Honeymoon - Destination and Cost

View quoted message I’ve done it before

If you want to save money, Cuba is beautiful and relatively cheap compared to other tropical countries. We stayed in an all inclusive 5 star resort for a week for about $2000 each (you can get as cheap as $1000-$1500 depending on what time of year you go)when we went. Of course just keep in mind a 5 star resort in Cuba is about the equivalent of a 3 star in North America. But the beach can't be beat!

View quoted message Nah that's not really how it works.

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Could you do a cruise to Montego Bay?

haha don't know if that's an option but could work to get off during the cruise

We're not sure. FH wants to go on a cruise and then to Universal. I want to go to Sandals Montego Bay. Both of us are *okay* with the other one, but we would prefer our choice. Luckily we have a long time to think about it.

View quoted message I believe we are looking at the Renaissance, it’s a couple blocks from the downtown area

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We stayed at the Riu Palace Antilas and really enjoyed it. It's all-inclusive, so it was good that we didn't have to think about dinner every night, and it had a nice stretch of beach that was kind of secluded (so less foot traffic and minimal children). Lastly, it was a really quick was into town, so we were able to try quite a few different restaurants while we were there.

Which Marriott are you staying at exactly? I looked it up on the map and there are so many Marriott's lol. FYI, it looks a little far from the nearby town.

View quoted message Ah I’m so happy to hear that! We haven’t decided yet but one of the Marriott hotels for sure! Apparently there are two, one on the beach and one in the city. We are leaning towards city because it is adults only. Where did you stay?

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We did Aruba for our honeymoon and it was AMAZING! Basically my favourite place in the world now lol. What resort are you staying at?

A lot of people have been going to greece and having been doing air bnbs and leaving when its cheap to fly out there instead of going right after the wedding.

We are going to go to Vegas I think. Its somewhere you can't go for too long (we'll have to leave kids with family) but that is just for adults. We can go to a few shows, do a little gambling and just have a bit of time together.

We are going to Aruba! We found a pretty good deal on Costco vacations - if you’re a member definitely check it out, our package includes flights and hotels and it’s for sure the best deal we’ve found for this location. They have a ton of different places!

There are so many great options and resorts. Really look at if you guys are beach people or pool people. That will help with making a decision!

We are going to Excellence Playa Mejures in Mexico. Its a little more expensive than what we wanted, but every time we have gone away it has been with other people, and this is our first trip alone so we wanted to treat ourselves.

We're going on a cruise in the Caribbean pretty much right away (end of October - hopefully hurricanes are done by then!).

It can get pricey, especially if you start adding on excursions/drink packages, but if you aren't picky on room type/going on excursions, it can be cheaper. Most food is all inclusive - there are some places that have a charge. You can also disembark at the ports-of-call and just relax at the beach until the ship leaves.

We originally wanted New Zealand but it's way too expensive. We decided to do a tour of Europe. I think it's around $1700 each plus meals. We probably won't be able to go right after the wedding, we'll still have to save for it.

What me and my FH are doing is waiting - you could always do a mini-moon and stay home but maybe in a hotel or go to a spa? Then when you save up the money, and get the marriage certificate, you can go somewhere! Especially since if you have the certificate then you have a better chance at discounts

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Thanks! that's super helpful!

View quoted message I think you can definitely find something in your price range!! June-September is hurricane season, so just keep that in mind when choosing a destination. St Lucia is in the hurricane belt but we think we’ll be ok with going in July.

Aruba isn’t in the hurricane belt. My sister in law went there, as did my parents, and both loved it!

Barbados, Grenada, Curaçao are also not in the hurricane belt.

I would contact a travel agent and see what they can do for you. Look out for deals online as well! I’ve gotten lots of emails from Redtag and Itravel2000 recently!

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Yeah, we would be leaving the next day. We were hoping to stay under 5k because we're both students, but we realize that's really hard to stick to due to flights and all that adding up.

View quoted message We’re doing two different Sandals resorts in St Lucia for two weeks! We can’t wait to be by the water and in the sun.

What is your budget if you I don’t mind me asking? There’s lots of all inclusive options in the Caribbean! Also when would you be travelling? Right after your wedding? Or another time in the year?

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That's so fun!

We definitely want to do relaxing. Like you said, less travel and more being together. I'm less inclined to do a cruise, because ideally we'd be more secluded. And we definitely want a pool!

We actually looked into a few places with private pools, but those get very pricy.

We’re going to St. Lucia for two weeks, we want a relaxing vacation versus a travelling one, like a Europe trip.

Any ideas on what you want? Do you want to see different places? Go on a cruise? Or just go to one destination and relax?