NEW YORK — Many Americans are in denial about summer ending until they feel a chill in the air, according to new research. A survey of 2,000 Americans finds that most people don’t want the summer to end. In fact, just one in five consider the Autumnal Equinox the end of the season (22%).
Meanwhile, others accept summer is ending and some shared their favorite ways to close out the season – whether it’s going to the beach, a vacation, or an amusement park.
Other favorite ways to close out the summer include having a barbecue (32%) or a relaxing day at the park (18%). The results show that people will mostly miss the warm weather (52%) and wearing fewer clothing layers (45%) once summer says goodbye.
Conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Chinet, researchers find that half of Americans even admit they feel sad just at the thought of summer ending – which is no surprise since it’s the season people look forward to the most (40%).
More than three in five people wish summer lasted longer (63%) and a third of those wouldn’t mind if summer lasted two months longer. Americans are most likely to miss summer in the cold month of January (24%), dreaming about the comfort foods of the warm season like watermelon (43%), barbecue (37%), and ice cream (36%).
Keep the party going!
However, the party won’t stop for more than half of respondents who plan to remain in summer mode even after the season is over (54%). More than half of Americans plan to continue hosting social activities or gatherings when summer ends (55%), such as casual gatherings (60%), birthday parties (50%), or movie nights (45%).
No matter their preferences, people enjoy spending the end of summer with their loved ones. For nearly two in three (63%), ending the summer means seeing family and friends one last time, probably until the holidays roll around.
“For so many of us, summer is the time we get together in big ways and small,” says Alexis Guetzlaff, senior product and brand manager at Huhtamaki, the makers of the Chinet, in a statement. “It’s been a really hard year, so it’s no surprise that people are really valuing gathering when they can, so much more.”
Summertime is family time
The majority of Americans get to spend the most time with their friends and family during the summertime (68%) and the same amount say their favorite memories of being with their loved ones are from the summertime. Those who see their friends and family often in the summer have a tough time seeing them at other times of the year because of the cold weather (48%), conflicting schedules (44%), or because they have to keep their kids in school (44%).
When hosting their loved ones, respondents admit that they’d rather use disposable tableware instead of their dishes to have less clean-up at the end (55%), when they host a large number of guests (46%) or guests outdoors (45%).
“Regardless of what type of gathering you are hosting, the most important part is the time you get to spend together,” Guetzlaff adds. “Using disposable tableware is a great way for the hosts to spend less time worrying about clean-up and more time enjoying their company.”