RANKED: The Most Romantic Cities in the UK
Cobbled streets, riverside walks, rustic alleyways… Certain places just have a certain je ne sais quoi.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day, we’ve rated UK cities on different factors when it comes to love, dating and affectionate gestures, revealing the most romantic cities of 2022.
Engagements
Belfast gets engaged more than any other city
There’s something in the air in Belfast. No other city is popping the big question as much as the Northern Ireland capital.
| Ranking | City | Interest in Engagement Rings* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belfast | 100 |
| 2 | Glasgow | 90 |
| 3 | Manchester | 79 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 79 |
| 3 | Edinburgh | 79 |
| 4 | Birmingham | 75 |
| 5 | London | 74 |
| 6 | Leeds | 73 |
| 7 | Sheffield | 62 |
*Based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 to 1/14/22, with 100 being the most interest a location can show and 0 the least.
Valentine’s Day
Lovers in Liverpool are making the most Valentine’s Day plans
Cupid has been busiest in Liverpool this Valentine’s Day. Known for its culture and beautiful architecture, the city shows more interest in Valentine’s Day than any other location.
| Ranking | City | Interest in Valentine’s Day* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 100 |
| 2 | Stoke-on-Trent | 98 |
| 3 | Manchester | 94 |
| 4 | Belfast | 86 |
| 5 | Birmingham | 83 |
| 5 | Leicester | 83 |
| 6 | Cardiff | 82 |
| 7 | Sheffield | 75 |
| 8 | Glasgow | 70 |
*Based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 to 1/14/22, with 100 being the most interest a location can show and 0 the least.
Flowers
Sheffield sends more bouquets than any other city
For couples in Sheffield, nothing says ‘I love you’ quite like the gift of flowers. From delicate lilies to passionate red roses and fragrant peonies, online interest in flowers is higher in Sheffield than any other location in the UK.
| Ranking | City | Interest in Flowers* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sheffield | 100 |
| 2 | Bristol | 98 |
| 3 | Stoke-on-Trent | 97 |
| 3 | Cardiff | 97 |
| 4 | Leicester | 95 |
| 4 | Burnham | 95 |
| 5 | Birmingham | 89 |
| 5 | Glasgow | 89 |
| 6 | Manchester | 86 |
| 7 | Belfast | 80 |
| 7 | Leeds | 80 |
*Based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 to 1/14/22, with 100 being the most interest a location can show and 0 the least.
Dating
Portsmouth swipes right more than any other romantic city in the UK
Portsmouth is the UK’s dating capital. Online interest in dating is higher in Portsmouth than anywhere else, indicating residents are keen to put themselves out there and meet new people in pursuit of finding the one.
| Ranking | City | Interest in Dating* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portsmouth | 100 |
| 2 | Plymouth | 94 |
| 3 | Birmingham | 90 |
| 4 | Sheffield | 84 |
| 5 | Manchester | 83 |
| 5 | Belfast | 83 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 83 |
| 6 | Glasgow | 81 |
| 6 | Bournemouth | 81 |
| 7 | Burnham | 80 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 80 |
| 8 | Bristol | 77 |
| 9 | Stoke-on-Trent | 74 |
| 9 | Cardiff | 74 |
| 10 | Leicester | 72 |
*Based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 to 1/14/22, with 100 being the most interest a location can show and 0 the least.
Love
Liverpool is the most loved-up UK city
Liverpool? More like Loverpool! Residents of the city are hot on the search for love, quite literally, with online interest in the topic higher than any other UK romantic city. Aww!
| Ranking | City | Interest in Love* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 100 |
| 2 | Bradford | 64 |
| 3 | Belfast | 61 |
| 4 | Manchester | 60 |
| 5 | Stoke-on-Trent | 59 |
| 6 | Birmingham | 58 |
| 7 | Glasgow | 57 |
| 7 | Derby | 57 |
| 8 | Sheffield | 56 |
| 9 | Portsmouth | 55 |
| 9 | Plymouth | 55 |
| 9 | Cardiff | 55 |
| 9 | Leicester | 55 |
| 10 | Newcastle | 50 |
| 10 | Burnham | 50 |
| 11 | London | 49 |
*Based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 to 1/14/22, with 100 being the most interest a location can show and 0 the least.
Romantic Restaurants
Edinburgh has the most romantic restaurants
Unsurprisingly, London has the largest number of romantic restaurants. However, when it comes to the most romantic restaurants per person, Edinburgh comes out on top, offering one per 1,892 inhabitants (or perhaps we should say one per 946 couples!)
| Ranking | City | Number of Romantic Restaurants* | Romantic Restaurant to People Ratio** |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edinburgh | 268 | 1,892 |
| 2 | Newcastle | 125 | 2,328 |
| 3 | Glasgow | 220 | 2,873 |
| 4 | Leeds | 179 | 2,883 |
| 5 | Bournemouth | 68 | 2,926 |
| 6 | Liverpool | 177 | 3,333 |
| 7 | Cardiff | 106 | 3,358 |
| 8 | Belfast | 98 | 3,439 |
| 9 | Bradford | 104 | 3,548 |
| 10 | Manchester | 147 | 3,857 |
| 11 | Bristol | 150 | 3,867 |
| 12 | Plymouth | 59 | 4,068 |
| 13 | Stoke-on-Trent | 67 | 4,149 |
| 14 | Derby | 55 | 4,800 |
| 15 | London | 1,876 | 4,845 |
| 16 | Sheffield | 114 | 4,886 |
| 17 | Portsmouth | 46 | 5,413 |
| 18 | Birmingham | 180 | 6,444 |
| 19 | Leicester | 68 | 6,956 |
| 20 | Burnham | 0 | 11,630 |
*Based on the number of restaurants listed on TripAdvisor with the Romance tag.
**Based on population data from https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/cities/ and from Wikipedia.
The UK’s best romantic cities for LGBTQ+ dating
Seven of our top romantic cities have also been recognised as some of the best in the world for LGBTQ+ dating. A survey around LGBTQ+ friendly cities found that respondents consider these cities the best when it comes to factors such as LGBTQ+ clubbing, safety, rights and, of course, dating.
| Ranking | City | LGBTQ Dating Score* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 4.94 |
| 2 | Manchester | 4.54 |
| 3 | Bristol | 3.6 |
| 4 | Edinburgh | 3.09 |
| 5 | Birmingham | 2.87 |
| 6 | Liverpool | 2.69 |
| 7 | Cardiff | 2.28 |
The UK’s best romantic cities for Valentine’s Day on a budget
Lovers on a budget, head to Newcastle. The city is our top UK romance hotspot for affordable dining, with the best budget restaurant-to-people ratio.
| Ranking | City | Number of Budget Restaurants* | Budget Restaurant to People Ratio** |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Newcastle | 250 | 1,164 |
| 2 | Edinburgh | 434 | 1,168 |
| 3 | Leeds | 396 | 1,303 |
| 4 | Manchester | 372 | 1,524 |
| 5 | Bournemouth | 124 | 1,605 |
| 6 | Glasgow | 373 | 1,694 |
| 7 | Cardiff | 206 | 1,728 |
| 8 | Liverpool | 325 | 1,815 |
| 9 | Stoke-on-Trent | 152 | 1,829 |
| 10 | Plymouth | 131 | 1,832 |
| 11 | Belfast | 160 | 2,106 |
| 12 | Sheffield | 257 | 2,167 |
| 13 | Leicester | 217 | 2,180 |
| 14 | Bristol | 263 | 2,205 |
| 15 | Portsmouth | 94 | 2,649 |
| 16 | London | 3,349 | 2,714 |
| 17 | Birmingham | 376 | 3,085 |
| 18 | Derby | 83 | 3,181 |
| 19 | Burnham | 16 | 11,630 |
| 20 | Bradford | 31 | 11,903 |
*Based on the number of restaurants listed on TripAdvisor with the Cheap Eats tag.
**Based on population data from https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/cities/ and from Wikipedia.
THE RESULTS: What is the most romantic city?
(Click to enlarge)
Manchester is the UK’s most romantic city of 2022
It’s no wonder Manchester appears in the top 10 UK cities for all our romantic criteria. As any Mancunian will tell you, the city is sprawling with romantic dining hotspots, scenic walks and views, and atmospheric cocktail bars perfect for date night.
Singletons can break the ice on the first date with axe throwing at Whistle Punks (let’s hope the date goes well!) or Junkyard Golf. Manchester’s different districts – Spinningfields, Deansgate, the Northern Quarter and more – offer different vibes to spice things up no matter what relationship milestone you’ve reached. And all for a fraction of London prices!
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Method
Interest in engagement rings, Valentine’s Day, flowers, dating and love is based on Google Trends data for the UK between 1/14/21 and 1/14/22.
Romantic and budget restaurant scores are calculated by the most romantic restaurants per person based on TripAdvisor’s romantic and cheap eats filters and population data for each city from CityPopulation.de and Wikipedia.
LGBT+ data is based on Nestpick’s best LGBT cities rankings.