Looking for Unconventional HM Spots

kellya01

Hi ladies,

I'm interested in your suggestions for our honeymoon.  We want something more unconventional -- not the beach, not a kid-tourist spot.  Something unique that doesn't charge for every single activity might be nice.  We are thinking about something in the mountains... domestic US, maybe Canada or Alaska, next July.  

Do you all have places you would recommend looking, cities, specific hotels, cabins, etc?  What about specific attractions that you enjoyed on your unconventional vacation or honeymoon?  

Thanks!  Sorry about P&R - I have a bunch of shows to play in today, but I'll be back tonight to provide any more feedback if you have questions! 

samantha buck

Alaska is really beautiful we went to anchorage, palmer, wasila, and off the lake louise I believe they have cabins you can rent but im not positive, (my parents have property in Alaska) 

I live here in colorado in boulder/nederland area and there is a ton of hiking if that interests you. or maybe higher in the mtns like vail, cooper, keystone, steamboat etc I hope that helps.GL

samantha buck

I forgot to meantion We also went to vancouver island in british colombia. It is also very beautiful lots of dence bush and the ocean but not sand its rocky like river rocks.

Summer2011Bride

I would recommend Colorado also. I have not personally been there (but really want to go!) but my MOH has been there numerous times and said it is gorgeous! You could get a cabin in the mountains and even in the summer, there are lots of outdoor activites to do, most of which (like hiking) would probably be free or low cost.

South Carolina is also beautiful. I've only been to Myrtle Beach which is very touristy, but I've heard other parts of the state are less busy and still very pretty.

kaesha

Vancouver Island is awesome. I lived there for a year and have family there - if you like doing outdoorsy stuff, it's amazing. Lots of little spas all over the place too!

If you're into something more cultural, you should try Montreal and Quebec City!

kellya01

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions!! Just got back in from playing for a dress rehearsal and 2 shows today, so I'm pretty exhausted.  My FI and I are really thinking of going somewhere we wouldn't normally be able to go, but we really don't want the typical touristy or beachy spots, so I hope these will help us decide what to do... gotta save the $$ for it, yada yada... :-) 

kaesha

If you're into theatre, you should think about doing the Canadian side of Niagara. Just up from the falls is a little town called Niagara-on-the-Lake. The Shaw Festival is on each summer, and does great plays; there are tons of cute b&bs and old hotels AND (my favourite part), the better part of 30 wineries to tour and taste at! You could go up to Toronto from there too.

Sue-n-Kevin

Without knowing where you both may have been already, or how many days you have to spend on a HM, it's tough.

However, I lived in Massachusetts for 6 years, and saw all of New England. While it is near water, you don't have to do "beachy" things, and nearly every single historic site around Boston is free. A few years ago I took my kids on a trip where we flew into NY, drove all the way up to Maine the first day (9 hrs), then worked our way back down over 7 days. We spent 2 days in Maine, 2 in and around Boston, then 2 days in NYC. If you want mountains, then stay away from the coast and go into New Hampshire & Vermont, just don't miss Boston if you like history, because the Freedom Trail Walk takes you to Faneuil Hall, the Old North Church, etc. They really enjoyed this trip. For a honeymoon, there are fabulous B&Bs in NH and VT, as well as rural areas of New York State around the Finger Lakes region.

If you want "Free", all the museums in Washington DC are free, although July is a busy time there. You can drive up through the mountains from NC, visit Mt Vernon in VA, do DC.

Good luck.

kellya01

Thanks, Sue!  We aren't sure how much we want to spend on a HM -- we're more interested in where we might want to go first, then figuring out the $$ part to see what we can afford to do there.  We have been to Chicago for a conference together, and his family lives in SC, mine lives in VA and NC, so together we haven't gone very many places.  I have been as far as Michigan and Cleveland by myself (via car) and we thought about just having a road trip as we make our way somewhere, and he has thought about renting a camper or something too.  Basically we're thinking about a week -- leaving Sunday, coming back Saturday or Sunday.  As long as he can get internet access on Wed, Thurs, and Fri we'll be fine (he's in an online masters program and his classes start back on that Wed.)  It might be nice to go somewhere and stay there for the week, but that also limits us on what we can see and do in that one place.  

OXOX14_5182289

mohonk mountain house in new paltz, ny. it is one of my favorite places to visit. they have all sorts of activities that are included in your stay...

http://www.mohonk.com/

Complimentary recreational activities include:
85 miles of hiking with guided hikes led daily by our recreation staff; swimming in our indoor heated pool and Lake Mohonk, access to our comprehensive fitness center, Yoga, core conditioning and other fitness classes; tennis on red-clay and Har-Tru ® courts; midweek golf on a 9-hole, par 35 Scottish-design golf course; boating; croquet; platform tennis; lawn bowling; putting green; shuffleboard- and so on....

glam70s

I love both of Canada's coastlines (I'm from Ontario, so I'm a little biased about Canada).. The north of BC (Bella Coola area) is amazing in the summer if you love nature and hiking. The horseback riding there is incredible (just watch out for bears!). The east coast is where FI and I got engaged. Halifax, Nova Scotia and St. John, New Brunswick are really nice places to spend your days wandering. The infamous Cabot Trail provides countless hours of driving and hiking and excellent camping. You can go whale watching for $25/person, hang out on a pub patio with live music, really soak up the culture and history of the area. Although there are beaches, they're not "beachy" at all, it's more about fishing villages..

My FI spent a lot of time in Boston this summer visiting a friend at Harvard, and he said he can't wait to take me there because it's such a great city with so much to do.. He insists we could stay there for 3 weeks and never get bored, and the photos he brought back were beautiful..

npwlab11

Are you at all interested in a cruise?  We just booked a Gulf of Alaska cruise from Anchorage (Whittier) down to Vancouver for our HM this July.  From all of the research we have done it seems like it will be the perfect blend of down time and doing excursions in port.  With a cruise, a ton is included and you only have to do as much as you feel like (for example, you could choose to spend a whole day watching the glaciers from the balcony in your cabin and have food brought to you - getting dressed is totally optional!). 

We are getting married on a Saturday, going to Alaska on Monday, and then the cruise leaves Wednesday night.  It gets into Vancouver a week later and then we are going to spend a few days there because we heard it's amazing as well.  There are also a lot of round-trip cruises to Alaska out of Seattle that are more affordable in terms of airfare, and wouldn't require the extra days on each end.  Good luck deciding!

Pesapenny

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_looking-unconventional-hm-spots?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:c6d9cbe6-b6c2-44e6-a994-3dfaef018587Post:d3b4b501-f0f2-4451-8bdd-5de65beed467">Re: Looking for Unconventional HM Spots</a>:
[QUOTE]I forgot to meantion We also went to vancouver island in british colombia. It is also very beautiful lots of dence bush and the ocean but not sand its rocky like river rocks.
Posted by samantha buck[/QUOTE]

...uh, what?

Vancouver/Victoria are great.

kellya01

Hmm, the Alaska cruise sounds intriguing.  So does the Vancouver suggestion... We'll have some fun looking on the internet, for sure!!  Thanks for all the ideas!!  Y'all are great!