picking honeymoon

[britTANNY]

I am so confused on where to go for our honeymoon...
How did everyone decide on a place?
I keep looking at options and what i think i have decided on is warm, beaches, and lots of activities... And as good of a deal as we can get lol

Also how many did all inclusive and did you think it was really worth it to go that way... And around what time of month did you go?

[dearmissie]

I am so confused on where to go for our honeymoon...
How did everyone decide on a place?
I keep looking at options and what i think i have decided on is warm, beaches, and lots of activities... And as good of a deal as we can get lol

Also how many did all inclusive and did you think it was really worth it to go that way... And around what time of month did you go?

We decided on Hawaii because it's sentimental. That's where DF proposed to me and originally where we wanted to get married. We decided to island hop for 14 days because even though DF has traveled all around the world (literally, he's been just about everywhere) island hopping in Hawaii is something he hasn't done (but he's been to Hawaii like 4-5 times??).

We love Hawaii because it's very warm, gorgeous beaches, tons to do, great food, and wonderful people but the one thing that we don't like about it is that it is not all noninclusive. For our one year anniversary back in 2006 we went to Cancun and stayed at a 5 star resort for 8 days. It was gorgeous there and very affordable!! Between the two of us, I'd say with hotel, flight, going out, activities, etc we spent perhaps $4000?? It was a great trip and everything like our food and alcohol (except our partying/jet ski/sight seeing activities) were included which was nice. And there were "resort" activities that they had which were free such as poolside bingo (I won!!), lip sync contest, impersonator show, karaoke night, belly flop contest, volleyball games, and poolside salsa class. We went to a few of the activities, a lot were cheesy but fun still.

We loved Cancun, and we want to go back again (but it'll be DF's like 5-6th time returning) however we decided to not go for our honeymoon because personally we felt like it was very much of a family type of atmosphere during the day (which is great for when we have kids because it was pretty kid friendly!! They even had a kid zone, a kid pool, and a teen center!!) and at night it was very party Party PARTY!! Lots of fun (trust me, SO MUCH FUN) but DF and I were hoping for more of a secluded romantic type of honeymoon. (And I have to add, for some reason I wasn't too crazy over the food there. I ate at the resort and I also paid to eat OFF the resort. The food at the resort was the best, but for some reason didn't hit my pallet. Everything tasted-- different?? DF said it's probably because of the different type of agricultural they do there and the water/pesticides they use?? Shoot, I even ordered Pizza Hut and it didn't taste the same. Haha!! And I know everywhere you go the food will taste different, but I'm used to it still making my mouth water ya know?? Hard to explain..)

FBIL went last year for his honeymoon and they stayed at a cheaper hotel and they said they had a blast partying. I think Cancun is a great affordable honeymoon. And even though Cancun is known for partying-- You could of course "have to" party. I'm sure you can make it as romantic as you'd like. ;);)

Best of luck!!

[FFC]

I asked my travel consultant, she recommended Jamaica. We did the Sandals all-inclusive and LOVED it! I definitely hope to do an all inclusive again someday :) And Jamaica was better than I imagined.

[xxeverafterx3]

Which Sandals did you go to Justina? FH and I are considering Sandals Negril, our friends went there for their honeymoon and loved it! We are also considering Secrets resorts either in Cancun or Jamaica. I personally think the all-inclusive is the way to go, but it is a little bit spendy. But for what we want, we won't really be spending more than the airfare and the resort .... Definitely check out Jamaica because from what I've heard it's gorgeous - also check out Aruba!!

[gwenshack]

We went to Key West because we wanted surf/sand and also party/drinking. It was right up our alley. Plus they had all kinds of water sports activities, historical locations (we're nerds) and it's beautiful (so it also catered to our honeymooning needs). :)

[FFC]

Which Sandals did you go to Justina? FH and I are considering Sandals Negril, our friends went there for their honeymoon and loved it! We are also considering Secrets resorts either in Cancun or Jamaica. I personally think the all-inclusive is the way to go, but it is a little bit spendy. But for what we want, we won't really be spending more than the airfare and the resort .... Definitely check out Jamaica because from what I've heard it's gorgeous - also check out Aruba!!

Sandals Grande, Ocho Rios. Absolutely fab! Did the extra stuff too (costs extra, so it'd make a great registry), like horseback rides, quads, catamaran party cruise, hiked the falls. I totally recommend it, plus there's another Sandals right down the road and you can bounce - which we never had time to do in our 8 day stay. My honeymoon journal has all the pics and stories. (careful, they have him in em LOL).

ETA: the scuba diving was my highlight. Well worth every penny just for that experience!

[ChristineLS]

I am so confused on where to go for our honeymoon...
How did everyone decide on a place?
I keep looking at options and what i think i have decided on is warm, beaches, and lots of activities... And as good of a deal as we can get lol

Also how many did all inclusive and did you think it was really worth it to go that way... And around what time of month did you go?

We were doing it on the cheap, so we decided to start with generals:

We both like being outdoors, a good place outdoors was nice.
We wanted to go someplace that we'd never been.

Neither of us had been to the Adirondacks, and through my church we found accommodations we could afford (and it ended up being a fantastic experience), we decided to road trip it.

So yeah, money drove our decision making.

[hleef]

were stuck on this too... i think sandals is a bit out of our budget i havent talked to a travel agent but i looked on their site and it came to 6000 including airfare (for St. Lucia) the secrets resorts seem to be cheaper 3000 including airfare i think... i was also looking at crusies but my FH wants to "go somewhere" id love to do a national park road trip but my FH doesnt like long car rides so i think thatll have to be a trip either with my mom or a few friends lol

http://www.cruisedirect.com/destinations/find_dest_caribbean_deals.php?next=5&cruiseVendor=&cruise_duration=&input2=&input3=&range_from_month=&range_to_month=&range_from_date=&range_to_date=&range_from_year=&range_to_year=&cruise=&portid=&price=&flag=&cruiseVendor_side=
heres the website that i found cheap cruises for 1000 for 2 people hope that helps

[britTANNY]

We decided on Hawaii because it's sentimental. That's where DF proposed to me and originally where we wanted to get married. We decided to island hop for 14 days because even though DF has traveled all around the world (literally, he's been just about everywhere) island hopping in Hawaii is something he hasn't done (but he's been to Hawaii like 4-5 times??).

We love Hawaii because it's very warm, gorgeous beaches, tons to do, great food, and wonderful people but the one thing that we don't like about it is that it is not all noninclusive. For our one year anniversary back in 2006 we went to Cancun and stayed at a 5 star resort for 8 days. It was gorgeous there and very affordable!! Between the two of us, I'd say with hotel, flight, going out, activities, etc we spent perhaps $4000?? It was a great trip and everything like our food and alcohol (except our partying/jet ski/sight seeing activities) were included which was nice. And there were "resort" activities that they had which were free such as poolside bingo (I won!!), lip sync contest, impersonator show, karaoke night, belly flop contest, volleyball games, and poolside salsa class. We went to a few of the activities, a lot were cheesy but fun still.

We loved Cancun, and we want to go back again (but it'll be DF's like 5-6th time returning) however we decided to not go for our honeymoon because personally we felt like it was very much of a family type of atmosphere during the day (which is great for when we have kids because it was pretty kid friendly!! They even had a kid zone, a kid pool, and a teen center!!) and at night it was very party Party PARTY!! Lots of fun (trust me, SO MUCH FUN) but DF and I were hoping for more of a secluded romantic type of honeymoon. (And I have to add, for some reason I wasn't too crazy over the food there. I ate at the resort and I also paid to eat OFF the resort. The food at the resort was the best, but for some reason didn't hit my pallet. Everything tasted-- different?? DF said it's probably because of the different type of agricultural they do there and the water/pesticides they use?? Shoot, I even ordered Pizza Hut and it didn't taste the same. Haha!! And I know everywhere you go the food will taste different, but I'm used to it still making my mouth water ya know?? Hard to explain..)

FBIL went last year for his honeymoon and they stayed at a cheaper hotel and they said they had a blast partying. I think Cancun is a great affordable honeymoon. And even though Cancun is known for partying-- You could of course "have to" party. I'm sure you can make it as romantic as you'd like. ;);)

Best of luck!!

Thanks! I've never been anywhere and neither has he so anything we do will be fun and exciting! And we thought about Cancun too and Hawaii... We know someone that used to live there so i could talk to her and figure out the best places to go, and we know lots of people that have been to Cancun so we kind of just tossed it to the side as a maybe... thats really neat about the resort having dance lessons and stuff and also thats a great price...i want it to be romantic and secluded lol i love kids but im not going to be around a bunch of them on my honeymoon lol :)

[britTANNY]

Which Sandals did you go to Justina? FH and I are considering Sandals Negril, our friends went there for their honeymoon and loved it! We are also considering Secrets resorts either in Cancun or Jamaica. I personally think the all-inclusive is the way to go, but it is a little bit spendy. But for what we want, we won't really be spending more than the airfare and the resort .... Definitely check out Jamaica because from what I've heard it's gorgeous - also check out Aruba!!
Thanks Justina!

And yea my uncle has been to Aruba, i think if your planning on doing a lot of drinking and heck everyone has to eat all inclusive is a good way to go... I even checked with a few places and soda, smoothies, and shakes and stuff are also included! My friends got married in Jamacia and they want to go back they said it was really amazing!

[britTANNY]

We went to Key West because we wanted surf/sand and also party/drinking. It was right up our alley. Plus they had all kinds of water sports activities, historical locations (we're nerds) and it's beautiful (so it also catered to our honeymooning needs). :)
What kind of historical locations did you visit? I was looking into key west and found a super cute bed and breakfast thats right on the beach! Also there was a dolphin and shipwreck snorkle, sunset sail with dinner and with those 2 things staying a week would come out to be around 1400... We are pretty nerdy when it comes to sightseeing to :)

[britTANNY]

We were doing it on the cheap, so we decided to start with generals:

We both like being outdoors, a good place outdoors was nice.
We wanted to go someplace that we'd never been.

Neither of us had been to the Adirondacks, and through my church we found accommodations we could afford (and it ended up being a fantastic experience), we decided to road trip it.

So yeah, money drove our decision making.
That sounds pretty wonderful :) very laid back... I had thought about doing something like that and it was an 8 hour drive from where we are now to Galveston, TX but tannys been there and said he didnt think i would like it because it wasnt very pretty

[britTANNY]

were stuck on this too... i think sandals is a bit out of our budget i havent talked to a travel agent but i looked on their site and it came to 6000 including airfare (for St. Lucia) the secrets resorts seem to be cheaper 3000 including airfare i think... i was also looking at crusies but my FH wants to "go somewhere" id love to do a national park road trip but my FH doesnt like long car rides so i think thatll have to be a trip either with my mom or a few friends lol

http://www.cruisedirect.com/destinations/find_dest_caribbean_deals.php?next=5&cruiseVendor=&cruise_duration=&input2=&input3=&range_from_month=&range_to_month=&range_from_date=&range_to_date=&range_from_year=&range_to_year=&cruise=&portid=&price=&flag=&cruiseVendor_side=
heres the website that i found cheap cruises for 1000 for 2 people hope that helps
Thank you! Yea road tripping would have been a lot of fun for DH but not so much for me lol i sleep in the car and its hard to stay awake! :)

[acidcookie]

I know we were chatting about this in the other thread, but I figured I could share with others too. DH and I decided on Puerto Rico without too much thought because we wanted somewhere that was tropical and where we felt we could relax so the Carribean seemed like a good choice. Also it's not too far away since we live in the SE. I also purposely didn't want to visit somewhere that I've always wanted to see with lots of history and culture that was interested in (like Greece) because I knew we'd only be there a few days, and I didn't want to feel like I was trying to cramming a lot of stuff or like I missed out on really experiencing it. That's NOT to say that PR doesn't have culture and history of course, but it offers so much beautiful beach relaxation that I knew we'd be satisfied with that, and I don't have the same investment in its history like I do with European history.

We actually went on http://www.cheapcaribbean.com to look at the deals for all different islands, and liked the deal we found for PR which included the resort (just the room cost) and the flight, for $1300 total, for both of us. That seemed like a steal, so we didn't think about it too much (plus we were super busy at the time repainting, fixing up, and staging our house for sale)! DH really only had 5 days to be on vacation during his spring break (he's a professor), so it was important to go somewhere that didn't take a day and a half to get to. We just had a quick flight from Savannah to Atlanta, and then it's just 3ish hours from Atlanta to San Juan. Also, it helped toward my personal goal to visit all US states and territories (I've been to 27 of the 50 states/DC, over halfway! ;)), haha.

We also rented a car because with the island not being that big we wanted the option to explore. That said, we didn't plan ANYTHING but staying at the resort, and just found things to do as we felt like it. That way we didn't ever feel like we had an itinerary to complete, and it left for plenty of time to just sit on the beach. We wanted to relax after all that wedding planning and then family in town! But we did end up hiking the rainforest, and exploring some towns in different areas, and then spent time in Old San Juan, WHICH I LOVED!!

[brendalin]

We went to a travel agent, told them what our expectaions were (warm, sun, all-inclusive, no worries, ocean, fun, and relaxing). Then we told her the budget that we had in mind.

She showed up a couple of options and we ended up going with Jamaica. It was wonderful!!!

[Jenny874]

I also like this ideas
Thank you for sharing
Very excited
The most beautiful day!!