No more catfish! Millennials are so sick of dating apps they're going back to 90s trend of speed dating

While singles are spoiled for choice on dating apps, many have begun to drift away from nonstop swiping towards age-old ways of meeting people in real life. 

Millennials are now increasingly trying to find romance through speed dating or singles mixers rather than on their phone, where ghosting and romance scams have become extremely popular. 

This shift comes following the end of the Covid-19 pandemic - which had left many with dating app fatigue and desperate for a human connection. 

According to data from ticketing platform Eventbrite, attendance at in-person dating events in the US has grown 42 percent in 2023 from 2022.

Game-based dating events grew by 163 percent and athletic dating events such as pickleball and spin classes saw a 135 percent rise on the platform last year. 

Millennials are now increasingly trying to find romance through speed dating or singles mixers rather than on their phone, where ghosting and romance scams have become extremely popular. (Pictured: Blake Parizeau asks an icebreaker question to Ozy Gokyurek)

This shift has most notably been seen after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic - which had left many with dating app fatigue and desperate for a human connection

Maria Avgitidis, CEO of matchmaking company Apage Match told CNN: 'The number one complaint I hear is that people are experiencing dating app fatigue.

'We have to go back to dating like it's 1988.'

Avgitidis also noted that return of in-person dating events is creating a resurgence of 'third spaces' that existed before apps where people could spontaneously get to know each other. 

'In-person events are mimicking as if you met through a friend. It's really hard to catch a vibe via text, and a lot of pressure on first dates when you have eliminated the time together before,' the CEO said. 

Many participants have also begun to document their experience and shared what happens at such events. 

Ally Ledford, a California based TikToker detailed her experience at an event last month in a series of videos and explained why she decided to participate. 

She said that she was hopeful about finding a partner at the event or simply meeting a group of women and making new friends. 

Ledford told her viewers that the organizers had sent an email that detailed what was going to happen at the event. 

Ally Ledford, a California based TikToker detailed her experience at an event last month in a series of videos and explained why she decided to participate

'The email said that there was going to be a first block of dating, where you should expect to meet five to seven single people and that first block is like an hour. 

'I'm not good at math so I'm not even going to try to figure out how much that is with each person. Best guess, it's like 10 minutes with each person.

'After the first block of dating, there's going to be a 45 minute break where you can get another drink or talk to anyone who is not one of your matches for the night. 

'Then they're going to have a second block of speed dating that goes on for about an hour where again you are supposed to talk to five to seven matches. 

'And then at the end of the night, you submit a card with everybody you're interested in written on it, I guess. 

The next day, they email you a list of everybody who said they were interested in you even if wasn't mutual.' 

In a video shot at the event, she said that she had met with 14-15 people and described it as 'fun' and later went into detail about her conversations.  

In a video shot at the event, she said that she had met with 14-15 people and described it as 'fun' and later went into detail about her conversations

TikToker and comedian, Robyn Schall also shared a video explaining what had happened at a speed dating event she attended and why she thought it was 'mean'

TikToker and comedian, Robyn Schall also shared a video explaining what had happened at a speed dating event she attended and why she thought it was 'mean'.

Schall told her viewers that she was handed a scorecard to rank her dates and also explained the process.

The scorecard had five markers: Definitely fancy a go, One more drink maybe, Not really my cup of tea, Oh dear never mind, Never in a million years. 

She also said that she met with a 'narcissistic' love and relationship coach who told her that she had 'child-bearing hips' and complimented her smile. 

But despite a massive difference in experiences, millennials are still opting to meet people in person. 

Anwar White, a Montreal-based dating coach told the Washington Post that he has seen a massive decline in the number of dates his clients have set up through dating apps.

'I'm the type of dating coach that has been pumping these dating apps. But just last month, I told my clients: "We're not doing dating apps any more. We're going outside. We’re touching grass. We're talking to men",' he told the publication. 

The scorecard had five markers: Definitely fancy a go, One more drink maybe, Not really my cup of tea, Oh dear never mind, Never in a million years

 Anwar White, a Montreal-based dating coach said he has seen a massive decline in the number of dates his clients have set up through dating apps

 In recent times, multiple users have reported being scammed out of their money after talking to people online 

And data seems to back White's statement. 

Match Group, which is the owner of Tinder, Hinge and other dating apps has reportedly lost 80 percent of their value since they hit a peak in 2021. 

Bumble has also seen a 80 percent fall in value since going public in three years ago. 

But this drift away from online dating is not only due to dating app fatigue. In recent times, multiple users have reported being scammed out of their money after talking to people online.

Last year, a recently divorced mom-of-three revealed how she lost her entire 401(K) to a scammer she met on Tinder after he convinced her to invest in bogus cryptocurrency schemes.

Rebecca Holloway, 42, was coming out of a messy second marriage when she was swindled out of more than $100,000 by fraudsters posing as a French entrepreneur called 'Fred'. 

She is the third victim to come forward in the past year about a cruel scam known as 'pig butchering' - whereby victims are effectively 'fattened up' with a fake romantic relationship before being 'butchered' by fraudulent investment advice.  

Tech executive Shreya Datta, 37, and single mom Kate, 41 both revealed they lost $450,000 and $80,000 respectively in an eerily similar rouse. In all, the three women have handed over half a million dollars to scammers. 

Rebecca Holloway (pictured) revealed how she lost her entire 401(K) to a scammer she met on Tinder after he convinced her to invest in bogus cryptocurrency schemes

Holloway shared exchanges between her and 'Fred' exclusively with Dailymail.com 

Tech executive Shreya Datta, 37  revealed she lost $450,000 in an eerily similar rouse 

Kate, 41, who used a pseudonym for the piece, lost $80,000 to a 'pig butchering' scam 

Officials say the con is exploding across the US, with Secret Service agents admitting they were seeing 'a ton' of cases. The body is responsible for 'safeguarding' America's financial and payment systems and regularly probes high-value fraud cases.

Speaking exclusively to Dailymail.com, Holloway said: 'Single women approaching middle-age are so vulnerable. 

'We have money but we might not have met the right guy yet. And suddenly this good-looking man starts talking to you and you're excited. 

'Looking back, the signs are so obvious. But at the time you want to believe it's real.'

The 'pig butchering' con is long-winded and sees the scammer engage in a months-long relationship to build up trust.

Crooks often allow victims to withdraw money easily from the investment app in the beginning - but once they have invested heavily they will lose this option.

Data from the FBI's Internet Crimes Complaint Center (IC3) shows cryptocurrency scams are the fastest growing type of investment fraud.

In all victims reported losses of $2.57 billion last year, up by over 183 percent on 2021.