NerdWallet puts a price tag on popular romantic movie moments

To set romantic fires burning this Valentine’s Day, a new study by leading price comparison site NerdWallet has revealed:

A quarter of Brits expect partners to at least sometimes overspend on them for love
One in 10 yearn for an on-screen romantic gesture
Alongside this effort, NerdWallet research has uncovered the price to recreate some of Hollywood’s most memorable romantic gestures. The list below suggests cinematic options for doting couples – some far more realistically priced than others!

1. Romantic renovation, The Notebook – £2,105,400

You won’t get very far into any conversation about iconic romances before a mention of Nick Cassavetes’ 2004 flick, The Notebook.

Although 19% of survey respondents dream of recreating Noah and Allie’s rain-soaked kiss, there’s a far grander gesture preceding that moment of passion. Namely, the many years Ryan Gosling’s Noah spends fixing up a dream house for Allie (Rachel McAdams).

If you’d like to do the same, it goes without saying you’d better get saving. The Martins Point Plantation on Wadmalaw Island in South Carolina – the real house used in the film – is now estimated to cost £2,105,400 ($2,857,900). And that’s before you even get to the renovation!

2. ‘I’m Flying’, Titanic – £745,655,71 (£5,233.33)

Few scenes from Hollywood history are as memorable as Rose (Kate Winslet) and Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) standing upon the bow of the Titanic, wind blowing in their hair as they voyage into the sunset. But could it be you?

Initial estimates look deceptively promising. After all, Jack’s third-class ticket would have cost him £13 back in 1912. Unfortunately, over a hundred years of inflation means that translates to £1,582.16 in today’s money. Meanwhile, Rose’s pricier £30 ticket back in the day would now translate into the modern-day price of £3,651.14. That’s £5,233.33 just to get the two of you on the boat!

Still, that’s not quite romantic enough. To truly recreate the moment, you’ll need the proper mood music, which means you’ll need a Celine Dion serenade. Regrettably, it won’t come cheap as a live rendition of My Heart Will Go On will cost you up to £738,830.91 in performance fees for the singer herself.

You might also want to spend a bit extra and secure a lifeboat (£1,434), or at least a door big enough for the two of you to share (£157.50). Just in case.

3. Marching band blowout, 10 Things I Hate About You – £4,270

In a scene that secured the MTV Movie Award for Best Musical Performance, high schooler Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) famously serenaded Kat Stratford (Julia Stiles) in 10 Things I Hate About You.

Patrick benefited considerably from already having access to a school speaker system and marching band. For those of us no longer in education, recreating this moment could prove a little trickier. The big expense here is the band, which works out at £4,225 for the afternoon. Alternatively you could opt for a £45 karaoke machine and at least you won’t have to worry about fluffing the lines to Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.

4. Pottery poltergeist, Ghost – £428.99

A caveat: this scene would be hard to accurately recreate, seeing as one of you would literally need to be a ghost in order to properly pull off Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore’s poltergeist pottery lesson. But as this is Valentine’s Day and not Halloween, let’s skip that step and get straight to the wheel that gets the sparks flying. The pottery wheel will cost you £200 by our estimate.

Still, to make sure it’s truly romantic and you are not just splattering clay everywhere, you are going to need a few lessons. We sourced an extremely reasonable session in NerdWallet UK’s hometown Norwich – £50 for two, and private to boot.

Of course, you’ll also need a record player (£175), and an original Unchained Melody 12″ vinyl (£3.99).

5. Limousine lovers, Pretty Woman – £383.94

Despite Pretty Woman’s abundance of expensive shopping trips, the most romantic moment takes place away from Rodeo Drive. This is of course the legendary final scene, which sees Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) suddenly realise Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) is the one, prompting him to dramatically confess his love.

But what will you need to recreate it? Well, a limousine is a must – that’ll cost you £120 for the hour. And it wouldn’t be Valentine’s Day without roses, so that’s another £39.99.

If you really want to complete the Richard Gere look, you’ll need a black umbrella (£18.95) and a dashing grey suit (£85). One extra cost that Gere’s Edward Lewis didn’t have to factor in was a ladder to get to Julia Roberts. The lack of fire escapes in the UK means you’re going to have to bring your own, adding £120 on to your romantic budget.

6. Have the time of your life, Dirty Dancing – £342.47

Voted the romantic movie moment respondents most wished happened to them in our NerdWallet survey was Dirty Dancing’s legendary lift – 16% confessed to wanting to make this moment a reality.

Yet it might cost more than you think if you wanted to successfully hoist your partner to the heavens and pull off this dancefloor classic.

To avoid a nasty accident, you should probably take dancing lessons – around five hours will cost you £150. Then you need the outfits. Baby’s dress is £41.50, and if you want to go all out, Jennifer Grey’s iconic perm is £55. It’s a bit cheaper if you’re dressing as Patrick Swayze’s Johnny – his black shirt and trousers combo comes in at £59.99.

And how can you have the time of your life without Time of My Life? The Ultimate Dirty Dancing Soundtrack is £5.99, with a CD player £29.99.

7. Empire State of mind, Sleepless in Seattle – £304.37

To recreate the ending of Sleepless in Seattle, you’re going to need to plan a whistle-stop trip to the Big Apple. Admittedly, you’ll have to be in Seattle first if you really want to nail your best Tom Hanks impression.

A pair of one-way tickets from Seattle to New York comes in at £224 – that’s one for you, and one for your precocious kid who kicks the plan into action.

As long as your beloved decides to visit the Empire State Building on their own, you’ll only need to buy two tickets to the observatory. An adult ticket is £32.35 ($44), while a child ticket is a barely discounted £28.03 ($38).

You’ll also need to spend £19.99 on a teddy bear to stuff in your kid’s backpack, to truly recreate this famed moment.

Now you just have to worry about those return flights…

8. Lock eyes in the aquarium, Romeo + Juliet – £54

While you might lack the party going on in the background, it’s pretty easy to recreate the dreamy moment Leonardo DiCaprio’s Romeo and Claire Danes’s Juliet lock eyes in Baz Lurhmann’s 1996 adaptation.

All you need to do is book two tickets online for the SEA LIFE London Aquarium, at £27 each, and find a spot where you can lock eyes on either side of a tank.

9. Say it silently, Love Actually – £47.07

Although telling your best friend’s wife that you love them might not be the best thing to do, there’s no doubting the impact Andrew Lincoln’s cue card confession has had on the nation’s romantic imagination – 15% of respondents wish for someone they love to turn up at their doorstep and confess (silently!).

Luckily, this moment should keep you within budget this Valentine’s Day. You just need 13 pieces of A3 card (£8.59), a black Sharpie(£1.50), a CD player (£29.99) and Christmas carol CD (£6.99) to recreate a seasonal serenade.

10. Blast your boombox, Say Anything – £25.99

The cheapest option on this list is also the simplest. Rock up to the house of your crush, and, just like John Cusack does in Say Anything, blast some Peter Gabriel from your boombox. It’ll only cost you £25 (and a few judgemental looks from the neighbours).

And if you wanted to save even more money, you could probably get a digital copy of Gabriel’s hit In your Eyes for 99p and just use your phone!