Love on the Run: How Americans Find the Perfect Match

Now that Valentine’s Day has passed, we can turn our attention to the travel = love equation and explore if finding an ideal mate on the road is really possible. We thank Princess Cruise Lines, a leader in love on the high seas thanks to the iconic Love Boat TV series, for sharing their fun survey.

A Message in a Bottle

According to the 2015 "Princess Cruises Outlook On Love: The Soulmate Survey*," more than 36% of the 1,000 Americans surveyed say they haven’t found their soulmate, yet 76% of Americans believe there is a soulmate for everyone –- with Millennials leading the positive charge at 84%.

So, how does someone find that one true love?

Chance Encounters Don't Always Pan Out

On average, Americans report experiencing four relationships before finding true love. But when it happens, 65% feel that a person knows right away that they’ve found their soulmate. Even more Millennials – 72% – believe in love at first sight.

The most popular reported places to look for a lifetime partner were social media or dating sites (43%), at work (42%), and at bars and clubs (35%).

Only 30% of those surveyed said they had looked for a true love while traveling.

However, since a whopping 95% of people in a relationship said their current partner is their soulmate, and we assume they may travel together, we attribute this factor to the poor turnout for travel as a potential match-making experience.

Izumi Japanese Spa on the Diamond Princess

Take Chances and Maybe You'll Get Lucky

Perhaps not surprisingly, 38% of respondents regretted not introducing themselves to that possible mate on a chance encounter. Could it have been the flight attendant or surf instructor or local guide at their destination?

What about hot tub mates? We must commend Princess for adding one of the most romantic water features we've ever seen to the Diamond Princess, their ship serving the Japanese market. The huge Izumi Japanese Bath seen above is the only one like it on Western ships. This section of the deck includes a variety of whirlpools, a hydrotherapy pool, unusual saunas and a variety of showers (only the outdoors one is unisex.) Our favorite? The massaging waterfall.

Remember, spring break is the time to plan a fun and loving vacation. We want to share Family Travel Forum's pick of cruises and other spring break opportunities to refresh and expand the relationships in your life.

And let us know how it goes!


* Methodology for the 2015 Survey:
The Princess Cruises Outlook on Love Report: The Soulmate Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 1,000 nationally representative U.S. adults ages 18+, between January 26 and February 2, 2015, using an email invitation and an online survey.