Red roses cost roughly double in the week of 14 February. Why the surge happens, what to send instead, and the order-by dates that beat it.
Checked on
Red roses cost roughly twice as much in the second week of February as they do
in the second week of March, and the flowers are frequently not as good. That is
the single most useful fact about Valentine's Day flowers in Ireland, and it is
not a scandal. It is the visible end of a supply chain doing something difficult.
Where the surge comes from
Roses sold in Ireland in February have come from Kenya, Ecuador or Colombia,
usually by air through the Netherlands. Growers time a crop specifically for the
week of the 14th, because global demand for one flower spikes on one day and then
vanishes.
That concentration does three things. Wholesale rose prices commonly run at two
to three times their off-peak level. Airfreight capacity out of Nairobi and
Bogota is full and dearer. And because the crop is timed and picked to a
deadline, February roses are often cut a touch tighter and travel harder than
the same variety in April.
An Irish florist charging 75 euro for a dozen reds on 14 February is not
profiteering. The stems in that bunch cost multiples of what they cost in
January. The part worth knowing is that you have alternatives, and the alternatives
are genuinely better value rather than a consolation.
What that means for the two dates ahead
Valentine's Day is fixed to 14 February, so the only thing that moves is the day
of the week, and in Ireland that matters more than it should.
14 February 2027 is a Sunday. Most Irish flower delivery services run Monday
to Saturday. One relay network publishes a paid Sunday option nationwide and one
online florist covers Dublin on Sundays, and that is close to the whole of it, so
in 2027 the real delivery day is Saturday 13 February for most people. A Sunday
date also means restaurants are booked out weeks ahead and florist shops that do
open are doing so specially.
14 February 2028 is a Monday. Straightforward for delivery, and the weekend
before is the 12th and 13th, which is where a good deal of the celebrating will
happen anyway.
The order-early arithmetic
Three separate things get more expensive as the day approaches, and only one of
them is the flowers.
The bouquet itself is often tiered by date at online florists, with the 14th
priced above the 12th and 13th. The delivery is where it really bites:
standard slots go first, leaving guaranteed morning windows and express charges,
which can add fifteen to twenty-five euro to an order at Irish services. And the
choice narrows, so the thing you end up buying is not the thing you looked at.
Ten days out is the point where all three are still in your favour. That means
ordering in the first days of February for a mid-February delivery, which feels
early and is the whole trick.
If you have left it to the 13th, the cheapest workable move is usually a
same-day order placed early in the morning rather than an express upgrade in the
afternoon. Cutoffs in Dublin run latest; the rest of the country closes earlier,
and the module below carries each service's own published times.
What to send instead, with no loss of face
Tulips. In season in Ireland in February, some of them Irish grown, and
they cost a fraction of roses. They also keep growing in the vase, which people
either love or find unnerving.
Ranunculus. Rose-like, layered, and a florist's own favourite in February.
Anemones. Deep purple and red with a black centre, and about as striking as
a February flower gets.
A mixed bouquet with three roses in it. Three or five red roses among
seasonal stems costs a great deal less than twelve and looks considered rather
than ordered.
A single rose. Not a joke, and not a cheap gesture if it is a good one from
a real florist. The dozen is a marketing convention, not a rule.
There is more on rose grades, stem lengths and what the counts actually mean on
our roses page.
Letterbox flowers, used properly
Letterbox flowers are the planned option for Valentine's Day and a poor
emergency one. They come flat through the door in bud, nobody has to be home,
delivery is usually cheaper or free, and they need a day or two in water before
they look like anything.
Sent for the 12th, they are open on the 14th. Sent for the 14th, they are a box
of closed buds and a small anticlimax. The full comparison is on
letterbox flowers in Ireland.
The case for skipping the 14th
Buy the flowers on the 20th instead. They will be better, they will cost half,
and nobody in the country will be doing it.
That is not advice everyone can take. But if the two of you have been together
long enough to be pragmatic about it, moving the gesture off the peak day is the
one change that improves both the flowers and the price. Failing that, the 12th
is the cheapest day that still counts.
Where to order
Services that suit this occasion
Chosen for how they fit the moment, not for any commercial reason. The figures below were read from each service's own pages on the date shown.
Letterbox flowers
Bloom & Wild
Flowers travel in bud through the post, so nobody has to be home. They open over the following few days.
From
Not published
No starting price on the site
Delivery
Free
Free next day weekday delivery by DPD; Saturday delivery is a paid upgrade with the price shown at checkout
Same day
Not published
Next day
Not published
Weekdays by DPD; no Republic of Ireland cutoff published
Why are red roses so expensive at Valentine's Day?
Because the entire world wants the same flower in the same week. Growers in Kenya, Ecuador and Colombia time a crop for it, air freight fills up, and wholesale prices for red roses commonly run at two to three times their normal level. Irish florists are paying that too, which is why a dozen reds delivered can cost around double what the same bouquet costs in March.
When should I order Valentine's flowers in Ireland?
Ten days out for a florist bouquet and a week to ten days out for letterbox flowers. Prices tend to be lowest and choice widest in the last days of January and the first days of February, and delivery windows for 13 and 14 February start closing about a week ahead.
Is it cheaper to buy flowers before Valentine's Day?
Yes, in two ways. Ordering early avoids the express delivery upgrades that are all that remain by the 12th, and a bouquet delivered on the 12th or 13th is priced below the same bouquet on the 14th at many services. A Friday delivery for a Saturday date is a legitimate saving, not a compromise.
What can I send instead of red roses?
Tulips, ranunculus, anemones and early narcissi are all in season in Ireland in February and none of them carry the Valentine's premium. A mixed bouquet with three or five red roses in it costs far less than twelve and reads the same across a kitchen table.
Do letterbox flowers work for Valentine's Day?
They work well if you plan, and badly if you do not. They arrive in bud through the door, no one needs to be home, and they take a day or two in water to open. Time them for the 12th or 13th and they are open on the day. Order them for the 14th itself and they arrive closed.
