Galentine's and the Rise of the Anti-Romance Era

In light of that iconically divisive Vogue article, is having Galentine's plans far cooler than Valentine's plans in 2026?

Galentine's first began as an entirely fictional holiday in 2010 on an episode of Parks and Recreation. Amy Poehler’s notoriously chirpy yet lovable lead, Leslie Knope, first coined the term when she introduced us to her favourite day of the year, in which she and her besties ditched their men and dedicated February 13th to a day of “ladies celebrating ladies”. What began as a small sitcom joke has, however, evolved into a real world cultural phenomenon that is increasingly overshadowing the more traditional rituals of its neighbour on February 14th.

Scroll through your Instagram feed mid-February and it’s almost guaranteed you will see far more overhead shots of pink table settings and candlelit dinners with friends, than a dedicated couples date night post. Is this a part of what Chanté Joseph described as ‘heterofatalism’ in her widely discussed Vogue article, Is Having a Boyfriend Embarrassing Now? This growing disillusionment with men and modern dating appears to be something many women are feeling. Women seem to be increasingly wanting to show off their female friendships rather than just their romantic relationships. Galentine's offers the perfect chance to do that. It embraces the beauty of womanhood and platonic relationships at a time of year when romantic expectations have traditionally been forced upon us.

What is truly incredible is how this has moved beyond Instagram and Pinterest aesthetics, and fully dispersed into wider culture. Gone are the days when ‘Valentine's Meal for Two’ posters were the only ads plastered across shop windows throughout February. Now, there isn’t a city across the UK not offering at least five different ‘Galentine's Paint and Sips’ or ‘Pop Girlie Bottomless Brunches’. I cannot help but think this shift isn’t just about having fun with our gals, but more a reflection of something deeper that many women are leaning into. Valentine's Day has long felt like a chore to force romantic gestures, whereas Galentine's prioritises the ease and joy of the connection we have with our female friends. Its popularity points to a growing desire to place platonic love at the centre, rather than the margins of women’s lives.

There is something, as well, about the day literally arriving before Valentine's that feels like a symbolic reflection of the reordering of what and who is valued most. Is the growing love for Galentine's evidence that women simply aren’t prioritizing romantic love and relationships anymore because they do not serve them as much as their female friendships and platonic relationships do? Joseph arguably crystallised this wider cultural feeling in her iconic article. Perhaps it's not just as she said that it’s “fundamentally uncool to be a boyfriend-girl,” but being a girls' girl is being increasingly viewed and also felt to be far superior. For many of us it is more meaningful to spend a day, or a crafty evening, celebrating and valuing our female friendships in this new revolutionary age of girlhood.