From Pacific Coast Highway To The 405, Match.com Singles Reveal The Truth About L.A. Dating

DALLAS, Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Match.com, the world's largest dating website, has released results of a dating survey taken by over 1,000 single residents in the City of Angels. Los Angeles offers singles the newest restaurants, star-studded clubs and beautiful beaches, but it can be tough to know where to find these hotspots, or the popular singles scene. Match.com compiled insights for all Los Angeles singles on how and where to look for their new prospective dates, and the results are in: Santa Monica is the number one place to meet and date if you're single in L.A.!

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"It's no surprise singles love Santa Monica, a city that boasts the title of 'California's Most Celebrated Beach City,'" says Whitney Casey, Relationship Expert for Match.com. "With some of the hottest new restaurants and swankiest nightlife, all located on a beautiful coastline, Santa Monica provides the perfect setting for the urban dater."

The data reveals the ins and outs of where L.A. singles hit the town in search of love, their preferred date-night chariot, which iconic L.A. date spots they love, and more. At one point, Lamborghinis might have been the sexiest bachelor car, but today, it's the Range Rover that catches a woman's eye. Although Lamar Odom and his Kardashian clan will be cheering on the L.A. Clippers, the rest of L.A. single ladies will be rooting for the Lakers come basketball season.  Timeless L.A. destination dates, like the Getty Museum, still remain supreme, as do weekend getaways in Santa Barbara.

Below are highlights from the "L.A. Dating" survey, including:

Where to Go

• Santa Monica Sizzles: Deemed the best place for singles to be, 43% of respondents said they love meeting potential dates in Santa Monica, while the neighboring community of Brentwood is deemed the worst. 43% of those surveyed also stated that hot singles reside in this section of L.A. than in any other neighborhood, and 46% of singles chose Santa Monica as their favorite neighborhood for dates.
• Highway Hang Ups: 54% of Angelenos would avoid taking the 405 highway for a date, and most singles would only date someone within a 30 minute commute.
• Timeless L.A. Dates:  33% of singles still enjoy the classic Getty Museum for a date, followed by the iconic Santa Monica Pier (27%). However, avoid the crowds at the Viper Room — less than 2% of those surveyed said that they would enjoy a date at this notorious club.
• Hottest Date Destinations: Of all of the places to go in L.A., singles still prefer to have dinner and drinks at The Grove (28%) or take in the ocean views at Malibu Beach (25%). On the flip side, less than 6% of singles would want to hike with a date to the Hollywood sign.
• Weekend Getaways: When singles need a break from their busy L.A. lives, 45% of respondents said they'd escape to Santa Barbara, followed by Catalina (14%) and Napa (13%).

What Singles Look For

• Sexiest L.A. Profession: When asked which profession had the most sex appeal, 30% of men would rather date a model or actress, followed by a personal trainer (17%). Surprisingly, L.A. females find a man who can cook more alluring than a high-powered entertainment executive (31% personal chef vs. 27% movie producer).
• Tough Love, Tough Job Market: Only 17% of L.A. women would date someone who is unemployed, but 64% of men are OK with dating someone who's currently between jobs.
• Practical Wheels Prevail: 32% of men actually preferred a date with a practical Honda Civic, followed by the environmentally friendly Toyota Prius (25%), while the majority of single women in L.A. (38%) would like to see their date pull up in a Range Rover.

High-Profile Hotties

• Sexiest L.A. B-Ballers: 42% of L.A. ladies love bachelors who play for the Lakers, followed by the Sacramento Kings at 32%. Hopefully the L.A. Clippers' upcoming season will heat up their hotness factor, since only 5% of women preferred L.A.'s less-popular basketball team players.
• Favorite Celebrity Couples: Even though Posh & Becks originally hail from England, 35% think David and Victoria Beckham have quickly turned themselves into the quintessential L.A. couple, followed by the Hollywood power couple, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson (31%). Only 7% of singles think of Ozzy and Sharon Osborne as their favorite celeb couple.

To celebrate L.A.'s dating scene and its diverse date spot favorites, Match.com's new national event platform, Stir, is hosting customized singles events throughout the month of October and will continue to host hundreds of singles events in the L.A. area throughout the year. Whether it's custom cocktails in The Grove at Mixology 101, private garden tours at The Getty, poolside partying in Santa Monica at The Shangri-La Hotel or cooking it up at Sur La Table, Match.com will continue to "stir" things up by offering plenty of diverse experiences that deliver what Angelenos enjoy most in their hometown dates. To sign up for these events, singles can become members or subscribe today at www.match.com.

For an illustrative look at L.A. single life, visit http://blog.match.com/LADating.

About Match.com:
Founded in 1995, Match.com was the original dating website and pioneer of the online dating industry. Today, 17 years later, Match.com operates leading subscription-based online dating sites in 25 countries, 8 languages and across five continents and is responsible for more dates, relationships and marriages than any other website. Match.com is an operating business of IAC (Nasdaq: IACI) and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.  For more information, visit http://www.match.com.

SOURCE Match.com