Still undecided about how you're going to spend Valentine's Day this year? You're not alone! Last month, we asked hundreds of people just like you to tell us how they plan to celebrate it — if at all. The 2022 #Lubelife Valentine's Day survey included responses from over 1,500 sexually active adults, ages 18-74, living in the United States. Now that we've had time to crunch the numbers, it's time to share the results.
Staying In Or Going Out?
Let's start with the most basic of questions: Given the choice, would most people prefer staying in or going out for Valentine's Day? According to the results of this year's survey, it's nearly an even split. A slim majority — 42% — said that they preferred staying at home, while 40% preferred going out. The remaining 18% either had no preference or didn't answer the question.
These results are actually somewhat encouraging, as they match results from similar surveys conducted in the pre-pandemic era. (A 2019 Valentine's Day survey conducted by Spencer's Gifts, for example, reported 44% " stay in" and 45% "go out.") While more people may end up staying at home this year, the urge to spend a romantic mid-February night out on the town hasn't gone anywhere.
But what about people's actual plans for Valentine's Day?
The majority of the #Lubelife survey respondents — 56% — said they were planning to stay at home. While this makes the logistics of taking things to the bedroom a little easier, it's also not the romantic night out on the town that many people clearly prefer. According to our survey results, people who want a dedicated, once-a-year date night that starts somewhere other than the couch are out of luck in 2022.
Only about a fifth of respondents — 22% — said that they were definitely planning to celebrate Valentine's Day by going out. It's not hard to understand why, either. We're still in the waning days of the omicron surge, and we're also in the middle of a severe labor shortage in the service sector, with even high-end restaurants limping by with skeleton crew staffing. Neither of those is going to help set the mood for a candlelit dinner at a fancy bistro.
It's worth mentioning that 22% of survey respondents said they were "unsure" about their Valentine's Day plans. This seems fitting, as roughly 30% of participants identified as single or dating. (Only 48% of singles said they wanted to participate in the holiday this year.) There's a lot of people out there with no compelling reason to make big plans on Feb. 14th.
Date Night At Home
If most people are planning to stay in on Valentine's Day, what kind of evening would the #Lubelife survey participants actually enjoy the most? While there's an almost infinite number of potential at-home activities to consider, we decided to keep things simple and present four possibilities. These were:
- Bubble bath
- Candlelight dinner
- Movie night
- Role play
The least popular of these options turned out to be the bubble bath, only winning over 20% of respondents. Why so low? Many people view bubble baths as a strictly solo activity (although it doesn't have to be), and as a result it might not feel appropriately romantic or sexual enough for a Valentine's Day celebration.
The next most popular option was role play, winning 23% of the vote. Given that sexual roleplaying is something that tends to happen between established sex partners, and that Valentine's Day is a good excuse to try something new in the bedroom, it's encouraging to see this option rank as high as it does. (Just remember to always keep plenty of lube nearby!)
On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have the always-popular candlelit dinner. Around a quarter (24%) of those surveyed preferred this classically romantic option. There's also no reason a candlelit dinner couldn't easily evolve into one of the other choices, making this a great, all-purpose Valentine's Day activity.
This leaves movie night as the undisputed champ for the Valentine's Day stay-at-home date night. It's not exactly shocking that the most popular option is also the one that requires the least amount of effort from everyone involved. That's also not always a bad thing. It might not do much to spice up your sex life, but there are worse ways of spending an evening than snuggling up on the couch (or in bed) with someone you're into. Who knows, you might even get lucky!
In Conclusion
Of course, it's important to remember that this #Lubelife survey wasn't designed to be taken too seriously. It's not scientific research, it's a fun glimpse into a romance-themed holiday. Take all of these results with a grain of salt.
If there's one key takeaway from this survey, it's this: There are plenty of ways to celebrate Valentine's Day. From wild post-party hookups (be safe!) to straight-up ignoring the holiday entirely, there's no right way to do it. You do you. Thanks again to everyone who participated, and we'll check in again with new questions next year!
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