PLANNING THE PERFECT HONEYMOON

Oh the honeymoon. The time you finally get to be alone with your husband or wife with no one else around and the mammoth effort of the wedding planning is finally over. It really does feel like a dream come true. And that is exactly why you want to have planned the perfect honeymoon! Obviously much of your attention leading up to this holiday is in the wedding, however, you mustn't forget to also put some time into planning your honeymoon. So here are my tips on planning the perfect honeymoon or as close to perfect as can be.

1. Don't blow all the Money on the Wedding

If you were able to read my previous post, you would have read about my 10 tips on having a budget wedding under 10k. By following these tips, my Husband and I were able to put more of our money towards our honeymoon hence, expanding the length of the holiday and the money we were able to spend on it. Evaluate where you can cut some costs on the wedding to ensure you have enough for the honeymoon.

2. Take Wedding Planning Stress, Exhaustion and the Emotion of it all into Consideration

Wedding planning is exhausting. I'm sure by now (if you are planning a wedding) you would have discovered this. It is especially stressful in the weeks leading up to the wedding which is exactly why you need a relaxing holiday afterwards! So, take into consideration when choosing the destination of your wedding that you will most likely be emotionally and physically exhausted afterwards. Perhaps a go-go-go holiday is not the best choice and a relaxing holiday is. Obviously this mightn't be the case for everyone, however, it is something you might like to consider.

3. Leave Room in the Budget to Splurge

Tip number three ties into tip number one. Your honeymoon is a holiday you only get to have once and it's likely you'll want to indulge in activities that you wouldn't on a regular holiday. Because of this, you want to have money saved so that you can indulge in spontaneous activities like massages, fine dining, couples activities, tours and shopping, without being concerned about money. They'll end up memories you'll remember and share forever!

4. Get Prepared for the Honeymoon Before the Week of the Wedding

Perhaps we were over organised (I most certainly don't regret it if we were) as we were spending time getting ready for the honeymoon a few months in advance. We needed to organise money exchange, borrowing snorkel gear, a renewed passport, printed documents, other various other purchases and simply planning what we were going to pack. Had we left these things to the week or two before the wedding (as perhaps you would for a regular holiday), we would have been incredibly stressed and overwhelmed. So getting ahead and having these things organised in advance made a huge difference.

5. Don't Fly out the Day after the Wedding

The day after the wedding is precious. You have the opportunity to sleep in, reflect on the day itself, look at various photos and look through the cards and presents (or wishing well money like us) that you have generously been gifted by your guests. I can't imagine what it would have been like had we not have had this time before starting our honeymoon. I'd recommend having 1-2 days in between.

6. Choose a Destination that suits the Both of You

If you have never holidayed alone with your husband or wife to be it can be difficult to know how they like to holiday. Perhaps they like to relax at the beach all day or perhaps they like to go on tours and adventures and keep busy. It is important to discuss a potential destination, look into the activities there to engage in and evaluate if that will suit the both of you. This is especially important if one of you is planning the holiday more so than the other (like I was). Sometimes I like to make plans in my head and fantasise over these before I have even discussed them with Jacob. And then when I do, he isn't as excited about them as I am, which is exactly why it is important to discuss these ideas together as a couple first.

7. Don't Leave it too Late

Unfortunately everything tends to get more expensive the later you leave it. Flight prices go up along with accommodation and many hotels become fully booked. If you aren't concerned about these two things just remember the closer the wedding gets, the more stressed you are likely to be and the more stressful it could become to plan your honeymoon last minute. So, start researching holiday options early on, visit a travel agent to help you plan and start booking!

8. Let Everyone Know it's your Honeymoon

Make the most of the honeymoon bonus'. Room upgrades, wine, fruit upon arrival in our room and spa credit were a few that we received from our hotel in Thailand just by mentioning to them that it was our honeymoon when we booked. When booking through a travel agent they can do this all for you and push for these added bonus'. Just don't forget to have a photo of your wedding certificate with you in case they ask to see it!

That's all for now, thanks for reading!