Honeymoons??
 

Alright, so we've picked out our dresses, showed our bling, now the best part.... the honeymoon!

If you are married, where did you go?
If you are engaged, where are you planning on going?
If your are single, where do you want to go?
Would you wait to go on your honeymoon?


Also, suggestions and "where not to go" would be VERY helpful! ;)

Spent a little under 2 weeks in Italy.

Good times.

Turks and Caicos or one of the other, lesser-traveled Caribbean islands.

My fiance and I are still 18 months out from our wedding, so we definitely haven't booked the honeymoon yet. However, the front runner right now is Aruba. We liked the idea of Bora Bora, but it was waaaaaaaaay too expensive.

We went to Costa Rica for 2 weeks. It was amazing.

We're getting married in August and are considering the south pacific...probably fiji but we just started talking about it so we'll see!

I am thinking Tahiti , Fiji, or Greece.. (I dont' think he's too into greece though)

Of course I'd love to go to the Maldives it's less "touristy" I've heard... but that is a lil out of the budget I think.

1st go round - Walt Disney World. Don't laugh - it is one of the top honeymoon destinations.
2nd round - B & B in Virginia. Blech.

If I had it to do over again, I'd book a land/sea cruise with Disney. You can bring your own booze on the Disney Cruise( unlike others), you have Disney-class service, and the rooms are the largest in the industry. Plus Castaway Cay, the Disney island in the Bahamas is amazing - you can walk right off the boat onto the island (other cruise islands you have to tender to). There's plenty for adults only both at the World and the Crusie. I'd do 3 days at WDW, and a 4 day cruise with the romance package.

Greece is amazing. You should try to talk him into it. :)

Well-
we are heading to Rome then to a city near Pompeii. Afterwards we are flying to his hometown in London for a church blessing then a reception at his parents place. My parents, brother, aunt and uncle as well as two friends are coming over for it. Then my parents, Joel and I and my aunt and uncle are going to travel to Irleland, Wales, Scotland and around England for a week before heading home.

So I would say Europe, but my fiance doesn't really consider England, Wales, Scotland or Ireland as Europe. Brits are weird like that!

We didn't have much money, so we went to Jekyll Island, GA and stayed at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel. It was SO relaxing. We joke that we did a cheap honeymoon because we liked each other, we'll save the expensive vacation for when we don't want to be around each other and want to see the sights!

We did the Aventura Spa Palace, which is about an hour south of Cancun (in the middle of NOWHERE). It was absolutely amazing! I defintiely highly recommend going the all-inclusive route. Where we were, our room, all food and all drinks were included. It was so nice not having to worry about any extra $$$ since it was all already paid for. And believe me, you definitely get your money's worth out of that all inclusive fee.

I am married and we went on an Eastern Mediterranean Cruise. We boarded our ship in Barcelona, Spain after spending a few days there. Then headed to Sicily. We docked in Sicily and got to go to the top of Mt. Etna. Then we went to Naples, Italy and did the Amalfi Coast and Pompii. We continued up the eastern coast of Italy and made a port call in Civitavecchia, where we took a train into Rome and the Vatican City. Then we headed up to Tuscany and visited Florence and Pisa. Finally, we made a port call in Nice, France and visited Eze. We circled around and went back to Barcelona! It was only 8 days, but it was amazing!!

We spent 10 days in Italy, which was amazing. I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

ZTAngel, what part of Costa Rica where you in? For our 1 year anniversary we spent 8 days in Costa Rica and loved it!! I've been trying to get back ever since!!

Well we had our wedding and honeymoon both in Ireland...and traveled a bit with friends and family who were with us, so I guess technically we didn't have an "alone"-time honeymoon, but that was ok. Having a destination wedding we knew that would happen.

We spent 6 days in Dublin (part of it was over Christmas eve/day and St. Stephen's day), 3 days in Kinsale, 2 days in Dundalk (the town where we married), 3 days in Galway, and drove all over the darned place, and we still didn't do all that we wanted. :)

We're between Hawaii and Aruba, leaning towards Aruba. It's a shorter, easier flight for us. Vacation time is an issue for us. We're planning on probably leaving the Monday after the wedding and returning the following Monday.

But we'll see. We just deposited on the reception site today! So honeymoon hasn't been a huge priority. Its something I'm totally delegating to him :)

We went all over. We spent a few days by Arenal, then went to Liberia, then to San Ramon/Cloud Forest and lastly to San Jose. It was a lot of traveling...especially because a lot of those places are 4 hours apart and the roads are nowhere near as well maintained as they are in the U.S. but we enjoyed every minute that we were there.

My husband and I did the Disney 8-day land/sea package for our honeymoon and we had the best time. They put something special in our room every night!! Definitely worth the money. We also had a junior suite when we got to the "land" portion.

I wanted to take a Mediterranean cruise for our honeymoon but the airfare was going to cost as much as the cruise, so that idea was nixed.

We ended up going to Puerto Rico for 3 days and Walt Disney World for 5 days. My husband was insistant that he didn't want to "just sit on a beach" for a week, and he had never been to Disney, so it was the perfect compromise. I wish we had spent another two days in PR because I really would have loved to do some sight-seeing tours. As it was, the resort was so amazing that we didn't leave it. And Disney was an absolute blast!!! We got some honeymoon pins from guest services and it gave us all kinds of perks (like free ice cream, skipping to the front of a bunch of lines, getting picked for cameos in the backstage tour, etc).

My suggestions for future honeymooners is to wait a week before going on your honeymoon. Also, for the ladies, make all your reservations in your maiden name and don't try to change any of your documents (ie - license, s.s. card, passport) until you return.

We stayed at the wonderful RIU Palace resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic in August for our honeymoon.

The resort was brand new (about 18 months old) and gorgeous. Price was reasonable (we went through a travel agent) and we had zero problems. The staff was friendly, the rooms were very nice, and the hotel and grounds were beautiful. We had rain for about 35 minutes the whole week we were there (about 5 mins one day, and 30 minutes of incoming hurricane rain thanks to Hurricane Dean). Plenty of restaurants to choose from on the resort and since we were at the largest resort, we could travel to any of the RIU resorts for breakfast or lunch...but had to stay for dinner. All the resorts were in a line along the beach....in perfect walking distance.

As you can see....we really enjoyed it and would love to go back!

We went to Aruba. We only went away for a few days... we took a tour of the island, but other than that, we pretty much just laid on the beach every day. :)

We'll be going to St Thomas, USVI in Feb for a week. We got married in Oct & had to delay the honeymoon. Can't wait!

EXCELLENT advice, I very much co-sign.

We went to the Bahamas and it was very nice. We chose it because it was an easy flight for us and I couldn't take that much time due to the nature of my job. I would definitely recommend the Atlantis resort.

We waited 4 years after our wedding to go to the Big Island Hawaii on the Kona side. We stayed a Waikoloa Beach. Best time to go are April/May and September/October--less crowded. We went in both July and October.

We did go to the United Kingdom in 2004, but that was not our honeymoon, it was for his work.

After we were married, we did have a 1 night romance package in a ritzy hotel. THAT was very nice and the hotel staff was very nice...

If you do Vegas, get a room with a jacuzzi!!!

We're getting married in either September or October '08, and are going to push our honeymoon off til Spring '09. We're buying our first home (hopefully) next month, so having that, then paying for our wedding ourselves, we wanted to still have a fantastic honeymoon, and so pushing it back made the most sense.

We're going to Italy, and my fiance is planning the whole thing - I'm thrilled to have something that I can go to, and not have to book all flights, hotels, etc!

For those GCers that went to Disney, what would you suggest to do there? That is where me and the mister are planning on going.

I'm getting married in May of 2008 and we are going to the Bahamas! I'm very excited! We wanted to go to St. Lucia but the flights out of New Orleans had too many stops and we didn't want to waste a day traveling there and traveling back. So the Bahamas was the honeymoon for us! I can't wait! I've already started to look at bathing suits and clothes to get an idea! The place we are staying is all inclusive and was highly recommended by several of our friends.

we went to hawaii, to the big island and stayed at a hotel in kona. it was beautiful and not too busy for the first part of june.

Walt Disney World
 

First - do you know where you are staying? I would recommend staying on property - I think Boardwalk Villas are romantic without costing quite as much as Grand Floridian, Yacht & Beach Club - you can walk to Epcot, take a boat to Hollywood Studios. Polynesian would be great - take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom. I can personally recommend Saratoga Springs and Port Orleans, also. I have a great Disney travel agent, btw - let me know if you need her info.
EAT AT VICTORIA AND ALBERT'S at the Grand Floridian. Adults only, fabulous food - well worth the money for a fantastic meal. Cirtico's at the Grand Floridian is also great.
Go to the Adventurer's Club at Pleasure Island. I am not much on clubbing (although if you are, there's plenty at Pleasure Island) but I love, love the Adventurer's Club.
I think the luau is really neat and romantic.

What specifically are you looking for? Advice on rides, meals, romantic things?
Check out www.allears.net for menus and great trip reports.
I've got to run - feel free to ask or pm me with an specific concerns.

eta - my "don't miss list" -
Magic Kingdom - Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Splash, Space and Big Thunder Mt., Mickey's Philharmagic. Favorite restaurants - Tony's and the Liberty Tree Tavern - both for lunch.
Epcot - Test Track, Soarin',Off Kilter show (in Canada). Be sure to try the Beverly soda at Coke's Club Cool!!! Restaurants - it's hard to go wrong here - I always get good food!
Animal Kingdom - Expedition Everest, Finding Nemo:The Musical, Kilamanjaro(sp?) Safari, Dinosaur! Restaurant - the Yak and Yeti is fabulous!
Hollywood Studios - Rock N Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, Lights! Motor! Action!, Beauty and the Beast show, Fantasmic! Restaurants - Brown Derby (they have a great New York strip, but only at lunch), 50's Prime Time Cafe.

Water parks - I love Typhoon Lagoon - they have the Crushin' Gusher, which is a water roller coaster.

Downtown Disney - love the salt scrub at Basin, yummy sandwiches at Earl of Sandwich, Raglan Road Irish pub and restaurant (live music!), Comedy Warehouse, the aforementioned Adventurer's Club. If you can swing it, I understand the Cirque de Soleil show is great, but I haven't been able to do it yet.

Also, while I recommend you wear the buttons, understand that they don't entitle you to anything - it is up to the cast members to do whatever. That said, I've always had lots of pixie dust on my visits.

Walt Disney World
 

Hubby and I went for five days.
Day One: Magic Kingdom (make sure you see Mickey's Philharmagic)
Day Two: Epcot and Downtown Disney (eat at Bongo's Cuban Cafe, it's wonderful! ...also, don't forget IDs if you want to enter Pleasure Island)
Day Three: MGM (plan your day around the stage shows, they are worth it! also go on the Aerosmith ride and stay for the light show)
Day Four: Animal Kingdom and MGM (hit the safari as soon as the park opens; most animals are out in the morning when it's cool)
Day Five: Shopped, relaxed, and then headed home

We had passes to the water parks too and didn't use them because there was so much else to do. MGM was our favorite and we went back a second day to ride Aerosmith and Tower of Terror again, as well as see the shows we missed.

Book your trip with AAA if you have it. The deal we got was amazing! Make sure to go to guest services at the Magic Kingdom and get honeymoon buttons. They entitle you to free snacks, and jumping ahead in at least one line. Most of the employees saw our buttons and gave us the best seats on the rides, as well as discounts at some of the shops/stands.

If you like to get pictures with the characters, check out the shops in the Epcot countries. At the "England" Toy Shop, we saw Pooh, Tigger, and Eeyore all together and also Mary Poppins and Alice in Wonderland. There was almost no line because very few people knew they were there. Also, Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are the best places for photo ops with the big characters (ie - Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip & Dale, etc). See your maps for Mickey's Toon Town and Mickey's Safari Spot.

Aruba! I would go back in a heartbeat. I was married last October and we could not have asked for better weather or nicer people.

I suggest taking 2 or 3 days off after the wedding to cool down, get your heads together, count your money, pack and then enjoy your honeymoon!

Congrats!

Walt Disney World
 

I think a Disney HM would be fun BUT there are times of year when it's awful - packed with tourists! Get a TA and do some research on your own to plan the best time to go. The large tour groups (ugh the Brazilians!!!) have really ruined some of our family days there!

http://www.mousesavers.com/
and
http://www.disboards.com/
are two great sites. I think DIS has a whole thread on WDW HMs!

I am sure as individuals Brazilians are wonderful - but I co-sign that they are TERRIBLE in groups. Shudder. Everytime I see a little yellow flag I twitch.

I totally agree with this. A passport name change takes at least six weeks to process - maybe longer these days. If you're planning to change your name, use your maiden name for your honeymoon, and change your ID when you get back. (OTOH, if you're traveling within the US, you can change your driver's license easily enough - once you've worked your way through the wait at the DMV, they'll just print your new ID off and hand it to you.)

I booked our honeymoon travel using my maiden name. This included the hotel - we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Aruba, and I had the highest-possible status of their frequent guest program (damn business travel...), so we booked the room in my maiden name. DH was less than thrilled after a week of "Mr. and Mrs. MyMaidenName" :p but we did get upgraded to the club floor.

It looks like I'm in the minority and didn't go international (or to Disney). I didn't want to have to remember my passport on my wedding day or possibly lose my luggage.

We went to Asheville, NC and stayed at the Grove Park Inn (a drive-able distance from Atlanta). It was amazing - the Inn has plenty to do if you want, like a world-class spa, fabulous restaurants, golf, games in the great room, etc. Then Asheville has the Biltmore Estate & winery, fun shopping, hiking, and more. We did a lot of those things and also just ordered movies and room service a lot. :) I cried when we left because I didn't want to leave!

We recently went on Royal Caribbean cruise to the Southern Caribbean, and it was incredibly relaxing once you were all checked in and your luggage arrived. But I don't think I'd want to share dining tables and tolerate teenage partiers on my honeymoon.:rolleyes:

Dang, how did (or will) some of y'all pay for these trips???? I got married in 2006 in a civil ceremony. Total cost: Around $200 for everything. My parents footed the bill for a post-wedding dinner at Chili's for 8 people or so and my aunt bought a "wedding cake." I wanted to elope...my man wanted a wedding. So we compromised.

We left the next day for our honeymoon which consisted of a two/two and a half hour drive (complete with foolishness along the way...we were having fun) to Catskill, NY where we stayed in a bed and breakfast for two nights. Our honeymoon cost more than our wedding, but less than $500 - and THAT price almost gave me a heart attack. I must stingy! I planned everything. :)

Wedding and honeymoon for $700ish? That's my kinda party!

Hubby and I went in July and we did run into a lot of tour groups (mostly from Brazil). They weren't rude or particularly obnoxious, but we tried our best to avoid them so we didn't get stuck in long lines. Thankfully we didn't have issues because we used the fast passes A LOT (take advantage, the fast passes are your friends)! The only place that the lines were ridiculous were Soarin' and Test Track at Epcot.

Asheville, NC
 

Fleur de lis - I agree! The Grove Park Inn is soooo romantic - and I love, love, love Biltmore. It would be a great honeymoon!

And as for paying, honeymoon #1 was a gift from the in-laws, and honeymoon #2 was also very cheap - 3 days in a B & B, and just meals and gas as we drove around Virginia.