let's talk honeymoons!

[slg47]

where are you going? how long? right after the wedding, or much later? (or not at all?)

former brides, where did you go?

 

[vc10um]

Belize!

We're getting married on Sunday and departing the following Friday!

3 nights in the jungle, 4 nights on the beach, and an over-night layover in Dallas on the way home.

 

[asymons412]

Our plans are for Italy for 7-10 days, immediately after the wedding. We're either going to fly there, stay for 1-3 days and then take a 7 day cruise around Italy, or just stay on land and explore the whole time! Haven't gotten that far in the planning stages yet... but Italy has always been our destination!

 

[slg47]

VC belize sounds amazing! have you ever been there before? I have heard it is just gorgeous

asymons Italy sounds amazing too!!! I went there several years ago and it was just fabulous.

 

[Autumnovember]

Since my program won't end until after our wedding...we're either gonna go during my winter break or when I'm done next May.

Right now, we're thinking of doing a 2 week baseball tour of a bunch of stadiums that we haven't seen yet. We both looooove baseball and anytime we visit any city in the U.S. we go to a baseball game to check out the park....so there are about 15 we haven't seen yet and we are thinking that we'll do a huge roadtrip and see about 8 of the 15

If not that, then we're thinking Fiji....butttt we've been to many tropical places so we're trying to stay away from that, we'll see!

 

[rosetta]

Maldives in October.

Wedding is in July.

 

[Haven]

Ooh, fun thread!

We were married on July 4th, we left for St. John in the USVI on the 6th, I believe, and we spent 10 days on St. John. It was heaven.

I liked the timing because we were able to attend the day-after breakfast that my husband's family gave for all of the out-of-town guests, and it was a really fun, casual time with our nearest and dearest. It was also nice to have that day in between to finish our packing, open our gifts and start thank-you cards, and just relax a bit before we headed out.

We really did have a perfect honeymoon. We like to visit Europe every summer, but there's always a moment where we look at each other during our planning and say "St. John?" I think we'll end up going there for our fifth anniversary, it will make it more special.

 

[mrswahs]

Maui! We're getting maui'd (har har) in Maui and we're staying there for our honeymoon. We're getting married on the south side on Makena Beach so our first few nights on the island and our wedding night will be there. The following morning we're going to do the trip on the road to Hana and spend one night on the east side of Maui, then the following morning we're going to venture back and spend the rest of our trip relaxing in the Ka'anapali Beach area.

We'll be gone a total of 7 nights. I really wish we could do more but I don't have any more vacation time saved up for work. I used it all up this February to work the Super Bowl and then we have a week long vacation in OBX this July. So my vacation time is sparse!

 

[mrscushion]

We got married on Labor Day, had brunch with friends and family the morning after and in the afternoon departed for a week in Sardinia (Italy.)

 

[sillyberry]

Our wedding is Sunday night and we head somewhere on Tuesday. I have no idea where we'll be from Tuesday to Saturday - that's alllll FI. My MOH has been monitoring, though, as we were all skeptical of his planning abilities (himself included). But apparently he's come up with something good and romantic!

Later in the fall we're going to take a big trip, probably to Asia. I'm thinking somewhere urban, somewhere with a lot of very old culture, and a serene romantic beach...

 

[slg47]

oh wow! SB how awesome to have a surprise! I don't think FI would want to take the pressure of planning, haha!

Haven that sounds wonderful

mscushion I think we will do something similar, brunch the day after and then leave. just not sure where yet!]

autumn that sounds fun! my FI has been to ~17 baseball stadiums, he used to take road trips all the time. make sure to go to AT&T park

rosetta how did you decide on maldives? sounds exotic!

mrsw sounds super fun!

 

[vc10um]

VC belize sounds amazing! have you ever been there before? I have heard it is just gorgeous

asymons Italy sounds amazing too!!! I went there several years ago and it was just fabulous.

We have not been, slg, (in fact, this is FI's first trip out of the country!) but we got excellent advice on where to stay and what to do from Hudson_Hawk...we're basically taking the same honeymoon she and her husband took! And I'm super excited because Reese Witherspoon and her new hubby just honeymooned in Belize!

 

[Amys Bling]

Getting married on July 1, 2011...leaving on July 3, 2011 for ITALY for 2 weeks

5 nights in Rome, 4 nights in sorrento, 3 nights in Capri, last night in Rome!

 

[nicoleben]

12 night cruise from New Jersey to...... ::drum roll:: Antigua, St. Lucia, St. Thomas, St Maarten, and St. Kitts We are going one month after we are married. I hate the whole rush of things, doing the wedding them trying to leave the day after to be whisked away to some island. We originally wanted to go to Italy for our honeymoon however funds were not readily available so we both agreed for our first wedding anniversary we would go to Italy, and from there we had planned on starting a family. Of course not everything turns out like we plan so.. I am sure I am in for some changes Also the boat we will be sailing on. It will only be the 10th cruise since the ship was built, we have a veranda balcony and I can not wait. This boat looks exquisite!! It serves to the middle class people.. I just hope we are not the youngest on the ship. I will be 26, and my fiance will be 30. Cant wait though.

 

[Autumnovember]

oh wow! SB how awesome to have a surprise! I don't think FI would want to take the pressure of planning, haha!

Haven that sounds wonderful

mscushion I think we will do something similar, brunch the day after and then leave. just not sure where yet!]

autumn that sounds fun! my FI has been to ~17 baseball stadiums, he used to take road trips all the time. make sure to go to AT&T park

rosetta how did you decide on maldives? sounds exotic!

mrsw sounds super fun!

I've already been there Loved the park for sure, the fans were extremely rude

 

[4ever]

Everyones honeymoon sounds so exciting!

We are not certain yet where we're going or when, FI's parents are coming over for 3-4 weeks from the UK for the wedding so if they stay 3 weeks we might go away for the last week and if they stay 4 we might go somewhere a bit later on. Regardless we will have lots of time off after to go around NZ with them and do fun things and also we are going to go away by ourselves for just a few nights right after the wedding for a little peace and quiet to just relax and recover.

Right now FI is excited about the idea of going to Hong Kong and going to Hong Kong Disneyland for our hooneymoon

 

[slg47]

oh wow! SB how awesome to have a surprise! I don't think FI would want to take the pressure of planning, haha!

Haven that sounds wonderful

mscushion I think we will do something similar, brunch the day after and then leave. just not sure where yet!]

autumn that sounds fun! my FI has been to ~17 baseball stadiums, he used to take road trips all the time. make sure to go to AT&T park

rosetta how did you decide on maldives? sounds exotic!

mrsw sounds super fun!

I've already been there Loved the park for sure, the fans were extremely rude

autumn I am really sorry to hear that! everytime I have been the fans have been cordial to opposing team fans (even Dodger fans)

 

[merilenda]

We're getting married in September and planning to honeymoon in December or January when FI will be on winter break (he's a professor). We haven't decided where yet, because we're kind of waiting for an amazing deal to pop up on travelzoo for that timeframe. But I definitely want to go somewhere warm!

AN, I'm also a huge baseball fan. I haven't made it to that many parks yet, as I haven't really had the means to do it. But I plan on making my way around hopefully starting in the next couple years. If you haven't visited my home park of Busch Stadium, you definitely should.

Edited to fix typo.

 

[kittybean]

We went to Italy for two weeks. It was amazing! We left two days after the wedding, which was great because we could attend the day-after party my parents had at their house. We went to Rome, Venice, Milan, and Lake Como and had a wonderful time.

ETA: Forgot to mention the coolest part: when we were in Rome, we had our marriage blessed by the Pope! We had a Catholic wedding, and if you go to Rome within two months of your wedding, you can get special tickets to the big, public Papal Audience (usually held on Wednesdays in the summer) and sit with other "Nuovi Sposati" ("Newlyweds") right up near the Pope. During the Audience, he comes over and blesses all the newlywed couples' marriages. It was a very neat and spiritually-fulfilling experience for us, and I would highly recommend it for anyone who's having a Catholic wedding and honeymooning in Itally.

 

[rosetta]

I'm not catholic but that sounds like an incredible experience for you kitty bean.

I'm going to the Maldives as FI and I have never been on al tropical holiday together. We usually travel to Europe, it'll be our first long haul trip (hope we don't kill each other!)

 

[slg47]

ok, so question...how did everyone DECIDE where to go? there are so many great places!

 

[wannaBMrsH]

Rosetta, DH and I went to the Maldives for our honeymoon, too and it was incredible! We love the beach and had traveled to Cancun, Playa Del Carmen, the Dominican Republic and other places in the Caribbean, but NOTHING came close to our experience in the Maldives!

First of all, the beach seemed like it was just for us...we saw maybe two other couples out there at the same time as us ONE day! Other than that, we were usually all alone on the beach! It was so romantic and secluded and ideal for a honeymoon!

Secondly, the hotel was fabulous, we had originally booked an overwater bungalow, but when we arrived, they offered us the option of the room we booked or a beachside cottage as the tides were pretty rough the week we were there. We agreed to the beachside cottage, and it had an outdoor shower (which DH still wants to reproduce at home!) and a patio that faced the ocean. Plus it saved us about ($500) for the week. The staff was very attentive and the seafood was delicious.

Lastly, we saw a BABY SHARK while out on a snorkeling excursion! I mean really? A baby shark! Complete highlight of our trip. DH still tells people that story! And it makes me happy that he had a fabulous experience as well because often it's him that brings up our honeymoon.

slg47, We couldn't take our honeymoon immediately after the wedding and had already decided that we would leave on our honeymoon before our first anniversary. DH had a business wedding to attend (is that even a term, the wedding of an important colleague's family member) in India. We had kicked around Bora Bora, Tahiti and other secluded and exotic honeymoons, but when the trip to India came up, we decided to take a few days for our honeymoon in the Maldives. We were there for five days and our last day of our honeymoon was actually our one-year anniversary. It was completely worth the wait and I wouldn't trade a week or two anywhere else for our 5 days in the Maldives....although I would love to go back and spend more time there!

 

[vc10um]

ok, so question...how did everyone DECIDE where to go? there are so many great places!

The big thing for us was travel time. While I would've loved to head to Tahiti, the Maldives, or Bora Bora, FI has never been on a flight longer than 2.5 hours. I didn't want his first long flight to be in the 10s of hours! Also, we knew we would only be able to take 7-8 days for the honeymoon due to vacation time and the fact that we already have to travel half way across the country for our wedding. Oh, and cruises were out, because FI has never taken one and was worried that he would get cabin fever on "At Sea" days. So, based on time constraints, it really narrowed our options. FI suggested Belize, and I knew HH had recently honeymooned there. So when I got all the deets from her, it was a pretty clear winner for us. Especially since I like active vacations and FI prefers relaxation. Our 3 days in the jungle will be more active...our 4 days on the beach will be nearly 100% relaxation time (except for our 2 half days of snorkeling...which, to me, is still pretty darn relaxing!)...

 

[getting excited]

Getting marred on Saturday and then taking the red eye from San Diego to New York on Sunday evening. Plan on living it up in NYC with fancy dinners, shows, sight seeing for three days and then we head to St Lucia for six nights!! Our first stop in St Lucia is two nights at the Ladera resort which we are SO excited about. It's up in the moutnains and only has three walls! The room just opens up to the view! Then we are doing four nights at an all inclusive on the beach to wind down.

We had a hard time choosing a spot. Which is probably why we ended up with such a mish mash. Both of us like the beach, but get bored pretty easily. We decided to get the best of both worlds! We were able to get a non stop from New York to St Lucia early in the morning so travel time is not much of an issue.

Fingers crossed there are no hurricanes! Going the end of October!

 

[wannaBMrsH]

Getting marred on Saturday and then taking the red eye from San Diego to New York on Sunday evening. Plan on living it up in NYC with fancy dinners, shows, sight seeing for three days and then we head to St Lucia for six nights!! Our first stop in St Lucia is two nights at the Ladera resort which we are SO excited about. It's up in the moutnains and only has three walls! The room just opens up to the view! Then we are doing four nights at an all inclusive on the beach to wind down.

We had a hard time choosing a spot. Which is probably why we ended up with such a mish mash. Both of us like the beach, but get bored pretty easily. We decided to get the best of both worlds! We were able to get a non stop from New York to St Lucia early in the morning so travel time is not much of an issue.

Fingers crossed there are no hurricanes! Going the end of October!

St. Lucia is a dream destination of mine ever since I discovered Jade Mountain Resort...Congratulations and take tons of pictures! I am so envious!

 

[getting excited]

[/quote] St. Lucia is a dream destination of mine ever since I discovered Jade Mountain Resort...Congratulations and take tons of pictures! I am so envious![/quote]

Jade Mountain looks AMAZING! I think that is where they stayed on the bachelor We may stop there just to check it out!

 

[Haven]

ok, so question...how did everyone DECIDE where to go? there are so many great places!

This was tough for us because I really wanted to go to Ireland and DH wanted to go to Patagonia. We knew for sure we wanted to go somewhere neither of us had been, which narrowed it down because we've both traveled a lot.

THEN, my best friend (who worked for The Westin at the time) called me one day and said she could get us an amazing hotrate for a $700 per night room at the Westin Resort in St. John, and we couldn't pass it up. I think we ended up paying $89 a night for that room, and it was AMAZING.

We would have gone to Ireland if we didn't get that awesome deal from my BFF.

 

[yssie]

Iceland, Alaska, Ireland, Egypt, and Africa were on our original list.

Then the volcano erupted in Iceland and threw a wrench into that plan, and I started thinking... somehow "honeymoon" just screams beach, warm weather, swanky hotels to me. Which is actually not our normal travel MO at all - we're not big beach people and we prefer cozy B&Bs... but we figured hey, why not do something we'll probably never do again?

We'll definitely get to Ireland and Alaska, esp. after reading Haven's report on her trip to Ireland last year! So those were out. Iceland was impossible to book at the time, and we didn't know when things would calm down, so that was out, too, as were neighbouring areas. DH is Jewish w/ Israeli citizenship so we decided Egypt probably wasn't the best idea, even though it's supposed to be safe if you go by tour... an African safari was probably my first choice but we'd have wanted everything preplanned and guided, and the costs were prohibitive to say the least, so we've shelved that one for a few years DH's brother suggested Italy, we started poking around and the Greek islands sounded even better - so that's what we did! It was everything I'd imagined a "honeymoon" to be - beautiful, beachy, luxuriously idle, even satisfied the little girl in me that used to ask for Greek myths as bedtime stories

 

[iheartscience]

We went to the British Virgin Islands and stayed on Tortola...it was insanely gorgeous and perfect! We left the Monday after our wedding (the wedding was on Saturday) and that worked out perfectly because we got to meet all of our out of town relatives for breakfast. I think we went for 10 days? I can't remember exactly though!

I had actually read an article in the Washington Post about the BVIs a few months before we were planning our honeymoon and it stuck in my mind, so that's what we ended up doing. We also didn't want a super long flight for our honeymoon since we weren't staying that long.

 

[lucyandroger]

We're going to Thailand with a few days in Cambodia! Neither of us have been to Asia before - sooooo excited. We're leaving this coming Monday night, after we get married on Sunday. Woo hoo! We're having a day-after BBQ and then heading to the airport.