Create and Name Your Own Perfume in Liverpool

If you want a couple of hours in Liverpool that involves making something rather than just eating and drinking, The Perfume Studio's Fragrance Design Experience is one option worth knowing about. You spend the session smelling, choosing and combining scent blends, then leave with a fragrance you have mixed and named yourself.

This guide covers what the experience involves, where it runs, what each package costs, how the current discount works, and how to get there. Prices start at £49 and the session lasts about two hours. The one detail to pin down before you travel is the venue, because the operator's own website and the main booking page currently list two different Liverpool hotels.

The short version

• What it is: a guided fragrance blending session with a Perfume Stylist. You sample more than 20 ready-made blends, then mix your favourites into one scent and name it.
• How long: about two hours.
• Price: from £49 for the smallest take-home bottle, up to £99 for 100ml. The Perfume Studio lists four tiers.
• Age: 16 and over.
• Venue: given as Radisson RED on Lime Street by the operator and by Culture Liverpool, and as the Hilton by Liverpool ONE on the LoveToVisit booking page. Check your confirmation.
• Discount: LoveToVisit is showing up to 20% off with the code DAYSOUT.
• Take home: your named fragrance in an atomiser, with the formula stored so you can reorder it later.

What the Fragrance Design Experience is

The session is run by a member of The Perfume Studio's team, described as a Perfume Stylist. It starts with a short introduction to how fragrances are built, then moves through the layers of a scent.

The Perfume Studio's published running order is:

• Introduction to The Perfume Studio
• Base notes
• Middle notes
• Top notes
• Blending your signature fragrance

Along the way you smell a set of ready-made blends worked out by the company's perfumers, and pick the ones you like. LoveToVisit's listing puts the number at more than 20 blends. You then combine your choices into a single fragrance, give it a name, and take it home in an atomiser.

One practical point in the experience's favour: the formula for your finished scent is kept in The Perfume Studio's online fragrance library, so you can reorder it later rather than losing it when the bottle runs out. That means there is no strong reason to buy the largest bottle just to be safe.

Where it takes place, and why the venue needs checking

This is where the listings stop agreeing, so it is worth being careful.

The Perfume Studio's own Liverpool page and the Culture Liverpool listing both give the venue as Radisson RED, 7 Lime Street, L1 1RD, next to Lime Street station.

The LoveToVisit booking page lists it at the Hilton Liverpool City Centre, 3 Thomas Steers Way, L1 8LW, next to Liverpool ONE and Chavasse Park.

The two hotels are about a ten-minute walk apart, both in the city centre. The Perfume Studio runs its experiences at booked venues rather than from a permanent shop, so the location can change between dates. Do not rely on the address shown when you booked.

What each package costs

The Perfume Studio runs the same session at four price points. The main difference is how much of your finished fragrance you take home.

All four are listed at about two hours and for ages 16 and over. The Perfume Studio's experience page is where the current prices and timings are set out.

There is a gap between listings here too. The Perfume Studio's Liverpool page and the Culture Liverpool listing show three tiers, Gold, Platinum and Diamond. The LoveToVisit booking page also offers the 100ml Moissanite for Liverpool. If you want the largest bottle, confirm it is available on your chosen date before booking.

Which one to choose

If your interest is in doing the workshop, the £49 Gold package covers it and gives you a 5ml atomiser. Platinum at £65 is the step up most people are likely to want, because 20ml is a usable amount without a big jump in price. Diamond at £79 and the £99 Moissanite only make sense if you know you will wear the fragrance regularly. Because the formula is stored for reorders, starting small does not mean losing the scent.

How to get up to 20% off

LoveToVisit lists an up to 20% discount on The Perfume Studio using the code DAYSOUT. The Liverpool experience starts from £49 before any discount.

To use it:

1. Open the Liverpool Fragrance Design Experience page on LoveToVisit.
2. Choose your date and package.
3. Enter DAYSOUT when asked for a promo code.
4. Check the discount shown in the final price.
5. Complete the booking if you are happy with the total.

The wording matters. The offer is advertised as "up to" 20%, not a flat 20% on every booking, and promotions like this can be withdrawn or changed. Check the checkout total before you pay.

Getting there

Both possible venues are central and easy to reach without a car. Our guide to getting around Liverpool without a car has the wider picture.

By train

If your session is at Radisson RED, Liverpool Lime Street is next door. If it is at the Hilton, Liverpool Central is the closest station, about six minutes on foot, with Lime Street around twelve. Check times on Merseyrail for local journeys, especially at weekends.

By bus

Liverpool ONE Bus Station, on Canning Place, is the most useful stop for the Hilton and is a short walk from Lime Street too. Merseytravel has route and timetable information.

By car

Both hotels sit in the city-centre parking zone. Q-Park Liverpool ONE is closest to the Hilton, and the Q-Park and St John's car parks are nearer Radisson RED. Allow extra time on Saturdays and when there is an event on at the waterfront or the arena.

Bubbly, afternoon tea and gift vouchers

The LoveToVisit listing says all four packages include a glass of bubbly. The Perfume Studio's own wording is narrower: it lists the welcome drink as applying at published venues only, so confirm it is included with the specific Liverpool date you book.

Afternoon tea is an optional extra. The Perfume Studio's experience page lists it at £37.50 per person. Availability can depend on the venue and time, so check when you book.

If you are buying it as a gift, The Perfume Studio sells print-at-home and emailed vouchers, plus a physical gift pack sent by post that carries a £4.95 delivery charge. Booking through LoveToVisit has its own voucher terms, so read those before paying.

Who it suits

The experience is for ages 16 and over, so it works for adults, older teenagers, couples and groups rather than as a family activity with young children.

It fits the same slot as a workshop or a class: a couple of hours of doing something, with a physical thing to take away. That makes it a reasonable option for a birthday, an anniversary or a low-key date, and it pairs easily with lunch or dinner in town afterwards. For other ideas in that vein, see our guides to quiet dating spots in Liverpool and rainy-day things to do indoors.

Whether it is worth booking

If all you want is a bottle of perfume, there are cheaper ways to get one. The reason to book this is the process: a guided run through how scents are put together, time spent comparing blends, and a fragrance you have mixed and named rather than picked off a shelf.

For a gift or an occasion, that is more distinctive than another meal out, and the stored formula means the fragrance does not have to be a one-off. The Gold package is enough if you mainly want the experience. The larger tiers are for people who already know they will use the scent.

What to check before you book

• The venue. Confirm the address on your booking email. The operator and the booking page currently list different hotels.
• The discount. Enter DAYSOUT and check it has applied before paying. It is advertised as "up to" 20%.
• Your date. Sessions do not run every day, so check availability before planning around it.
• The Moissanite option. If you want the 100ml bottle, confirm it is offered on your date.
• What is included. Check whether the welcome drink and any afternoon tea apply to your session.

Prices, offers and venues can change. The Perfume Studio experience page and your booking confirmation are the things to trust on the day.

Useful links and sources

• LoveToVisit: Fragrance Design Experience Liverpool (affiliate link)
• The Perfume Studio: Fragrance Design Experience
• The Perfume Studio: Liverpool
• Culture Liverpool: Fragrance Design Experience
• Merseytravel
• Merseyrail