr. Cupid contest (children up to age 4)
  • Photo booth with Princesses

  • Face painting

  • Fire hula-hooper

Click here for the schedule of events.

We’ve got more than 5 Reasons to Make Loveland Your Valentine’s Destination. What’s your favorite reason to visit America’s sweetheart City?  Share with us in the comments below.

here are 5 reasons to take your romantic getaway to Colorado for the Loveland Sweetheart Festival.

8 thoughts on “5 Reasons Not to Miss Colorado’s Loveland Sweetheart Festival”

  1. I’ve never heard of this place, but I love this post including the sweet picture of the folks who stamp valentine’s envelopes from people all over the world.

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