'If You Want to Save Money, You Can Stay Home and Get Laid for Free'

How bad is the dreadful Obama economy? Heck, even swingers are now suffering. We've gone from tingly legs to flaccidity in a mere two years.

You know it's a tough economy when the swinger sex scene is feeling a chill.

At the Carousel Couples Club in midtown, swingers and those curious about the lifestyle sat on sleek black couches beneath big-screen TVs with muted sex scenes. Some DDeviousDelights's Fall Fantasy Party attendees stepped behind sheer curtains and onto private nooks' mattresses. But the party remained relatively tame.

A couple lingering near the bar explained that the sluggish economy has thinned out local swinging parties, saying, "If you want to save money, you can stay home and get laid for free."

Like the roaming party DDeviousDelights, most New York City swinging venues are suffering from the economic malaise. The recession has left both stationary swinging clubs and roaming adult parties with lackluster event attendance and shorter membership lists.

"They used to say sex was an industry that was not affected by the recession -- that's not true," said a DDeviousDelights cofounder who wished to remain anonymous because of privacy concerns. "Everybody -- A to Z in the sex-related industries -- is feeling the pinch."

DDeviousDelights is one of many venues that blame the economy for its 30 to 40% event attendance drop this year. The high-end roaming party One Leg Up said it has had about 20 percent fewer event attendees a year since 2007. And one stationary club -- the 14-year-old Carousel Couples Club -- reported a 60% attendance plunge from 2007 to 2009.

Swinging venues have noticed dwindling membership as well. One Leg Up founder Palagia said she had 2,000 members in 2007, but that number fell enough that she "had to" slash her semi-annual membership fees from about $900 a year to $550 a year this September.

New York City has five stationary swinging clubs, most of which are located in midtown Manhattan: Le Trapeze, Checkmate, Taste, Behind Closed Doors, and Carousel Couples Club, which throws its weekend events in conjunction with roaming venues.