Non Beach HM ideas?

ailinjohn · August 2012

Hi everyone! So my FI and I are doing a destination wedding to Bermuda soooo we do not want to spend another week on a honeymoon sitting on a beach.... were not huge "beach" people to begin with! Ironic I know. We live near NYC so our plan was to keep our HM location within driving distance.... I'd say less then 6 hours each way. We have done Mystic CT, Boston, Newport, NYC and are not casino people. We also have done cruise out of NYC to Canada and our wedding is a cruise so we would like to stay land locked for this trip. I was thinking Niagra Falls, Amish country, etc.... but do you all have any ideas? We love museums, art galleries, parks, etc. We getting married April 2013 and I dont want to spend more than 2k on the HM. Thanks Ladies!!!

JoanE2012 · August 2012

How about Portland, Maine or Williamsburg, Virginia?

BrittneyRN · August 2012

Washington DC

MelissaC315 · August 2012

I don't know if you're skiiers (or would want to try) but Aspen is gorgeous!

MelissaC315 · August 2012

oops didn't see the part about driving distance... there are ski resorts that are within driving distance though. VT, Adirondacks....

cadamus · August 2012

Montreal is beautiful! I just went there this summer! There were a ton of thigns to do!

Magdala9 · August 2012

If you like out of doors things like hiking, canoeing, etc, try West Virginia.

alithebride · August 2012

toronto and niagara on the lake and niagara falls.

katieh1988 · August 2012

Have you ever been to Pittsburgh? It's an awesome city with beautiful parks, tons of museums, and great tours and millions of thins to do. The restaurant scene is incredible There's a ton of nice hotels in the downton area within that budget and everything is very reasonable here. There are a bunch of different districts to explore!! Good luck planning!!

Sue-n-Kevin · August 2012

With the list of items you mentioned, Washington DC has all of that and is FREE for most. If you have never been, it's fabulous and you have to see it once.

My son has lived in DC for the past 3 years, and we've visited him a lot.

You will not need a car, but if you insist on driving, hotels charge $25-$50 a night just to park it, and there is nowhere to park if you use your car to get somewhere. If you are flying in, there are Metro trains or busses that take you from any of the airports to the Metro line to get around. It is safe and easy and eliminates the need for a car. If you haven't arranged your flights yet, look into flying into Baltimore's airport, which is usually quite a bit cheaper. From there you can take a Metro bus to the Green Line last stop, then take the train into DC.

The cheapest hotel nearest to the Mall area is the State Plaza. It's a former apt complex turned into a hotel, they have full kitchens (stove, sink, microwave, fridge, dishes, utensils.........and the maids do the dishes!). There is a CVS around the corner and they sell food items, grocery store not near it.

From the State Plaza it is about a 5 block walk to the Lincoln Monument. Once you are on the Mall you can walk from one end to the other.

Go to your Senator's or Congressperson's website and most have tour requests (sometimes it says "constituent services"). Through their office you can book timed tours. I highly recommend the Library of Congress tour for the lovely architecture and history behind it, and the Bureau of Engraving (where you see sheets of bills stacked on pallets or rolling off printers).....really cool store at the end of the tour as well.

All of the above is in addition to the standard Smithsonian museums as well.

Founding Farmers is a very cool restaurant with great food. We didn't have any formal or romantic meals while there.

Look at www.tripadvisor.com for ideas for restaurants by style and price, as well as activities.

I believe you can rent boats to take a ride on the Potomac if you are into that. I also agree that making sure to see the sights at night is a great idea.......while not typically "romantic", it is lovely.

Tips:
wear comfy shoes, it's an absolute requirement
It gets pretty hot and muggy in the summer, make sure to have plenty of sun screen and bottled water available.
Go online and plan out the things you want to see while there. Then, cut the list into the "have to see" stuff, most of which is free.
Try to organize your days into specific areas. There's a lot to see, but try to stay in a certain area for an entire day. You'll save wear and tear on your feet
Most of the museums are along the sides of the Mall or on a side street near the Mall.

Since visiting my son there, I've found this to be one of my favorite cities, and I've been to a lot. It really is amazing when you get there.

Go to www.washingtonpost.com and sign up for their weekly "Things to do" emails. I still get them, and they give you great ideas of FREE events to see for the coming week.

hoffse · August 2012

I second (third?) DC - FI and I both interned there for a while in college and didn't run out of places to visit, and we are VERY touristy... in fact, there are a few places I still haven't seen. DC is tiny and completely walkable - the metro system is (in my opinion) vastly better than NYCs because it's air conditioned and not nearly as crowded. The only place the metro won't take you is into georgetown, which is definitely worth seeing. That said, it's a (long) doable walk from the nearast metro station, and you can see the national cathedral on the way if you take the right street.

I also recommend flying in. The amount you'd spend at hotels parking your car isn't that far off from the price of a flight, and flights are just a lot more convenient in that city. Check out hotels in alexandria/crystal city/pentagon city. It's on the virginia side of the river and is less expensive as a result. The metro ride in is maybe 15 min instead of 5, but you get a big savings that way. I'm in love with alexandria - FI and I dream of living in those neighborhoods someday because they're very quaint with awesome restaurants and antique stores, but still within walking distance of a metro stop.

If you go, you MUST see arlington, the national cathedral, the national gallery (largest degas collection outside of france), and the natural history museum (hope diamond!). The asian art museum is really cool also, though it's not quite as accessible as the other art museums if you don't have any art training. I've heard the newseum is amazing, though i've never been there because they charge admission in a city that's essentially free. Of course, the monuments on the mall are worth seeing, and I agree that the library of congress is incredible. If you go to one of the library's other branches, you can tell them you are a "researcher," and they will give you an ID to go into the reading room and just explore on your own. FI and I did that while we were there that summer, and I got to read the 7th harry potter book the day it was released in the main reading room of the original library (which is usually not open to the public, except for an upper gallery for tours). It was pretty awesome. I also love foggy bottom/GW - check out embassy row and that area for some great restaurants and really cool little houses.

random4180 · August 2012

We just got back from doing something similar (we're from NYC)- we went on a NY road trip. Covered the Adirondacks/Lake George, Niagara Falls, the Finger Lakes, and the Catskills. It put over a thousand miles on the car but we took two days off from driving while we were in the Falls and it was the perfect break. We aren't big beach people and if you like hiking at all, there's a bunch of places in the Niagara Gorge that have amazing scenery. We hit a bunch of breweries and wineries along the way and those are some great souveniers at the end of the trip! There's tons of places that have outdoor concerts and lots of historical places to stop. We had a great time and never left the state- of course, we also planned it in the last month before our wedding and with more time to pplan, you can probably even leave the state, lol.

bordomkiller · August 2012

There are some really beautiful Bed & Breakfasts in Vermont. For a short trip, we always enjoy going to Brattleboro, vt.

Non Beach HM ideas?

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