Drones, Diamonds and the Ultra-Extravagant Impulse Buy

Somewhere between the last peppermint latte and the first “dry January” seltzer, the consumer psyche performs an elegant pivot: from recovering to romancing. Valentine’s Day is the annual reminder that love may be priceless, but the surrounding ecosystem is extremely price-discoverable, highly shoppable and increasingly optimized for impulse purchases made at 11:47 p.m. with next-day delivery and a strategically vague gift note.

Valentine’s Day has become one of the most scalable commercial holidays: a global permission slip to convert feelings into transactions, ideally with a pretty checkout flow. In the U.S., the National Retail Federation said consumers were expected to spend a record $27.5 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2025 — an average of $188.81 — with over half (56%) planning to celebrate, and online ranking as the top shopping destination.

Globally, the holiday shape shifts rather than disappears. In parts of East Asia, for example, the gifting choreography can turn into a two-step: Valentine’s Day followed by White Day on March 14, when gifts are reciprocated, an elegant cultural mechanism that also extends the retail runway. In other words: whether your market favors roses, chocolates or carefully calibrated reciprocity, the digital economy still gets what it wants, another peak moment for commerce with emotion baked in.

Below, in no particular order, are some of the more expensive or just plain out of this world items and experiences available.

Rent a Private Island

Why book a table when you can book geography? Private-island rental platforms make it disturbingly easy to browse secluded paradises the way you browse sneakers, except the “limited drop” is an actual island and the amenities include “privacy.” Start with marketplaces like Private Islands Online.

Buy a Ticket to the Edge of Space

If your Valentine’s aesthetic is “romantic, but with panoramic curvature of Earth,” Space Perspective’s reservation flow is a masterclass in modern luxury: it’s aspirational, premium, and shockingly straightforward for something that involves the stratosphere. The page lists a $125,000 total cost per seat with a refundable deposit starting at $1,000.

Commission a Drone Light Show

Flowers say, “I care.” A coordinated fleet of drones says, “I care and I have a production budget.” Drone show providers like Sky Elements position the whole thing as turnkey spectacle — perfect for anyone who wants their affection visible from across a river, a highway, and most of their ex’s neighborhood.

Put Your Love on a Billboard

For the performance romantics — and the growth marketers — self-serve digital billboard platforms let you buy attention the way you buy ads: quickly, flexibly, and with analytics energy. Blip Billboards pitches “launch outdoor ads in minutes” with “no contracts.” Your message can be heartfelt, hilarious or lightly terrifying.

Bring the Chef’s Table Home

A private chef experience is peak “I planned this” without actually planning it. Platforms like Take a Chef walk you through the modern ritual: request, compare proposals, customize, and book — turning your kitchen into a stage.  If you want to keep it extravagant but slightly more scalable, marketplaces like Cozymeal also sell private-chef experiences (often framed like events).

Buy a Diamond-Studded Phone Case

Jewelry is traditional. Jewelry for your electronics is postmodern Valentine’s Day. Luxury customization brands like Caviar sell phone cases and phones made from materials like 18K white gold and set with hundreds of diamonds — a gift that says, “I love you,” and also, “I fear scratches.”

Personalize a Fragrance Label

Some brands let you turn scent into a message via customizable labels and packaging. Le Labo’s personalization program lets you add a short message (up to 23 characters) across products, which is basically a love note with a supply chain.

Name a Star

Is it legally binding cosmic real estate? No. Is it wonderfully extra? Absolutely. International Star Registry sells “name a star” packages complete with a certificate — ideal for anyone who wants romance to feel infinite, framed, and deliverable.

Book a Bespoke, Cinematic Trip

There’s luxury travel and then there’s luxury travel that reads like a mood board. Companies like Black Tomato explicitly sell the idea of tailor-made travel engineered around how you want to feel, not just where you want to go. It’s Valentine’s Day as a curated narrative arc. For a more classic “white-glove operator” approach, firms like Abercrombie & Kent also position themselves squarely in the high-end, highly curated travel lane.

Valentine’s Day, at its best, is a reminder to be deliberate about the people you love. At its most entertaining, it’s a seasonal sandbox where commerce experiments with how far “thoughtful” can be stretched before it becomes “logistically impressive.” If you’re going to lean into the over-the-top, do it with intention: buy the billboard, rent the island, book the chef, launch the drones. Just remember the one luxury no platform can actually fulfill on your behalf: putting your phone down long enough to enjoy the person you just bought the sky for.