Honeymoon destinations? Exotic on a budget?

Zascar

I need to start planning a honeymoon - for October next year. I'm already spending more than I'd like on the wedding, and I really don't want to drop huge money on a lavish trip - so I'm looking for really good value.

I'm looking for something with beautiful beaches, really chilled, good service - typical paradise island type of thing. We would love to go to the Maldives or Bora Bora but I believe it can be incredibly expensive. I have no set budget exactly, just wondering can anyone recommend something suitable that is really good value? I want a nice hotel, I know you can get 5 Star in some places for very reasonable money.

What would be some good places to start looking?
Thanks

happypants

I would suggest having a look at Thailand! It's really good value for money and the most expensive part can be getting there. There are some beautiful islands and resorts over there and some of the nicest beaches in the world.

You could take a look at flights on uk websites, we did that with Mexico one year and saved Over €900 pp by flying to Gatwick then with an English company to an all inclusive resort. You'd probably get even better deals now with the sterling Rates.

Congrats on the wedding I hope you have a fantastic day and fab honeymoon!

dudara

Mexico has fantastic beaches (beautiful white sand and warm blue waters) and luxurious resorts which can offer some really good value for money. We did 10 days in a very lovely adults-only 5* all-inclusive resort for about €200/night. The only money we paid was for excursions to the Mayan ruins, and tips for the wait staff.

Flights via BA via Gatwick outbound and return via Philadelphia with AA were about €1,200 when booked 6 weeks out, but this was during mid-term, so I'd say they're cheaper during quiet periods.

I got quotes from travel agents for the trip, but I ended up booking all the bits myself so that I could get the exact trip that I wanted.

Use travel agents like Kuoni (who specialise in luxury travel) to start getting ideas.

stratowide

Zascar wrote: »

I need to start planning a honeymoon - for October next year. I'm already spending more than I'd like on the wedding, and I really don't want to drop huge money on a lavish trip - so I'm looking for really good value.

I'm looking for something with beautiful beaches, really chilled, good service - typical paradise island type of thing. We would love to go to the Maldives or Bora Bora but I believe it can be incredibly expensive. I have no set budget exactly, just wondering can anyone recommend something suitable that is really good value? I want a nice hotel, I know you can get 5 Star in some places for very reasonable money.

What would be some good places to start looking?
Thanks

Koh Chang,Thailand.A little paradise island just off Thailand.Was there this year
during a back packing trip.It was my favourite place in all SE asia.
White sandy beaches,warm seas,lovely food,lovely people and very cheap.
i stayed in beach huts mostly,there was loads of 5 star hotels around to choose from too.
The 'sleaze' factor is almost non existent here compared to the other islands in Thailand.
There is a daily mini bus service from Bangkok to the island,Ithink its about 5 or 6 hours away.Getting to Bangkok is the most expensive part but its very cheap after that when you get there.
I hired a scooter for about €5 a day too.Great way to see the island.

Morris Moss

Some really nice suggestions here, I'll give you 1 more with South Africa, was there in October and it was lovely, just coming into summer so between 20 and 25 degrees most days, food and drink are really cheap and depending on where you go so are hotels.

amdublin

Cancun is good value and lovely

gumbo1

Fly with Ethiopian airways to zanzibar. Fantastic white sand beaches that go for miles, great locals, only a small few of the hotels are not 5* and it's fairly cheap for food drink and transport. There's lots to do on the island if you want a day out. We stayed in Nungwi, which at the northern tip, and done day trips to zanzibar town an the jozani forest. If you really are looking for a paradise island honeymoon then I can't recommend it highly enough!

Plankton1

I can also vouch for Thailand. Only spend a night or two in Bangkok and then get yourself down to the islands or Ko Lak on the coast. Ko Tao is gorgeous.

However I really have to recommend Cuba. It's a bit pricey getting there but you have gorgeous beaches, lots of history, all inclusive resorts or historical hotels (or much more budget friendly is staying in casas owned by locals for about 30euro a night) and Havana is really romantic....(i would say that as I got engaged there!!)

SarahMollie

Hi OP,

Well firstly I'd forget about BoraBora for a start - flights there are limited to only a very small number of flights in and out meaning that the costs are very high. I've heard estimated of an average of €12-15k per couple for a week!

That said, there are many many beautiful places to go for a lot less. If you want the all inclusive thing, I hear Mexico can be hard to beat price wise. Also there are tonnes of options in Asis, Thailand has been mentioned already but I'd also look at Cambodia and Vietnam.

Myself and my OH went to Cuba last year for about €2k per head for 12 nights - now we chose not to do non stop luxury (we spent our money on moving around a lot and doing lots of excursions - we stayed in Havana, Trinidad and Varadero) Our final 4 nights were in a 5 Star all inclusive in Varadero which was full of honeymooners - also worth noting that we only spent about €1k between us in spending money the whole time we were there. That was lots of eating out, we bought a few more day trips over there, bought a few souvinears (rum and cigars), and tipping at the hotel. Theres no real shopping to do though as such Holiday of a lifetime and a great choice if you're after some culture along with your luxury.

Sarah1916

I would also vouch for Thailand. It is amazing, Phi Phi islands are out of this world. We got flights for €620 each around late September.
I would also recommend looking into Dominican Republic.
We got a 12 day holiday there for €1800 each including flights and that was all inclusive (literally all you could eat and drink).
We booked separately. flights with BA via London and then booked Dreams Punta Cana Hotel through Travel Republic website. DR has some amazing beaches and gorgeous hotels.

Also one more place - which is probably even nicer than both mentioned above is Bali!! It is absolutely out of this world. We got cheap flights for about 600Eur and then when you get there everything is so cheap. Even cheaper than Thailand. Again I went around late September.

_Jamie_

Hey Zascar, the huz and I are going to Marrakesh for our honeymoon in May. No flights booked yet, we're waiting to see if Ryanair are keeping Marrakesh on next year's schedule, as it is currently. If not, we'll probably fly with Iberia or KLM and bookend Morocco with city breaks in Europe. Even the more expensive flights won't be that much.

We got ten nights at a top hotel for €1000 for the two of us. We chose Marrakesh because it's not too expensive to get to and neither of us like long flights so it's an exotic location with no longer of a flying time than going to Greece. Something for you to consider?

Mince Pie

_Jamie_ wrote: »

Hey Zascar, the huz and I are going to Marrakesh for our honeymoon in May. No flights booked yet, we're waiting to see if Ryanair are keeping Marrakesh on next year's schedule, as it is currently. If not, we'll probably fly with Iberia or KLM and bookend Morocco with city breaks in Europe. Even the more expensive flights won't be that much.

We got ten nights at a top hotel for €1000 for the two of us. We chose Marrakesh because it's not too expensive to get to and neither of us like long flights so it's an exotic location with no longer of a flying time than going to Greece. Something for you to consider?

I wouldnt want to spend 10 nights in Marrakesh. Went years ago and stayed about the same but it was too much. If I was to go back which I would have no problem doing I would stay maybe 4 days max then head to Casablanca or somewhere on the coast to chill after the hectic full on few days rambling the souks and Kasbah.

bee06

If you're thinking Mexico bear in mind that Zika is still a danger so if baby's are in the near future you might want to give it a miss.

_Jamie_

Mince Pie wrote: »

I wouldnt want to spend 10 nights in Marrakesh. Went years ago and stayed about the same but it was too much. If I was to go back which I would have no problem doing I would stay maybe 4 days max then head to Casablanca or somewhere on the coast to chill after the hectic full on few days rambling the souks and Kasbah.

We wouldn't spend more than four days rambling the souks either. We will be taking some trips out of the city - the Atlas mountains are nearby - and will be spending the rest of the time relaxing. We are very good at relaxing. We chose the hotel for that purpose as it is suited to that. The time of year we are going will be nicely hot before the scorching summertime temperatures kick in so there is no need to head to the coast to relax. I love the sea but I don't need to be near it on every holiday I go on. I'm happy to get away from it for once actually and experience a whole new landscape.