Shock city named Australia's most romantic

A stroll through Paris, slow boat through Venice, subway kiss in New York or a tropical getaway are probably what spring to mind when you picture romantic destinations.

Turn your mind to our own nation, however, and you may be surprised at which destinations actually top the list.

Perhaps the sails of Sydney’s Opera House spring to mind, or the twisting alleys and dreamy coffee of Melbourne’s CBD.

It’s not the white sands of the Whitsundays or the majesty of Uluru that is a favourite for the loved up among us, however, but rather an unassuming town way south of the usual hot spots that has been crowned the beating heart of the nation.

A study by Picodi, a budget online shopping service, found that Aussies in Launceston, Tasmania are the most romantic in the nation.

The findings, based on the frequency of romantic queries and orders recorded from the locations online, concluded Tasmania’s second-biggest city was home to the most romantic Australians.

The second most romantic was a world away, right at Australia’s northern peak in harbour city Darwin, with the Queenslanders ambling in and swapping their rum for roses to nab third place in Bundaberg.

The country’s bigger cities paled in comparison, with Brisbane coming in fifth to Orange, NSW’s fourth place.

Canberra and Perth jostled for the warmer end of the spectrum at numbers 12 and 13 respectively, while Adelaide began to feel the chill of its cold-hearted residents at number 15.

Positively icy were Sydney and Melbourne, both of whom barely made the top 20 with number 19 for Sydney and 20 for Melbourne.

The nation’s stoniest hearts are found in NSW’s Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour and Queensland’s Gladstone who weighed down the list with 44th, 45th and 46th place respectively.

The study observed cities with populations above 30,000 and was based on keyword trends on Google.

If a getaway to Launceston is beginning to sound appealing, it could be a good time to book in a holiday, with Jetstar offering $50 tickets for one-way flights in May.

The research comes as Valentine’s Day gets underway across the country.

Though balloons, flowers and chocolates are sure to pepper the landscape, it’s not always fun and games as waitstaff revealed in a hilarious recount of the worst dates they have observed on the romantic holiday.

Got a story tip or just want to get in touch? Email us at lifestyle.tips@verizonmedia.com