Honeymoon Discussions

Budget-friendly California honeymoon ideas?

My fiancé and I are currently in our last semester of college (undergrad) and are getting married in July, then the next month he will be starting his graduate program. Needless to say we don't have a lot to spare on our honeymoon. Neither of us are big travelers either, we just want a short, fun, relaxing getaway.
We are located in Southern California (a stone's throw way from Disneyland) and would like to go somewhere driving distance. Northern California is also an option, since FH is a SF Bay Area native.
Anyone have any ideas! Thanks!

Re: Budget-friendly California honeymoon ideas?

  • Have you been to Santa Barbara? I visited there once and it was beautiful! I don't know what kinds of activities you're interested in, we went whale watching and toured an historic Spanish mission. We also took a day trip along PCH to Malibu and LA. The scenery alone was worth the trip!
  • You could drive to Vegas in a few hours. Rooms are always reasonably cheap there ($75-150 or a mid range hotel).

    My friend is out in Santa Monica right now. She rented a girl's apartment on VRBO right by the ocean and it looks really cute, and much cheaper than a hotel chain.

                                                                     

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  • Do you like camping? You could do a Highway 1 road trip up to Monterey Bay, and stop and camp around Big Sur. Andrew Molera State Park (just north of Big Sur) is pretty inexpensive for camping, and the campgrounds are a short walk from the ocean. And then you could get a hotel in Carmel or Monterey for a few nights.

    Otherwise, as @Jenna8984 said, Vegas is a few hours' drive from Southern CA... There are always great hotel deals on Groupon and LivingSocial for hotel packages. In fact, I would start looking on Groupon Getaways wherever you decide to go, as they usually have good deals for Central/Northern CA as well.
    BabyFruit Ticker
  • Some ideas: 

    Ojai (45 minutes or so past Ventura - cute little town with art, wine tasting, etc. and some boutique hotels/resorts/spas for relaxing)
    Paso Robles wine country (cheaper than Napa/Sonoma and closer to you as well)
    La Jolla (the Estancia is a really nice hotel that has discounts/specials a lot, and it's just a quick drive from downtown La Jolla/the beach)
    Coronado/San Diego

  • edited April 2015

    Do you like camping? You could do a Highway 1 road trip up to Monterey Bay, and stop and camp around Big Sur. Andrew Molera State Park (just north of Big Sur) is pretty inexpensive for camping, and the campgrounds are a short walk from the ocean. And then you could get a hotel in Carmel or Monterey for a few nights.

    This. Do it! I love the HWY1 drive - it's so romantic and there are so many places to stop along the way. Monterey is beautiful as is anywhere near Big Sur. I would drive all the way up to San Francisco if you have the time and the budget and spend a couple of nights in San Francisco. Maybe camp/motel on the way there, then splurge on a night or two in a nice hotel in San Francisco. I found Santa Barbara to be the msot expensive place from San Francisco to Los Angeles, so if you're on a budget, I wouldn't suggest sleeping there.
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