Married Knotties: Honeymoon Experience?

SunnyBB

I have been researching honeymoon spots and lurking on the Honeymoon Board but I wanna hear from our AA married knotties on here!  I know a lot of our ladies went on honeymoons recently so...

Where did you go? How long was your stay? How did you book (TA, specific website)? Would you recommend your hotel/resort, etc?  Overall experience?

TIA

Sophia1913

Sorry I'm not married (yet) but I will add that as far as booking I am working with Beach Bum Vacations for our HM.  My TA is Melissa and she has been great to work with.  When FI and I first started planning, we were planning a destination wedding in St. Thomas so Melissa was working with us on planning that.  We then completely changed our wedding to have a wedding closer to home (in Vegas) and I let Melissa know that we were no longer planning a DW but we were still thinking about St. Thomas for our HM.  She let me know that she can still plan our HM in St. Thomas even though we aren't getting married there so maybe checking out Beach Bum Vacations would be an option for you.  She basically does all the leg work as far as pricing and arrangements and even when I told her I found a cheaper price booking directly with the resort, she matched it.   I also like the fact that their TA's have travelled to a lot of the resorts so they can offer first hand knowledge of the resorts. The best thing is she's free, she gets her fee from the resort I assume.  Just something to think about.  Hope it helps

SunnyBB

Thanks Sophia!  Anyone else who has booked their honeymoon feel free to chime in too

hatroopes

We went to the Majestic Elegance All-Insclusive resort in P*unta Cana, DR. The resort itself is fabulous! They advertise on their site that they are a 5-star resort, but their were some little things that would make me knock off at least a star from their rating. DH and I are foodies and always trying new stuff, so we knew we were going to be very critical of the food and IMO, it was a let down. We decided not to venture into town to try the cuisine so we ate on the resort the entire time. We were there for 6 nights. We booked through priceline and were able to get a better deal than if we had booked directly from the website. We didnt do any of the activities (scuba, zip-lines etc) as we went mainly for relaxation and are not really water people. I would recommend the resort - the staff was nice, even though a lot of them didn't speak a lot of English. I would also recommend staying at the Elegance club, if you can afford paying a little extra. You get upgraded to the next best room when you show your wedding certificate or invitation, a personal butler, private pool and cabana, private dinner for 2 on the beach and breakfast in your room. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience. HTH

wallacje

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/cultural-wedding-boards_african-american-weddings_married-knotties-honeymoon-experience?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Cultural Wedding BoardsForum:400Discussion:62a3db86-ec05-42f0-bd43-df97a6da4892Post:3af983cf-838a-41f2-b291-88dcc7568de3">Re: Married Knotties: Honeymoon Experience?</a>:
[QUOTE]Sorry I'm not married (yet) but I will add that as far as booking I am working with Beach Bum Vacations for our HM.  My TA is Melissa and she has been great to work with.  When FI and I first started planning, we were planning a destination wedding in St. Thomas so Melissa was working with us on planning that.  We then completely changed our wedding to have a wedding closer to home (in Vegas) and I let Melissa know that we were no longer planning a DW but we were still thinking about St. Thomas for our HM.  She let me know that she can still plan our HM in St. Thomas even though we aren't getting married there so maybe checking out Beach Bum Vacations would be an option for you.  She basically does all the leg work as far as pricing and arrangements and even when I told her I found a cheaper price booking directly with the resort, she matched it.   I also like the fact that their TA's have travelled to a lot of the resorts so they can offer first hand knowledge of the resorts. The best thing is she's free, she gets her fee from the resort I assume.  Just something to think about.  Hope it helps :)
Posted by Sophia1913[/QUOTE]

I've actually been trying to find a TA to help me plan our 1 year anniversary/honeymoon.  I will have to send her an email.

mikimoto6

We have not gone on our HM yet (hurry up 12/16/11) but we are going to Sandals Regency LaToc in St. Lucia.  We are traveling December 16-24. I wanted to stay longer but the Accountant (aka DH) said he could not take off more than 1 week from work.  

We booked online via Sandals website when they had the free companion airfare promotion. It worked out really well for us because we are traveling from Los Angeles so the airfare to  the Caribbean always hits us hard in the pocket. It saved us a good chunk of money.  

We are in the process of trying to determine what kinds activities and excursions we want to do while we are there.  We also want to take the advice of some of the ladies on the HM board and book tours/excursions through locally owned companies because they are way more cost effective.  

We wanted to go to the Caribbean because Mexico is in our backyard and we wanted to go further away from home.  We tried to book Maui but the hotels we wanted in December were in upwards of $900 on the low end and well over $1400 per night on the high end.  DH vetoed Hawaii immediately based on price alone. 

I suggest that you select a location that will have great weather for the time of year that you are traveling, the right amount of activities, sights, and things to do. We also selected a place that neither of us had been to before so that we could explore together.  

It is probably one of the trips that you don't want to pinch pennies for, but you don't want to over-extend yourself either.   I also think you should take as much time as you can. It is one of the times where you will be given a pass for taking a little extra time off.  

prncsz

Where did you go?  Sandals Beach Montego Bay, Jamaica
How long was your stay? 7 Days
 How did you book (TA, specific website)? Not sure husband booked
 Would you recommend your hotel/resort, etc?  Yes definitely would DH and I said we would go back around the 5 year mark but invite some of our other married friends to go with us.
Overall experience? Love the place, however our room was near their construction area so we were awaken each morning by workers and grass cutting. Housekeeping is annoying and some of the female workers there are desperate! They really try to throw themselves at the married men traveling, many of which are with their new wives. DH had to put two in check! Otherwise I loved the place. The food and drinks were great and they had activities the entire time that you could participate in if you wanted

cincy2011

We went to Belize and stayed for 8 days.  I would absolutely recommend it, it was an amazing trip!  We stayed at The Phoenix resort, it's the only one I'd recommend - based on others we saw there.  It's modern with all of the luxuries you'd expect (private balcony, large condo style living space, all rooms have an ocean view, great restaurant in the hotel, within walking distance to other restaurants). 

The flight to Belize isn't long - it's about the same as flying to Mexico.  Belize is also right next to Guatamala so you could potentially visit two countries while you're there.

We had more than enough to do - from exploring Mayan ruins to snorkeling with sharks/stingrays, to inner-tubing through caves...everything was fun!

Try not to over-book yourselves, we left a few days completely open with no activities, day trips, etc. and we were glad to just relax and enjoy our first few days as husband and wife.  You will find more than enough to occupy your time while you relax in your private space! 

Sophia1913

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/cultural-wedding-boards_african-american-weddings_married-knotties-honeymoon-experience?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Cultural%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:400Discussion:62a3db86-ec05-42f0-bd43-df97a6da4892Post:9bb1141b-6ceb-4416-92d1-8efc9865529c">Re: Married Knotties: Honeymoon Experience?</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Married Knotties: Honeymoon Experience? : I've actually been trying to find a TA to help me plan our 1 year anniversary/honeymoon.  I will have to send her an email.
Posted by wallacje[/QUOTE]

Yeah once we changed our plans to Vegas I thought Melissa and I were about to part ways because I assumed she only booked destination weddings but she said she could also do the HM as well.  I'm not sure if you can select your TA from BBV but if so, I definitely recommend Melissa.  Hope this helps  :)

flawlessfay

My husband and I went to Saint Lucia and stayed at the Sandals Grande….Honestly It was nice but I will never stay at a Sandals resort again unless it was free (We spent a A LOT OF MONEY)….I have stayed at better hotels and paid way less so I would not recommend staying at sandals. We even booked one of the most expensive packages and I was still not impressed….I would recommend looking at a location that has a Iberostar and staying in one of their Adults only locations…I have stayed in 4 of their hotels and I have to say, they are top notch and not to pricey. We are going to DR for our 1 year and are staying at the Iberostar Grand Bavaro and it is AMAZING

flawlessfay

My husband and I went to Saint Lucia and stayed at the Sandals Grande….Honestly It was nice but I will never stay at a Sandals resort again unless it was free (We spent over 5,000)….I have stayed at better hotels and paid way less so I would not recommend staying at sandals. We even booked one of the most expensive packages and I was still not impressed….I would recommend looking at a location that has a Iberostar and staying in one of their Adults only locations…I have stayed in 4 of their hotels and I have to say, they are top notch and not to pricey. We are going to DR for our 1 year and are staying at the Iberostar Grand Bavaro and it is AMAZING