Steamy summer nights: looking back on holiday sex

Are you always nostalgic about the steamy summer nights you experienced as a teenager on holiday without the parents for the first time? Does your sex life reach its peak every summer? Holiday sex can be amazing! But why does it feel so special?

Holiday sex: why can it feel so special?

Sex changes with the seasons. In winter, we crawl under the covers and love staying cuddled up with our lover in bed. In summer, sex is sweatier, sexier, and more likely to take place outdoors. Research by Villanova University shows that the months of June and July have the highest number of sex-related online searches. And late summer and early autumn are peak times for STD diagnoses. But why do so many people especially enjoy holiday sex? Here are a number of reasons.

The sun helps

It’s a scientific fact: the sun helps you get holiday sex. Sunshine reduces the level of melatonin in your body. Melatonin blocks your sex hormones, but with the increased sunlight in summer, it has less of an effect. Sunlight also improves people’s mood and makes them more interested in sex.

Our clothes are more revealing

Of course, we like to walk around in airy clothes more often during summer. You can forget your winter coat and hat and think instead about dresses and airy tops, in which you can feel the sultry summer wind on your skin. Seeing more of each other’s bodies makes us think about sex more quickly.

You have more frequent and longer interactions

While we tend to retreat into our warm homes in winter, we’re outside more and longer during the summer. We’re more likely to exercise together, grab drinks, go to a party or festival and, of course, go on holiday. Because of this longer interaction with one another, it’s not surprising that people generally get more in the mood.

Looking back on holiday sex: reliving your experiences

It’s perfectly normal to think back to exciting adventures and to get excited about them again. For example, when you think back to sex with that handsome bouncer on the beach at Lloret de Mar. Or that time you had wild sex in a tent, which you’re sure your camping neighbours must’ve heard. You might like to think back on things and that’s completely fine. You can think of reminiscing as a kind of fantasy, but this time it’s about something you’ve actually done.

Another sexy thing about holiday sex is you often let your guard down more. This may be because the boundaries are a little blurred, perhaps due to alcohol or drugs. But you may also simply be less embarrassed, especially if it’s a one-night stand. You don’t know the other person anyway, so why should you worry about what they think of you? A holiday romance can make your wildest fantasies come true.

Reading tip: Ten reasons why a holiday fling is a great idea

Your holiday sex bucket list

Are you travelling soon and already excited about some exciting holiday sex? Put these things on your sex bucket list!

• Do it under the stars. Find a cottage in a quiet place where you can make love without being disturbed. A cabin or a tiny house in the woods, for example. Take a blanket outside and enjoy being together.
• Skinny dipping. Have you ever swum naked? In the swimming pool or in the sea? Skinny dipping is a great way to push your sexual boundaries. You’ll find  the water on your bare skin very arousing, especially on your most sensitive spots.
• Sex on the beach. It can feel a little uncomfortable, but if you keep your blanket or towel free of sand, it can also be an incredibly sexy experience. You can have sex on the beach in the dunes, for example, preferably in the evening when no one else is around. Do be aware that, in some countries, having sex in public is illegal.

Summer: ’tis the season for cheating

Unfortunately, summer does not have only advantages. If we’re to believe relationship experts, summer is also the ultimate season for cheating. This is because we associate summer with holidays, fun and adventure, just like in the old days when we were at school. And for some people, this equates to cheating and not thinking about the partner who stayed at home. “Some men think it’s okay to cheat just because it’s summer,” says evolutionary psychologist Daniel Kruger. “They think: ‘Oh well, it’s just a summer fling.’ It’s like their normal life is simply on pause.” We see the same view in people who associate summer with adventure. They feel like this is the time to try something new, which releases two hormones that are, associated with arousal and sex.