How far will people go for Valentine's Day?

NEW YORK, Feb. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- A study released today by Digitas, a digitally-led, global integrated brand agency, and Brandwatch, a social media monitoring and analytics company, analyzed over 1.6 million social mentions of Valentine's Day taking place on news and general media sites, blogs, forums, Facebook, and Twitter from November 2012 – February 2013. The findings reveal that more than 45,000 conversations mention travel for the holiday, suggesting that Americans are considering Valentine's Day a time to vacation away from home and no longer celebrating as just a single day affair.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130212/NY58745-INFO)

Couples, Families and Friends Are Taking Off to Other Places for the Holiday
Thirty percent of all travel-related mentions referenced traveling by air, while 37% mentioned traveling by car.  Of these two groups, the majority of conversations about air travel were about couples, while groups of friends dominated the conversations about road trips.

Domestic Travel Ranks #1, But Don't Rule Out Travel Abroad
Our study shows that 70% of people discussing Valentine's Day travel are considering visits to domestic destinations— the top five being: 1) New York, 2) San Francisco, 3) Chicago, 4) Las Vegas, and 5) Los Angeles.

While traveling within the US leads in conversations, a surprising 30% are discussing trips abroad to international destinations. The study shows that when Americans think "Valentine's Romance," their top five international destinations are: 1) Paris,  2) London, 3) Barcelona, 4) Sydney and 5) Vancouver.

Valentine's Day Celebrations Will Include Plans to be Outdoors
It also appears Americans are preparing for an active Valentine's Day. Amongst popular activities for vacationing, 42% are looking to relax at the spa as their primary Valentine's Day activity.  Of the remaining, 33% want sun and beach destinations, 21% are hitting the slopes and 4% are wine tasting.  

Despite Interest in Outdoor Activities, Hotel Spa Packages Hit It Big Online
Hotels with spas have been advertising heavily online, and our study shows that their online investments are paying off—and not just to the couples celebrating Valentine's Day. Singles want hotels with spas as well, and for every four mentions interested in a relaxing destination, either by singles or by a couple, at least one included a reference to a coupon or deal.

This infographic was annotated using ThingLink to give you an enhanced viewing experience.  For complete details, see the annotated infographic on the study at http://bit.ly/14Q9U90   

About Brandwatch
Brandwatch is a leading provider of social media monitoring and analytics solutions.  More than 600 global brands and agencies use Brandwatch, relying on a broad range of social coverage and highly reliable, spam-free data to monitor online conversations. As a result, organizations can glean insights around their brand interests, conduct market research, predict market trends, and more actively engage influencers, customers and prospects.

A global company, Brandwatch is headquartered in Brighton, UK and has offices in the United States and Germany.  For more information, please visit www.brandwatch.com.

Twitter: @Brandwatch | Blog: Brandwatch Blog | Facebook: Brandwatch Fan Page 

About Digitas
Digitas, a digitally-led, integrated global brand agency, builds brands for some of the foremost companies in the world. In 2012 Digitas was named OMMA Magazine's Agency of the Year and The Drum's London Integrated Agency of the Year. Digitas was also the winner of nine Cannes Lions in 2012. The agency also counts Agency of the Year honors from the Festival of Media, BtoB Magazine, and Les Agences de l'Annee, France, and has been named to the Advertising Age Digital A-List among its many awards.

Digitas also operates the brand content platform, The Third Act:, producers of first and most well renowned event on digital content, The NewFront and Prodigious Worldwide, the world's only standalone, global digital productions company. With sister agencies Starcom MediaVest, ZenithOptimedia, Denuo and Razorfish, Digitas is a member of Publicis Groupe's VivaKi—a global digital knowledge and resource center that leverages the combined scale of the autonomous operations of its members to develop new services, new tools, and new partnerships.

Publicis Groupe [listed on the Euronext Paris Exchange - FR0000130577 - and part of the CAC 40 index] is the world's third largest communications group. With activities spanning 104 countries on five continents, Publicis Groupe offers local and international clients a complete range of advertising services. Web site: www.publicisgroupe.com

www.digitas.com| Twitter: @Digitas | Facebook: Digitas Fan Page | Blog: Digitas Distillery

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CONTACT: Drew Darnbrough, +1-347-982-0468, [email protected]

SOURCE Brandwatch; Digitas