Honeymoon Recommendations?

[randomrogue]

Well the Maldives are R/R and scuba diving. 3-4 days there is a waste of time and money. These kinds of questions are so open ended really. For me, the Maldives is a place I'm keeping reserved for my honeymoon since the idea of eat, sleep, fuck, beach, and scuba diving is perfect for the occasion.

Maybe a budget and total time off would help us narrow down some realistic choices.

The OP asked about Costa Rica. It has just about everything you could want, is easy to travel in, is relatively cheap, and is very safe. You have jungle, cloud forests, rain forests, beaches, animals, and more animals. It's not my first choice for a honeymoon but I think it might meet his needs.

Really need time and budget. When I think Honeymoon I think 3-4 weeks not 3-4 days.

 

[crashtestdummy]

One thing to keep in mind about Norway is cost. It has a very strong economy so drinks, food and activities etc can get expensive. There are things you can do to mitigate them but definitely something to be aware of esp when compared to some of the other places mentioned in this thread

Very true, though there are still ways to get around cheaply. Drinks are insanely expensive ($20 for a beer at a restaurant !?!?!) because they tax heavily in an attempt to discourage alcoholism. What we did was just buy a bottle of Scotch at the duty-free in the airport, and drove around with that for the trip.

The hiking lodges charge about $25/person/night to stay there, but about $50/person for dinner, breakfast and a bag lunch (though dinner is a three course meal of awesome food). Restaurants are even more expensive. Hotels are generally at least $200/night as well. What we found when on the road, though, is that most areas have a commercial camp site nearby that rents out cabins you can stay in for $40/night that also have kitchens. I found this a lot more to my taste than being in a hotel anyways, so that worked out wonderfully.

With all that, it still wasn't a really cheap trip. We splurged a bit on eating out, but didn't stay at hotels. For two weeks and two people, the total (including flights, car, lodging, food, and everything else) came out to about $5k.

If you're willing to rough it a bit more, they have a right-to-roam law, which means that you're allowed to camp on any land that is not being used for residence (must be a few hundred meters from a house) or agriculture. As a result, if you have a tent with you, you can always pull over and camp for free.

 

[MajorMullet]

My wife and I went to the island of Lana'i in Hawaii - it was absolutely amazing. The island is barely populated (only 30 miles of paved roads). There are two Four Seasons resorts and a small town in the middle of the island, and that's it. We stayed at Manele Bay and I still remember the view every morning when we walked from the room to breakfast. We would have to stop and stare for a while just to take it all in. The view of the water is just amazing.

The island offers a ton of outdoor activities. You can rent a jeep and drive yourself around the island if you want, but we took a guided tour. Skeet shooting was was a lot of fun, there are hiking trails near the resort, snorkeling nearby, etc.

Their website has a good list of the activities available.

I will say that this was six years ago. Larry Ellison bought the island recently and has apparently started a renovation campaign. I'm not sure what may have changed from when we were there. I definitely want to go back one day though.

 

[Exterous]

It's not the strength of the economy, but the socialist political system. They tax luxury items and activities very heavily. Last I heard it's 100% sales tax on dining out.

While you're not wrong that some taxes are high the economy absolutely plays a huge part in how expensive Norway is:

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-20/norway-has-too-much-of-a-good-thing

I believe Norway still has the highest average wages in Europe

 

[tenthumbs]

Consider Belize. There's a ton of things to do besides SCUBA, the people are nice, you use US currency and it's relatively cheap. Any place but Belize City is good. You're also close to the Guatemalan border which allows for easy access to Tikal (look it up). So you have inland jungle with Mayan ruins to explore and then you have various Caye's for ocean activities. Easy to get to also.

 

[randomrogue]

Salaries are huge in Norway. Taxes are huge in Norway. Their quality of life is through the roof.

If you're going there consider hitting up the Fjords during the winter. You can do dogsleding and see the northern lights. Swing by Northern Sweden to see the Ice Hotel. As far as hiking and all that during the warmer months it's a top notch choice if you think it's romantic enough for a honeymoon. Many consider the Norwegian Fjords to be the most beautiful place on Earth.

 

[SSSnail]

We're doing this this fall, and going to the Maldives for a few days, then off to Singapore for the food.

 

[mkrohn]

You guys keep going pretty exotic but In the summer its tough to beat places like Alaska. Norway, finland anything way north

 

[jaedaliu]

You guys keep going pretty exotic but In the summer its tough to beat places like Alaska. Norway, finland anything way north

Those sound pretty exotic to me.

Budget and total vacation time are needed from OP. Travel time and costs need to be factored into our recommendations.

 

[poofyhairguy]

I loved Amsterdam for a honeymoon.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

So i'm getting married next year and the fiancee has put me in charge of the honeymoon planning. We're saving up some cash on the wedding so we can hopefully splurge a bit on a nice vacation. We're looking to go to places that have beautiful resorts but also a healthy dose of activities. Neither of us are the type of people who can just sit on a beach for a week straight. We're also looking for places off the beaten path so we can do things like hiking or water activities or both. I'd personally like to go somewhere with a lot of natural beauty, wildlife or something just really unique. One suggestion I got is to maybe fly to the maldives for 3-4 days and then spend some time in Africa (Zanzibar specifically).

Does anyone have any similar experiences or recommendations?

St. Lucia.

Stay at Ladera resort - http://www.ladera.com/ My wife and I went in 2006 and it was an amazing experience. You can head to the beach, go horseback riding, tour cocoa fams, climb the pitons, visit the local volcano (its safe), tour a rainforest, etc. Everything an active tourist might want.

 

[iamwiz82]

Could rent a private, crewed catamaran in the Caribbean and have them sail you around. You would get to see a lot of things most people never have and never will.

 

[mkrohn]

Could rent a private, crewed catamaran in the Caribbean and have them sail you around. You would get to see a lot of things most people never have and never will.

especially if you set sail from Bermuda

 

[Spooner]

Just did a 2 week honeymoon in Hawaii. We are the absolute very similar style of a couple and loved every second of our trip (seems so long ago now )

i can share my itinerary as we felt like we did it all without feeling rushed at all

 

[Midwayman]

We did 12 nights in French Polynesia. 2 in an over water bungalow and 10 on a cruise of 5 islands. We snorkeled, hiked, jet skied around Bora Bora, ATVs around one island, did jeep tours of islands, etc.

Best vacation ever.

Did a very similar trip this winter. French polynesia is great. However it is super spendy. The cruises are actually an incredible value compared the the hotels. Bora Bora is way cool, but get out to some of the smaller islands. We went to Fakarava. Amazing diving, and it really feels like the end of the world in a way that Bora bora or Tahiti don't.

 

[glenn1]

So i'm getting married next year and the fiancee has put me in charge of the honeymoon planning. We're saving up some cash on the wedding so we can hopefully splurge a bit on a nice vacation. We're looking to go to places that have beautiful resorts but also a healthy dose of activities. Neither of us are the type of people who can just sit on a beach for a week straight. We're also looking for places off the beaten path so we can do things like hiking or water activities or both. I'd personally like to go somewhere with a lot of natural beauty, wildlife or something just really unique. One suggestion I got is to maybe fly to the maldives for 3-4 days and then spend some time in Africa (Zanzibar specifically).

Does anyone have any similar experiences or recommendations?

Do you really want to spend a good chunk of your honeymoon time in transit to your destination? Depending on which airline you fly with you'll be on a plane for 25-30+ hours. And connecting in places like Cairo and Dar-Es-Salaam don't sound like a great time either.

We went to Costa Rica for our honeymoon and had a great time. There's lots of options for activities and it's a pretty easy destination to fly into/from.

 

[RossMAN]

10 top beach resorts around the world

http://travel.yahoo.com/photos/10-t...e-world-1371234536-slideshow/#thumbnails-view

 

[JoetheLion]

IMHO, first thing to consider, is to find a place which is not overcrowded by tourists, otherwise you'll only spend most of the time waiting in a queue. So I would cut from the list the most obvious places like London, Paris, Venice etc... sometimes less is more and a good thing is to have an international driving license, rent a place in a small shore town or village in a driving distance to some interesting places and rent a car. Or you can use some public transit, if available.

 

[randomrogue]

An international driver's license is just your license translated into a whole bunch of different languages. You can get them at AAA for $15 or free if you're a member iirc.

 

[evident]

i went to the cook islands last september. if you want a relaxing, secluded tropical beach destination with good eats, ideal beaches with snorkeling and scuba, you cant beat it.

 

[KMFJD]

Ubud in Bali

 

[ultimatebob]

Niagara Falls. Save the money that would have spent on overpriced airfare on good food and lube

 

[glenn1]

Niagara Falls. Save the money that would have spent on overpriced airfare on good food and lube

IMHO, you might as well have suggested Branson, Missouri and the Golden Corral early-bird buffet. Niagra is something you do when you're in your 60s or 70s, not on your honeymoon.

 

[alkemyst]

Destinations really depend on the port/flights near you and what types of things the couple likes.

Being I am near Miami, going out of there is much much cheaper than flying out to the west coast for those islands.

 

[ultimatebob]

IMHO, you might as well have suggested Branson, Missouri and the Golden Corral early-bird buffet. Niagra is something you do when you're in your 60s or 70s, not on your honeymoon.

What are you talking about... Niagara Falls used to be the Honeymoon capital of the world! If you're looking for nature, you can go kayaking on the Niagara river, take a Ice Wine tour, and stay at a quaint little bed and breakfast with a garden in back.

Bring us back some Cuban cigars, OK?