Love is in the air as Cupid’s favourite day approaches. Now, as the world has begun to open up again following lockdowns and restrictions, this Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to celebrate the special people in our lives.
As Will Smith says in the underrated romantic comedy Hitch, “Life is not the amount of breaths you take, it's the moments that take your breath away”. So, here are five Google resources you can use to plan the perfect Valentine’s Day and show your significant other the love and appreciation they deserve:
- Book a romantic getaway
With several countries and airlines recently announcing an ease in travel restrictions from South Africa, Valentine’s Day is the perfect excuse to spoil yourself and your significant other with a dream trip to a romantic destination. Make this Valentine’s extra special and explore the best locations for a couple’s escape, find the best flights, hotels, vacation rentals, and romantic activities you can do with your partner using Google Travel which can help you easily plan every aspect of your getaway.
- Find the perfect spot for an unforgettable date night
Looking to treat your partner to a candlelit dinner, a romantic picnic in the park, or a night out at the movies but don’t know where to go that’s outside of your usual stomping grounds? With Google Maps you can find new places, restaurants and experiences right at your fingertips using features such as the Explore tab which provides you with a list of local locations and activities to choose from. Narrow down your search by using the search bar. Once you’ve found what you’re looking for you can use the star rating for that location, find its distance from where you are, locate opening and closing times, as well as photos and reviews from people who have visited before it. You can then save that location and select it on the day to easily navigate the best routes that will get you there on time without hitting traffic or congestion.
- Prepare an intimate evening with your distanced partner
Unfortunately, whether it be because of work or you’re just in a long distance relationship, you might not be able to be with your significant other on Valentine’s Day. But, being apart on the most romantic day of the year doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate the day with them at all. With video-conferencing platforms like Google Meet you can video chat with your better half and spend some quality time together, even while you’re apart. If you want to go the extra mile to make your video call special, you can liaise with their friends or family to set up some rose petals, candles, food and drinks to create a romantic atmosphere where they are in time for your special call.
- Set the mood with an enchanting (or passionate) playlist
If you want to set the right mood on Valentine’s Day, then you need to create a romantic ambience and nothing does this better than music. But, nothing takes you out of the mood faster than when the wrong song plays. To make sure you’ve set up the right atmosphere, for the day or night, whether you’re on your way out or having a romantic night in, create a playlist on YouTube Music by simply opening YouTube, find and click on the video you want to add, select save under the video and click on “create new playlist”. You can then name your new playlist and make it either public or private and easily add new videos to your playlist from the dropdown menu. YouTube Music also allows you to collaborate on a playlist with someone and this could be a nice activity for the two of you.
- Get the perfect gift to show your affection
No Valentine’s Day is complete without a gift for your sweetheart. Whether you’re simply looking to get your other half some chocolates and flowers, or something a little more extravagant to spoil them, you can quickly find the perfect gift at the best price on Google Shopping - even if you’ve forgotten and need to get something for them at the last minute!
If Google Search Trends are anything to go by, it's clear that South Africans love love from these top trending Valentine’s Day-related search trends for the past year.
| Top trending search terms on love in the past year | Top trending search terms on Valentine’s Day in the past year |
|
|
| Top trending questions on love in the past year | Top trending questions on Valentine’s Day in the past year |
|
|
Search trends information is gleaned from data collated by Google based on what South Africans have been searching for. Google processes more than 40 000 search queries every second. This translates to more than a billion searches per day and 1.2 trillion searches per year worldwide. ‘Top searches’ indicate searches that topped Google’s charts while ‘Most searched’ queries are the most popular terms for the past 15 years, ranked in order by volume of searches. Live Google search trends data is available at https://www.google.co.za/trends/hottrends#pn=p40
About Google
Google's mission is to organise the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Through products and platforms like Search, Maps, Gmail, Android, Google Play, Chrome, and YouTube, Google plays a meaningful role in the daily lives of billions of people and has become one of the most widely-known companies in the world. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.
For more information, visit our Google Africa Blog: google-africa.blogspot.com. You can also follow Google's Africa team on Twitter: twitter.com/googleafrica.
