New poll reveals what Brits really want when it comes to proposals
Location is more important than the ring
1 in 2 people would like to be proposed to at a theme park or well-known landmark
1 in 10 would like to be proposed to at work
Valentine’s Day is one of the worst days to propose
Your vision of the perfect wedding proposal is probably wrong. The perfect proposal should cost £1,250 (excluding the ring) and take place in a sentimental location with 4 people to witness the occasion, strictly avoiding crowds and the bended knee tradition. This is all according to a recent survey revealing what Brits really want when it comes to the big question.
But those who are planning to pop the question on Valentine’s Day are advised to avoid the clichéd holiday – 41% of people declared the 14th Feb as one of the worst days to propose, along with Christmas Day, your partner’s birthday or somebody else’s wedding.
The research was undertaken by the team at worldwide attraction ticket provider,
AttractionTix.co.uk, who collated the findings on their website during a study of the best and worst holiday destinations to propose. See the full infographic here: www.attractiontix.co.uk/blog/2017/01/30/best-places-to-propose/
Despite what we think about spending money on the engagement ring, the ring (31%) was voted to be not as important as the location (34%). Surprisingly, one in 12 Britons (8%) stated that the ‘photo opportunities’ were more important than anything else, as long as they have something to post to Facebook afterwards!
Top 5 most important factors for the perfect proposal:
Location (35%)
The ring (31%)
The speech (16%)
The audience (11%)
Photo opportunities (8%)
When it comes to locations for such an important life event, a sentimental location, such as where you first met, topped the list with 65% of respondents agreeing it’s the most ideal spot for a proposal, followed closely by a famous landmark (58%). The third-most popular location was a theme park (51%) suggesting at least half of the country likes a bit of adrenaline in their proposals.
5 most popular places to propose:
A sentimental location (65%)
A famous landmark (58%)
A theme park (51%)
A beach (39%)
A sporting event (19%)
5 least popular places to propose:
At a surprise engagement party (4%)
At home (7%)
At work (9%)
At a family event (14%)
A restaurant (17%)
Amazingly, almost one in ten respondents (9%) stated that their ideal proposal would take place in the workplace. Perhaps this is the result of office romances, and the workplace in front of your colleagues might just be sentimental. A mere 4% would appreciate the rather confident gesture of organising an engagement party to host the proposal as well as the celebrations all at once, assuming their partner says ‘yes’.
December (24%), February (16%) and January (13%) came out as the best months to pop the question, with sun (48%) and, perhaps surprisingly, light snow (29%) leading the way for preferred weather. There are plenty of reasons to feel close to your partner over the special holidays but it seems Christmas and Valentine’s Day are just too cliché and overdone for the British public.
The most off-putting factors were also revealed in the poll, giving some indication of what hopeful romantics should look to avoid.
Things that would put Brits off accepting a proposal:
Too many people watching (35%)
The speech not being romantic/thoughtful enough (31%)
A cheesy location (25%)
Huge crowds are to be avoided at all costs – the football team you both support or the restaurant of your first meal might be sentimental but in front of a crowd is a popular turnoff.
When asked “How much money would you like your partner to spend on a proposal?” the average answer came in at £1,250 excluding the ring, suggesting that people like a splurge on their special moment! When it comes to the all-important proposal speech and how long it should be, results varied from a meagre 5 seconds to a whopping 20 minutes, with the average coming in at 2 minutes 30 seconds. Considering that a subpar speech was the second most off-putting thing in a proposal, this needs to be completely perfect. No pressure – play it safe with a couple of minutes prepared!
Cindy Lau, Love location specialist at AttractionTix.co.uk, commented:
“Well, it’s not good news for those planning to pop the question this Valentine’s Day! But as February still came out as one of the most popular months to propose, we wanted to investigate what we really want when it comes to this big life moment.
It’s perfectly understandable to want good pictures of the proposal so that’s why we wanted to help lovebirds choose a proposal location that offers the best scenery and photo opportunities. Personally, I’d love to be proposed to on a rollercoaster but that’s just me!”
If you still want to propose on Valentine’s Day, (despite the warnings), AttractionTix.co.uk has supplied a map of the best and worst places to pop the question based on the information the polls supplied, including scenery, crowding and level of cliché.
Top places to pop the question:
1. The Conservatory Gardens (New York)
2. Place de Furstenberg (Paris)
3. Taormina (Sicily)
