Honeymoon May 2017 Help needed!

passremarkable

Getting married in May this year but struggling to decide on honeymoon destination. we will be heading for 14-16 days. Need to get it booked.
Would like a mixture of fun/activity & relaxation but cant decide.
Thinking of vegas/mexico or perhaps thailand and few islands?
Anybody any experience of either or both or other recommendations.
All views welcome
Thanks
PM

wuffly

Probably an out there suggestion but we did Alaska at that time of year, once in a life time trip. We live in a desert so sun wasn't import to us. We also left our honeymoon for months after the wedding as it was a busy trip.

Glacier cruise, hiking, fishing (did not think i would like this but it was great craic) bear viewing, gold panning, flight around Denali (formerly mt McKinley) landed at base camp, crossed the arctic circle, natural hot springs, surprisingly amazing food(especially in and around Homer). Anchorage is small and low rise very chilled a day or two is loads. Crazy but great people. This was 4 yrs ago.
Visited the town northern exposure(if you remember the tv show) was based on, great little spot!
We rented a camper van and drove a lot, less is probably more but I don't think we'll have the chance to go again so glad we did what we did.
It was expensive but it was amazing.

D0NNELLY

Orlando for fun, then drive to Clearwater for the relaxation

mcgiggles

Depends on your budget really.. I've been to Cuba and Dominican Republic and I would recommend either! They are both absolutely stunning! 
You could do a few days in Mexico chilling and then do a cruise around the Caribbean for a week?
We're looking at doing Thailand next year - fly into Bangkok for 3 nights, up to Chiang Mai for 4 nights and do tours there, and down to phuket for 6 nights! (We're looking at January and Koh Samui and those islands side is in monsoon so we have to go the other side )

SarahMollie

First thing I would check is what options are available weather wise at that time of year - you don't want to go somewhere thats oppressively hot or during rainy season etc.

I went to Cuba in May a few years ago and we were probably on the cusp of when its ok to go there, we had some rain showers but not so many as it really impacted out holiday - plus it was that amazing kind of warm, tropical rain (not like Irish rain!) so if anything it was just kind of spectacular.

Anyhow, tell us more about what type of holidays you enjoy? Culture Vulture of Beach Bum? That way we can make more targeted suggestions.

Sarah1916

I was in Thailand before and it was amazing and would definitely recommend for a honeymoon - you could do a number of islands in 14/16 days. Phi phi was my favourite.

I was in Vegas before and would also recommend but have not been to Cancun so cant comment.

As some other post mentioned - Dominican Republic is amazing.

Another option - if you don't mind all the travelling is Bali. One of my favourite places ever.

passremarkable

Thanks for all the suggestions much appreciated. I'm personally up for more activities than the other half but we are trying to reach a compromise so that's why we want a mix. Budget is approx €4K ish, and we have got packages for this price that look good for both places but just unsure which would be the best experience. Also looking at Bali too , which looks amazing!This is such a first world predicament I know!
Just wanna get best value and memories ..

missmatty

Very similar situation here, actually thought you were my other half posting as we had the same discussion last night We are thinking maybe New Orleans for a week and then either a week somewhere in the Caribbean or a cruise around the Caribbean islands or something like that. Glad to hear the weather is good in Cuba in May, that was another option we discussed. First world problems indeed, it's a good one to have! Good luck with your planning OP.

zoobizoo

Okay, having been on honeymoon and been to a fair few of the countries mentioned I'd advise this:

Go somewhere relaxing - you'll want to just lie down and do nothing for the first few days at least.

Go somewhere set up for tourism with a bit of luxury - Thailand would be perfect for that. Bangkok for three or four nights and then down to the Islands. It is an amazing country that is totally tourist friendly.

Cuba can be a hassle to get around and while i loved it there, it was an adventure. So if you're happy staying in Casa Particulares (B&Bs for €25-€35) then it's great. There are hotels from €300 a night and not much in between. If you are thinking about it then 2 days in Havana, then down to Trinidad and the local beaches for a week, maybe an island and then back to Havana for a few days - you'll appreciate it more on the way back.

Mexico is great - if you wanted to do all inclusive for the first five days or so I'd check out Tulum - Kore resort. Then go adventuring maybe up to Holbox island and maybe do an internal flight to Mexico city for a few days - it's an amazing city. You can fly to Cancun directly with some Irish holiday places or via London.

Tulum in Mexico reminded me of Thailand - beaches, beach bars and restaurants.

If you need any more info then let me know

Romantic Rose

wuffly wrote: »

Probably an out there suggestion but we did Alaska at that time of year, once in a life time trip. We live in a desert so sun wasn't import to us. We also left our honeymoon for months after the wedding as it was a busy trip.

Glacier cruise, hiking, fishing (did not think i would like this but it was great craic) bear viewing, gold panning, flight around Denali (formerly mt McKinley) landed at base camp, crossed the arctic circle, natural hot springs, surprisingly amazing food(especially in and around Homer). Anchorage is small and low rise very chilled a day or two is loads. Crazy but great people. This was 4 yrs ago.
Visited the town northern exposure(if you remember the tv show) was based on, great little spot!
We rented a camper van and drove a lot, less is probably more but I don't think we'll have the chance to go again so glad we did what we did.
It was expensive but it was amazing.

I would love to find out more about this trip. How much was it, how long you spent there, where did you fly into etc.

We were originally thinking of flying to Canada and doing a cruise around Alaska. The more I read about these countries, the more I'm fascinated by them.

wuffly

Romantic Rose wrote: »

I would love to find out more about this trip. How much was it, how long you spent there, where did you fly into etc.

We were originally thinking of flying to Canada and doing a cruise around Alaska. The more I read about these countries, the more I'm fascinated by them.

Honestly its kinda hard to put a price on it. (Around $5kUS:eek: ex flights, really once in a life time!) We flew from the middle east so flights from Ireland should be cheaper. Flew to anchorage and we were there for 2.5 weeks. We rented a camper van from anchorage (I'll dig out the company name) we had hoped to get something like the wicked vans in NZ but nothing like that available. Fueling it was expensive. We planned our own itinerary before we went and dropped and added things when we got there.
The thing i would think about the cruise is that it will likely be full of older american couples. We did one organised tour when we went to the arctic circle and that's what the crowd was like. No young people. It was just a bit sedate, that part if we were doing it again we would have take the flight but we had already done two flight tours (bear viewing and denali) so we thought we'd go cheaper on this, it was an 18hr trip. The glacier cruise we did was just for a day out of Whittier(there is nothing else in this town and there is tunnel in and out with specific opening times).
The flights were expensive but honestly totally worth it. We went to Denali base camp and it was just out of this world. Also the bear viewing, the pilot fly's around spots a bear lands down the beach and you get to see them close up with maybe 5 other people, (the bear we saw was busy clamming so didn't take any notice).
We went in shoulder season which made a massive difference to the prices, we also just booked things as we went I'm not sure if its that easy in high season. Cost wise, its remote so almost everything is coming from a long way away so its makes it expensive. We did breakfast and lunch in/by the camper most days, there is always some where with a stunning view to stop.
We met very few international tourists they were a lot of american's that had driven up from other states. Also meet lots of people that had never met an Irish person.
The milepost is a great reference.
The people are great and have a real sense of love for the land and what they do. They all do other work so it doesn't feel as touristy when you do touristy stuff. the pilots do plenty of commercial work as do the fishermen, we met guys that pan gold for a living etc...
We saw the vessels from the deadliest catch and were on the ice road truckers road minus the ice (my brother watches these things, i had no idea until he pointed stuff out in our photos)
The only thing we missed was the northern lights as it was about 22hrs daylight when we were there.

Sorry that was a bit a of ramble! Would love to be going back!

Romantic Rose

wuffly wrote: »

Honestly its kinda hard to put a price on it. (Around $5kUS:eek: ex flights, really once in a life time!) We flew from the middle east so flights from Ireland should be cheaper. Flew to anchorage and we were there for 2.5 weeks. We rented a camper van from anchorage (I'll dig out the company name) we had hoped to get something like the wicked vans in NZ but nothing like that available. Fueling it was expensive. We planned our own itinerary before we went and dropped and added things when we got there.
The thing i would think about the cruise is that it will likely be full of older american couples. We did one organised tour when we went to the arctic circle and that's what the crowd was like. No young people. It was just a bit sedate, that part if we were doing it again we would have take the flight but we had already done two flight tours (bear viewing and denali) so we thought we'd go cheaper on this, it was an 18hr trip. The glacier cruise we did was just for a day out of Whittier(there is nothing else in this town and there is tunnel in and out with specific opening times).
The flights were expensive but honestly totally worth it. We went to Denali base camp and it was just out of this world. Also the bear viewing, the pilot fly's around spots a bear lands down the beach and you get to see them close up with maybe 5 other people, (the bear we saw was busy clamming so didn't take any notice).
We went in shoulder season which made a massive difference to the prices, we also just booked things as we went I'm not sure if its that easy in high season. Cost wise, its remote so almost everything is coming from a long way away so its makes it expensive. We did breakfast and lunch in/by the camper most days, there is always some where with a stunning view to stop.
We met very few international tourists they were a lot of american's that had driven up from other states. Also meet lots of people that had never met an Irish person.
The milepost is a great reference.
The people are great and have a real sense of love for the land and what they do. They all do other work so it doesn't feel as touristy when you do touristy stuff. the pilots do plenty of commercial work as do the fishermen, we met guys that pan gold for a living etc...
We saw the vessels from the deadliest catch and were on the ice road truckers road minus the ice (my brother watches these things, i had no idea until he pointed stuff out in our photos)
The only thing we missed was the northern lights as it was about 22hrs daylight when we were there.

Sorry that was a bit a of ramble! Would love to be going back!

Thank you so much for the great reply. It sounds right up my alley. We love love nature and it would be amazing to see wildlife up close and personal which we wouldn't see here. We would definitely be treating it as a once in a lifetime trip too but you only live once so I'd die happy!

Would that be 5k per person?

wuffly

No it was about 5k for both, possibly a bit more. The flights(in AK) and the camper were a big chunk of that. If can you give it more time it would be well worth it. We only got to do few 'front country' hikes in Denali as it takes such a long time to get back country(by park bus) and we didn't have the bear proof gear(i think you can rent), you can't take a camper in. But it was still stunning. The wildlife around Homer is fab, bald eagles are so common, they are practically a pest. lots of moose just roaming around. Take a boat to Halibut cove, one of the most picturesque places and one of the tastiest meals I've ever had. We did our fishing trip from here as well, you could easily spend a whole trip in this part of AK.

Romantic Rose

wuffly wrote: »

No it was about 5k for both, possibly a bit more. The flights(in AK) and the camper were a big chunk of that. If can you give it more time it would be well worth it. We only got to do few 'front country' hikes in Denali as it takes such a long time to get back country(by park bus) and we didn't have the bear proof gear(i think you can rent), you can't take a camper in. But it was still stunning. The wildlife around Homer is fab, bald eagles are so common, they are practically a pest. lots of moose just roaming around. Take a boat to Halibut cove, one of the most picturesque places and one of the tastiest meals I've ever had. We did our fishing trip from here as well, you could easily spend a whole trip in this part of AK.

It sounds like heaven! Thank you

passremarkable

Sarah1916 wrote: »

I was in Thailand before and it was amazing and would definitely recommend for a honeymoon - you could do a number of islands in 14/16 days. Phi phi was my favourite.

I was in Vegas before and would also recommend but have not been to Cancun so cant comment.
As some other post mentioned - Dominican Republic is amazing.

Another option - if you don't mind all the travelling is Bali. One of my favourite places ever.

Just wondering did you go to Thailand in may ? Was weather ok ?

Tsipras

My vote is for Santorini for a week and another Greek Island for week 2
Santorini is the most beautiful place in the world. And very romantic
It won't be too busy in May either

passremarkable

Decided on Thailand in the end.
How much would people recommend to bring in total? Is it ok to use Visa card over there ?

brownbinman

bring what you can afford, but never bring all your cards out, keep some in the safe.

we loaded up our credit cards with a certain amount, then when it was gone replenished them.

Word to the wise, in Thailand the ATMs give you the cash first, then the card once you selected "no other transactions". We left it in machine once and someone tried to empty us out.

A good buddy system of reminding each other is key

ToonArmy89

passremarkable wrote: »

Decided on Thailand in the end.
How much would people recommend to bring in total? Is it ok to use Visa card over there ?

Since you have decided to go to Thailand and your going in May I would definitely recommend going to Koh Tao . It's one of the most beautiful places I have been and one of the most relaxed places you will go to

Two restaurants worth trying if you do decide to go there are The Gallery and Barracuda had fantastic meals when I went in early August 2014

SarahMollie

brownbinman wrote: »

we loaded up our credit cards with a certain amount, then when it was gone replenished them.

This is actually pretty risky, you'd be better off seeing if you can get your limit raised if you need additional funds. Monies loaded onto cards are not protected in the same way as a normal credit card transaction and are no safer than cash really.