Ranking the UK’s Most Engagement Friendly Cities for Popping the Question

For many people, asking the question at the right time and choosing the right place to do it is almost as important as the wedding day itself. 

If you’re planning a proposal and want to be sure that it’s everything your partner dreamed of, our study reveals the most engagement-friendly cities in the UK to ask that all important question. 

Taking a seed list of 24 of the largest cities in the UK we scored each city based on the number of engagement images tagged on Instagram, plus other factors such as the average hotel rate, number of restaurants, percentage of rainfall, and the number of romantic things to do. 

Using a weighted ranking system, we assigned a score to each city. This took into account the factors described above, revealing the UK’s most engagement-friendly cities.  

The Most Engagement Friendly Destinations in the UK For Popping the Question, Revealed

 

London tops the list as the most engagement friendly city in the UK for popping the question. The city had the highest number of hashtags on Instagram with the tag #londonengagement being used 9,696 times. The city scored an impressive 40 out of 50 in the overall study. 

In second position was Birmingham scoring 35 out of 50 with the hashtag #birminghamengagement being used 1,273 times on Instagram. Followed by Edinburgh, Leicester, and Sheffield in third, fourth and fifth positions, respectively. 

 

The Top 10 Cities for Popping the Question Ranked: 

1. London – 40
2. Birmingham – 35
3. Edinburgh – 33
4. Leicester – 29
5. Sheffield – 29
6. Newcastle – 28
7. Manchester – 27
8. Liverpool – 27
9. Leeds – 27
10. Nottingham – 27

The Best Cities to Pop the Question Based on the Number of Restaurants

The UK’s capital city, London took the top spot once more for the number of restaurant options for that pre or post engagement candlelight dinner. The London restaurant scene is thriving with around 19,594 eateries to choose from. 

 

The Top Ten Cities for Restaurant options Ranked: 

1. London – 19,594
2. Manchester – 2,595
3. Birmingham – 1,943
4. Edinburgh – 1,870
5. Glasgow – 1,864
6. Leeds – 1,673
7. Liverpool – 1,530
8. Bristol – 1,260
9. Sheffield – 1,235
10. Brighton – 1,131

The North West city of Manchester takes the second position within our study with around 2,595 restaurants to plan the perfect proposal popping setting around. 

Hotel Rates Around the UK, Ranked 

A hotel stay for two is, in its very nature, romantic. A weekend or night away from normality is always refreshing but when you are planning to pop the question the hotel is even more important whether you want to go luxury or stay within a specific budget. 

Our study outlines the average hotel rate in each of the 24 cities across the UK to help you decide which location best suits your budget needs. 

 

UK Cities Ranked by the Highest Average Hotel Rate: 

1. London – £135
2. Brighton – £122
3. Edinburgh – £114
4. York – £113
5. Manchester – £104
6. Liverpool – £104
7. Cardiff – £101
8. Belfast – £98
9. Bristol – £93
10. Portsmouth – £90

London took the top spot for the most expensive average hotel rate in the UK. Followed by Brighton, Edinburgh, York, and Manchester in second, third, fourth and fifth positions, respectively. 

UK Cities Ranked by the Lowest Average Hotel Rate: 

1. Hull – £56
2. Aberdeen – £57
3. Derby – £62
4. Coventry – £67
5. Sheffield – £69
6. Leicester – £72
7. Nottingham – £75
8. Birmingham – £77
9. Plymouth – £77
10. Newcastle – £79

Hull was revealed to be home to the cheapest average hotel rate in the UK. Followed by Aberdeen, Derby and Coventry. 

Top UK Cities for Rainfall Percentage Per Year, Revealed 

You’ve been planning this proposal down to every last detail. You’ve got the ring, you’ve double-checked for an ideal proposal date, and you’ve made dinner reservations to celebrate. But one detail we can’t control is the great British weather and in an instance your epicly planned proposal is now threatened by rain.

Luckily, our study reveals the UK destinations that are least and most likely to rain by looking at how many inches of rainfall each city gets per year. 

 

Top 10 Cities with the Least Amount of Rainfall: 

1. London – 22.97
2. Leicester – 24.40
3. York – 24.40
4. Coventry – 25.10
5. Nottingham – 25.50
6. Newcastle – 25.80
7. Hull – 26.10
8. Derby – 27.30
9. Leeds – 27.40
10. Brighton – 27.40

If rainfall will dampen your proposal plans, check out the above UK cities for the perfect proposal destination as you’ll be less likely to get a pour down as you ask the all important question. 

 

UK Cities With the Highest Percentage of Rainfall: 

1. Glasgow – 46.10
2. Swansea – 45
3. Cardiff – 39
4. Plymouth – 38.60
5. Belfast – 38.40
6. Portsmouth – 32.20
7. Bristol – 32.20
8. Manchester – 31.90
9. Liverpool – 31.30
10. Southampton – 30.50

If you’ve got a romantic outdoor proposal planned try to avoid these UK cities as they see the highest amount of rainfall each year or try to plan the proposal in the spring and summer months.

Top UK Cities Ranked by the Number of Romantic Activities 

Even if you’re 100% sure your partner will say yes proposing can be quite a daunting experience. If you truly want to sweep your partner off their feet you should plan the proposal in the UK cities with the most romantic activity options recognised by Tripadviser. 

 

The Best UK Cities for the Most Amount of Romantic Activities: 

1. London – 1,048
2. Edinburgh – 285
3. Glasgow – 149
4. Liverpool – 145
5. Birmingham – 113
6. Belfast – 112
7. Manchester – 110
8. Bristol – 99
9. York – 93
10. Leeds – 82

London takes the top spot with the most romantic activities available recognised by Tripadvisor. The capital has a whopping 1,048 romantic activities to choose from. Followed by the Scottish cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow. 

David Allen from Purely Diamonds commented on the results of the study:  

“A wedding proposal is one of life’s most memorable moments but for anyone planning to propose we know it can be stressful. First, you have to make sure you and your partner are really ready, then you have to find the perfect ring to pop the question with. And finally, most importantly, you must decide where the proposal will take place. There are endless options when it comes to places to propose, but some definitely stick out more than others.

“With many destinations further afield off limits due to continuing travel restrictions and quarantine rules this study keeps the locations closer to home. 

“The study spans the UK from the hustle and bustle of the capital city to the quiet easy going cities they all have something to offer, depending on what you place importance on for the perfect proposal. 

“So, if you’re planning to pop the question this year or wait a little longer. Many of the top scoring cities in this study have a few things in common. They have plenty of romantic attractions, a great foodie scene and plenty of hotel rate options.” 

Methodology: 

Taking a seed list of 24 of the largest cities in the UK we scored each city based on the number of engagement images tagged on Instagram, plus other factors such as the average hotel rate, number of restaurants, percentage of rainfall, and the number of romantic things to do. 

Using a weighted ranking system, we assigned a score to each city. This took into account the factors described above,  revealing the UK’s most engagement friendly cities.  

The 24 cities used: 

London, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Leicester, Newcastle, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham, York, Brighton, Bristol, Hull, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Coventry, Derby, Belfast, Plymouth, Southampton, Cardiff, Portsmouth, and Swansea. 

 

Sources: 

https://www.which.co.uk/media/popup/uk-cities-large-2020, https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/, https://en.climate-data.org/europe/united-kingdom-213/, https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/2011censuspopulationandhouseholdestimatesfortheunitedkingdom,  https://www.instagram.com/