Where did you go on your honeymoon? Pros/Cons?

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

Everyone keeps asking me where we are planning our honeymoon and I really have NO idea! We want somewhere tropical, reasonably priced and preferably not a super long flight from Chicago. I would love to hear where other people went, what you liked, what you disliked and any tips you have! I should mention we don't want to go to Mexico.

KatWAG

We went to Thailand (from Chicago.) The only con was it was really far away and that flights are expensive. But once we got there everything was dirt cheap. We had such a great combination of adventure and relaxation. If you can get over the 18 hours of travel, I would strongly suggest it.

lyndausvi

We lived in the virgin islands, so a typical beach HM wasn't going to cut it.   We went to Amsterdam, safari in South Africa, Paris and NYC.

Maggie0829

We went to Key West and Miami Beach. We flew into Miami and drove to Key West. Took about 3 hours and was a pretty drive. Stayed in Key West for about 5 days and then drove back to Miami for 2 days. We loved Key West and are dying to go back. We snorkled and saw some dolphins. We watched the sunset every night. We ate and we drank and we relaxed. Exactly what we wanted. When we go back we will probably do a Mangrove kayak tour and a jet ski tour around the island. We would also stop by some of the state parks in the Keys as we drove down. Miami beach was not our scene. We mainly stayed there because that is where we flew out of.

emmyg65

We went to the Adirondacks and Montreal, so I guess the con would be that it wasn't tropical.

jenna8984

We are going to Jamaica. I can't imagine there will be any cons for us because we know we enjoy all inclusive lying on the beach. You should really go talk to an experienced travel agent. They can help you pinpoint a location that is "you" instead of just choosing a destination that other people enjoy. They are free to you (commission is paid through the hotels and airlines).

Jells2dot0

What is your idea of "reasonably priced?" This varies significantly by person. For me, I'd be thrilled if I could keep a vacation under $5000. For others, that is way over budget.

Based on what you did mention, the Caribbean sounds like a great choice. Other than Mexico (which is great, BTW) the Dominican Republic and Jamaica are the best value. You also did not say when you are going, which may rule out some ideas. The Caribbean is pricey around the winter holidays into March. Also, the Bahamas, Bermuda, and even Turks and Caicos may be a little too chilly in the winter months for your taste.

CrazyCatLady3

I recommend Costa Rica. We didn't go there for HM but went 2 years ago and it is very reasonably priced compared to say, Hawaii.

Molly&Andy

Second for Costa Rica.  We went there for our HM, loved it, and can't wait to go back. 

Pro - beautiful and friendly people. they also take the dollar.

Con - take it takes to drive around the country and coming home.

Peaseblossom55

Belize it was amazing got back less than a weeks ago I miss it already.  We spent 5 days on the coast in a beach resort and 5 days in the interior in a jungle resort

Pros-Mayan ruins, amazing beaches, flight was not to long, they take the dollar, friendly helpful people, English is widely spoken, good food, not too expensive

Cons- the only one I could come up with was that I had to get several shots before going, 

daria24

Peaseblossom55 said:

Belize it was amazing got back less than a weeks ago I miss it already.  We spent 5 days on the coast in a beach resort and 5 days in the interior in a jungle resort

Pros-Mayan ruins, amazing beaches, flight was not to long, they take the dollar, friendly helpful people, English is widely spoken, good food, not too expensive

Cons- the only one I could come up with was that I had to get several shots before going, 

Really? We went to Belize and didn't need any shots. And we stayed in the jungle for most of the time. We even went to Guatamala for the day and didn't need any shots.

As for OP, we went to Hawaii.

Pros: LOTS to do, whether you just want beautiful beaches or something more adventurous, it's in the US so no passport needed, some truly unique sights to see like an active volcano, a green sand beach (only one other one exists in the world), absolutely perfect snorkeling

Cons: it's not cheap, the flight from the east coast was very long, and I was underwhelmed by a lot of Hawaii honestly.

We liked Belize waaaaaay more than Hawaii. And it's about 1/4 of the price.

Peaseblossom55

daria24 said:

Belize it was amazing got back less than a weeks ago I miss it already.  We spent 5 days on the coast in a beach resort and 5 days in the interior in a jungle resort

Pros-Mayan ruins, amazing beaches, flight was not to long, they take the dollar, friendly helpful people, English is widely spoken, good food, not too expensive

Cons- the only one I could come up with was that I had to get several shots before going, 

Really? We went to Belize and didn't need any shots. And we stayed in the jungle for most of the time. We even went to Guatamala for the day and didn't need any shots. As for OP, we went to Hawaii. Pros: LOTS to do, whether you just want beautiful beaches or something more adventurous, it's in the US so no passport needed, some truly unique sights to see like an active volcano, a green sand beach (only one other one exists in the world), absolutely perfect snorkeling Cons: it's not cheap, the flight from the east coast was very long, and I was underwhelmed by a lot of Hawaii honestly. We liked Belize waaaaaay more than Hawaii. And it's about 1/4 of the price.

Our travel agent reccommend we contact our doctor about certain vaccines, we saw an Infectious disease doctor got updated on a tenatnus, Hep A and I got a tyhoid shot, and malaria pills.  It was all covered by health insurance so for us it was better safe than sorry.  We even went to Guatemala for the day too (Tical).

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

emmyg65 said:

We went to the Adirondacks and Montreal, so I guess the con would be that it wasn't tropical.

My mom is from Montreal! Love it! 

beachyone15

It surprises me how many people on these boards are "anti-Mexico". That's where we are going so I guess I'm not much help to you.

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

Jells2dot0 said:

What is your idea of "reasonably priced?" This varies significantly by person. For me, I'd be thrilled if I could keep a vacation under $5000. For others, that is way over budget. Based on what you did mention, the Caribbean sounds like a great choice. Other than Mexico (which is great, BTW) the Dominican Republic and Jamaica are the best value. You also did not say when you are going, which may rule out some ideas. The Caribbean is pricey around the winter holidays into March. Also, the Bahamas, Bermuda, and even Turks and Caicos may be a little too chilly in the winter months for your taste.

Good points! We will be going either end of October or beginning of November! We are still working out a budget. We don't travel often and have never been out of the country together, so we don't mind a splurge for this occasion.. I know that's different for everyone..I will be honest and say I am really out of touch with what the average honeymoon cost is! 

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

jenna8984 said:

We are going to Jamaica. I can't imagine there will be any cons for us because we know we enjoy all inclusive lying on the beach. You should really go talk to an experienced travel agent. They can help you pinpoint a location that is "you" instead of just choosing a destination that other people enjoy. They are free to you (commission is paid through the hotels and airlines).

I think we probably will! I need some professional advice!

Jells2dot0

courtneyhindo said:

Jells2dot0 said:

What is your idea of "reasonably priced?" This varies significantly by person. For me, I'd be thrilled if I could keep a vacation under $5000. For others, that is way over budget.

Based on what you did mention, the Caribbean sounds like a great choice. Other than Mexico (which is great, BTW) the Dominican Republic and Jamaica are the best value. You also did not say when you are going, which may rule out some ideas. The Caribbean is pricey around the winter holidays into March. Also, the Bahamas, Bermuda, and even Turks and Caicos may be a little too chilly in the winter months for your taste.

Good points! We will be going either end of October or beginning of November! We are still working out a budget. We don't travel often and have never been out of the country together, so we don't mind a splurge for this occasion.. I know that's different for everyone..I will be honest and say I am really out of touch with what the average honeymoon cost is! 

October/November is one of the best times to travel to the Caribbean because there are so many awesome specials. Depending on how long you'd like to go, I'd say you are looking at anywhere from $3500 on up. If you budget $5000-$7000 you could get an amazing week+ long stay at a 5 star resort in a higher category room.

Definitely factor the cost in for insurance as well. Expect a good cancel for any reason policy to be around $150/person.

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

Jells2dot0, thanks for that! I definitely think that budget is do-able. Good tip on the insurance. I will definitely look into the Carribean. Any resort suggestions?

delujm0

We went in June to Mauritius and South Africa. Pros: everywhere we went was awesome, June is "winter" there so it wasn't oppressively hot (like it is here at home in NC) but it was beautiful beach/pool wetaher in Mauritius and on Safari (during the day). The exchange rate between $ and the South African Rand is great - South Africa, and specifically Cape Town, were really cheap once we got there. Cons: the length of the flight (15 hours from NYC to Johannesburg + connections), the fact that we had to fly between all 3 of our locations, the price of the flights (even in coach), and the fact that we're not South African citizens and therefore can't legally just move there and live there forever, which we very much want to do now. :-) FWIW, with our spending while there, the entire trip wound up costing $18,500. Granted, we stayed at VERY FANCY places in Mauritius and on Safari, and the flights (coach) cost over $3k each. We got excellent insurance, and we rented cars in two of the three locations. We did 3 "tour" type activities which made up a total of about $700 of our budget. If you didn't require luxury accomodations, you could have pobably done the trip for $10-12k all told. edit - sorry for lack of paragraphs...no idea what is going on.

climbingsingle

Not tropical, but we're going to Florence, Italy for 10 days. We'll be HMing during hurricane season, so we decided to eliminate that possibility.

Maggie0829

@ClimbingBrideNY‌ - so jealous of your Florence trip!

Jells2dot0

There are so many islands and resorts to choose from, so it would be good to know what type of experience you are looking for. A lot of people go the all-inclusive route, but it's not for everyone. I do recommend working with a travel agent who specializes in the Caribbean (not online, like Expedia, but a person whose brain you can pick) and see what best fits your wants and needs. I think once you narrow down what island you prefer, you'll gets lots of recommendations! As you can see in this post, people have traveled all over the world and they are happy to share their experience.

I personally went to Australia (and French Polynesia for my first marriage) so if you decide to wander a bit further from home, I'd be happy to share my experience.

climbingsingle

Maggie0829 said:

@ClimbingBrideNY‌ - so jealous of your Florence trip!

I'm ridiculously excited. And I don't think I'm going to want to come home! 

Maggie0829

ClimbingBrideNY said:

Maggie0829 said:

@ClimbingBrideNY‌ - so jealous of your Florence trip!

I'm ridiculously excited. And I don't think I'm going to want to come home! 

I am excited for you and you need to post pictures when you get back.  When are you leaving?

Italy is my dream vacation.  I want to spend like 3 months just touring the country and eating everything!

climbingsingle

Maggie0829 said:

ClimbingBrideNY said:

Maggie0829 said:

@ClimbingBrideNY‌ - so jealous of your Florence trip!

I'm ridiculously excited. And I don't think I'm going to want to come home! 

I am excited for you and you need to post pictures when you get back.  When are you leaving?

Italy is my dream vacation.  I want to spend like 3 months just touring the country and eating everything!

@Maggie0829 We're leaving 9/30. I will most definitely post pictures! 

I would love to spend an extended period of time there. There's so much to see. And eat! 

majesty318

beachyone15 said:

It surprises me how many people on these boards are "anti-Mexico".

Ditto this! I love Mexico. My husband is Mexican, so perhaps I am a little biased, but it's such a gorgeous country with tons of places to visit outside the areas that are dangerous. Also, you get a lot for your money. So OP, let me know if you decide to consider Mexico and I can give you some ideas.

Anyway - to answer the question - for our HM we are going to Sicily & Venice for a week and then a week on a Mediterranean cruise. We leave in 3 weeks and I CAN'T WAIT!!! I would say the cons are the astronomical cost of summer airfare,  it will be blazing hot, and I will eat so much gelato I won't fit in any of my clothes afterwards. I think the pros are pretty much everything else!

beachyone15

@shrekspeare: Have you been to the Riviera Maya area in Cancun? That's where we're going but I haven't been there yet. Everyone says it's a nice area. I hope so!

Jells2dot0

beachyone15 said:

@shrekspeare: Have you been to the Riviera Maya area in Cancun? That's where we're going but I haven't been there yet. Everyone says it's a nice area. I hope so!

Not to butt in, but the Riviera Maya is lovely. The water is more of that crystal blue and the beaches are nice at most properties. It's very popular and a lot of knotties have been for their HMs or DWs. I have been a few times just on vacation.

beachyone15

Thanks Jells! We're really looking forward to it

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

majesty318 said:

beachyone15 said:

It surprises me how many people on these boards are "anti-Mexico".

Ditto this! I love Mexico. My husband is Mexican, so perhaps I am a little biased, but it's such a gorgeous country with tons of places to visit outside the areas that are dangerous. Also, you get a lot for your money. So OP, let me know if you decide to consider Mexico and I can give you some ideas.

Anyway - to answer the question - for our HM we are going to Sicily & Venice for a week and then a week on a Mediterranean cruise. We leave in 3 weeks and I CAN'T WAIT!!! I would say the cons are the astronomical cost of summer airfare,  it will be blazing hot, and I will eat so much gelato I won't fit in any of my clothes afterwards. I think the pros are pretty much everything else!

My FI has been to Mexico before and I just figure we could go for a vacation anytime, I would like to try and go somewhere different. Also, my parents just came back from a Mediterranean cruise and LOVED it. Have a great time! 

knottie9c5ed33df4bbd226

shrekspeare, I LOVE your signature! I was cracking up.