Cuddle party

A cuddle party is a small, structured social event intended to let people experience nonsexual group physical intimacy through cuddling. News coverage typically presents cuddle parties either as a response to urban isolation and “touch deprivation.”

History

Cuddle parties originated in 2004 as a series of events in New York City run by relationship coaches Reid Mihalko and Marcia Baczynski, who described it as a safer space for people who felt intimidated by massage or tantra workshops. Cuddle parties later emerged in other cities, and facilitator training was provided by the originators.