Name: Wanderlove.
Age: Originally coined by the dating app Bumble in 2022 to describe a trend predicted for 2023.
Appearance: Perhaps finally here in 2026.
Is it when your date gets lost – allegedly – on their way to meet you? Because that can happen. Put simply, it’s falling in love while on holiday.
I guess that can happen, too. More specifically, it is the condition of being open to romance while travelling.
As opposed to wanderlust – being open to sex while travelling? Wanderlust actually means a lust for travel, not travel for lust, but you’ve got the idea.
Do people actually plan their holidays around falling in love at their destination? According to a Bumble survey, 53% of its users are hoping for a summer holiday romance.
Seriously? Why? Well, also according to Bumble, the same percentage say they feel more attractive on holiday.
They’re fooling themselves. Nevertheless, a third of them use dating apps to meet people while travelling alone.
I think travel ought to provide, if nothing else, a break from dating apps. That’s because you’re living in 2022. Wake up.
So when we say wanderlove, what we’re really talking about is a hookup in an Airbnb with someone who isn’t from your home town? Perhaps, but it’s also possible that wanderlove could be the start of a long-distance relationship.
Ugh, I know how those work – a brief fling, an expensive visit apiece and then a tacit acknowledgment of defeat. It needn’t be that way, if your love is strong.
Just like those liqueurs you try on holiday and then bring home – shorn of their local context, they’re just cloying. Actually, long-distance relationships have roughly the same success rate as regular relationships – about 60%.
How can that be? Because they require the same things: commitment, trust, honesty and compromise.
Plus, one advantage of a long-distance partner is hardly ever having to see them. Anyway, we’re not necessarily looking for anything long-term – more than half of Bumble users say that dating while abroad is a fun way to learn about a new culture.
I suppose I can see the appeal of having sex with a stranger who knows which restaurants are good. It sounds as if someone’s coming down with a case of wanderlove …
Maybe, but I need to know how long the holiday romance will last, so I can choose the appropriate airport car park – long stay, short stay or mid stay? Love is crazy … but mid stay should cover most eventualities.
Do say: “I love you despite – or perhaps due to – not being able to understand a word you say.”
Don’t say: “I live in Reading, but this summer I’ll be looking for love in Farnborough.”
