Illinois Couples: Valentine’s Day 2022 Is A Lot Pricier

Prices on things are up across the board, Illinois' job market is one of the least recovered since COVID-19, and 330,000 Illinoisans are still out of work due to state-mandated lockdowns which have caused more than 1 million Illinois residents to lose their jobs.

And...uh...well, happy Valentine's Day.

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Inflation Has Hit The Highest Level Since 1982, And That Means Virtually Everything Is More Expensive Here In Illinois And Across The Country

Making matters worse, as IllinoisPolicy.org reports, is that while inflation is at 7.5%, wages in Illinois only grew by 3.6% in 2021.

Here are some of the things that many of us would consider to be somewhat intrinsic parts of Valentine's Day, and the percentage (based on the Consumer Price Index) those things have gone up since Valentine's Day of 2021:

Men's Suits/Sport Coats: 13.6%
Women's Dresses: 11.1%
Delivery Services: 9.0%
Food At Home: 7.4%
Full Service Dining: 7.1%
Jewelry: 6.5%
Movie or Theater Tickets: 5.5%
Candy: 4.8%
Served Alcohol (as opposed to alcohol purchased for home use): 4.2%
Flowers: 4.0%

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Unless You're Planning On Walking Everywhere With Your Valentine, There Are Other Costs To Consider, Too

According to the IllinoisPolicy.org report, used vehicle prices are 40.5%, and new vehicle prices are up 12.2%. You'll need fuel for your vehicle, and that's gone up 40% from last year as well.

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If you're thinking about a nice romantic getaway trip out of town over the weekend, Illinois Policy says that can be a good news/bad news scenario:

Good news: airfare prices are only up 4.9%, but that’s just about where the good news ends. The hotel? That’ll be an additional 23.6%. Rental car to get around? Prices are up by 29.3%.

One of America's Best Cabins for a Romantic Valentine's Day Getaway is in Wisconsin

Looking to get away for Valentine's Day? This is one of the best around and it's not far from Rockford.

LOOK: Here are the best lake towns to live in

Many of the included towns jump out at the casual observer as popular summer-rental spots--the Ozarks' Branson, Missouri, or Arizona's Lake Havasu--it might surprise you to dive deeper into some quality-of-life offerings beyond the beach and vacation homes. You'll likely pick up some knowledge from a wide range of Americana: one of the last remaining 1950s-style drive-ins in the Midwest; a Florida town that started as a Civil War veteran retirement area; an island boasting some of the country's top public schools and wealth-earners right in the middle of a lake between Seattle and Bellevue; and even a California town containing much more than Johnny Cash's prison blues.