Wedding Vow renewal trip- where to go? 20 years:-))))

[teacherk]

DH bought my 20 year anniversary ring from WF with the support of advice from PS members. I couln''t be happier!!! We got a deal and it is beautiful! Now we are planning our vow renewal and honeymoon trip. We never took a honeymoon when we got married almost 20 years ago so this is a long time coming. Anyone have any recommendations? I think we may end up finding a good travel agent to narrow things down, but wanted to throw a line out to the PSers since you guys were so wonderful in helping us with the anniversary ring. Here''s what we are looking for

Travel- 3rd week in July (7days) from Tampa, FL
Beach. Beach. Beach destination. White sand, clear, turquoise water. We are from FL so we are looking for a knock your socks off beach that isn''t what we could just go to anytime
Not a Spring Break atmosphere. Romantic, quiet. We mostly want to lay on the beach and drink.
Decent food options.
Preferably all inclusive.
Under $4000 total.
My husband has ruled out Mexico and Jamaica based on some horror stories he heard. He is not budging on this.


This is a big deal for us. We have been planning to take a special trip for our 20th for years now and are very excited. It''s also scary though. If we choose wrong it could be a huge disappointment and a lot of money down the tubes. I''m addicted to the tripadvisor site right now trying to get a fix on some options. I''d love any advice. Anyone go on a stunning honeymoon that you would recommend? Are the Sandals resorts decent? Thanks for any help you can offer

 

[marchswallowbird]

I haven''t been personally, but I''ve heard the Sandals resorts are outstanding. You might see if you can find some online reviews.

I''d recommend checking out the British Virgin Islands. Some of the whitest beaches and turquoise blue water I''ve seen anywhere. Depending on where you stay, they have the type of resorts you''re looking for. Not sure about the price range, though. On the other hand, the airfare for you should be quite reasonable from Florida. Here''s a great website: www.vinow.com. There''s an excellent message forum, as well as lots of reviews. I used this site when planning my trip to St. John a few years ago, and it was super helpful. Some really great inside tips and advice.

 

[katamari]

Are you set on staying in the Atlantic? Especially if you live in Florida, I would find every reason I could to go to the Pacific. My vote is Hawaii all the way!

ETA: Especially if you are looking for something different that you don't get all the time, even more reason to go to Hawaii. And, they have a lot of destination wedding services that would be easy to set up a vow renewal though.

 

[teacherk]

Virgin Islands and Hawaii are both great ideas! Our first choice was actually Hawaii, but after some research it looked like it was going to a bit out of our price range. We are also looking to do the all inclusive thing so we don''t get too many suprises and can pay up front. We heard some stories from friends who went to the Bahamas and got a great deal on a room but had to pay $30 a head for breakfast and $60 for dinner. I will check that site out for VI trips. Hubby also just put Jamaica back on the list as a possibility. We found a couple all inclusive options there that are reasonable and might be nice. I''m checking tripadvisor.com to see what others are saying.

Thanks so much for the input!
K

 

[neatfreak]

Another island possiblity is Curacao. It''s gorgeous. Right near Aruba but without the party atmosphere.

 

[diamondfan]

LIttle Dix Bay is lovely.

I think St. Barths is too, but it can be hot in some of these places then.

Bermuda is nice, calm easy to get to and nice that time of year!

Congrats on 20 years!!!!!

 

[PearlDahhhling]

Oooh I''ve heard great things about Sandals too. Since it''s all adult couples you won''t have to worry about the "spring break" atmosphere. And their job is pretty much to make sure you have an amazing, romantic time. I actually want to go to a Sandals resort at some point.

Or what about Fiji? Don''t they have those little private huts on the water there? Is that Fiji? Wherever it is, those things looks amazing! Or is it Bora Bora?

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I know you''re from FL...but I love Siesta Key...and they have beautiful white sand beaches...

 

[teacherk]

Great suggestions everyone! I am making a list and heading over to tripadvisor.com to see some hotel reviews for some of the places you all have mentioned.

 

[Haven]

We went to St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands for our honeymoon. We were there from July 7th to the 17th, and it was amazing. Beautiful beaches, romantic restaurants in town, not too crowded, snorkeling, breathtaking views.

We took a ferry to St. Thomas (which is disgusting compared to St. John, I would never go there again), as well as some British Virgin Islands, Virgin Gorda and Jost van Dyke.

I cannot say enough good things about St. John. We stayed in the Westin and it was absolutely beautiful.

Congratulations on your anniversary!

 

[pjean]

Date: 11/11/2008 11:08:01 PM
Author: neatfreak
Another island possiblity is Curacao. It's gorgeous. Right near Aruba but without the party atmosphere.

My father and his wife went last year, and they say they'll go back every time they can. And they do a lot of beachy traveling, so it must have been pretty great.