So, the wedding appears to be coming along as planned. We started talking about the honeymoon last night. After much discussion and research we came down with 2 viable options; and of course, we came down firmly planted on opposite sides. I don’t want to bias the pool by indicating which of us wants what. My question to you all is what should we do. Here are the options.
Relevent information. A topped out budget is likely to be around $2000 (Which I’m hoping is not too optimistic. It should be somewhere between 1500-2000)
Option 1> My parents have a time-share in Cabo San Lucas that they will let us use. It will cost us a good $1200 in airfare though to get there. This takes up over half of the budget, but it leaves a fair ammt left over. We’ll just have to spend most of our time vegging out instead of sightseeing/shopping.
Option 2> Road trip down to California. We live in Washington St. So it’s not that far south. We had informally been planning a trip to Disneyland because she has always wanted to go there. But along the way we can hang out, stop where we want. Take our time with everything. See the sites.
There are plusses and minuses to both. Cabo is really only not THE option to the person against it due to the budget. They see Cali as a way of being able to spend most of the money on us and not the trip. Whereas Cabo is seen by both as being likely more relaxing, and thus more enticing to the other who thinks the road trip will be frustrating.
I hope I didn’t put my personal bias in there. I clearly fall into one camp and not the other. But I’m curious to know what the consensus will turn out to be. Or if anybody has any better or different options we may not have considered.
One thing to take into consideration is do YOU think you’ll get out much? After all, this will be your honeymoon, and you may not want to leave the room much:D.
SO and I are considering Hawaii for our honeymoon next year, because we plan on marrying in Vegas, and then going straight to Hawaii. We’re East Coasters, though, so it makes more sense for us to do this. And because we’re both avid sightsee-ers, the trip won’t be a waste (I’ve never been to Hawaii, he went when he was a teenager). But if you plan on spending most of your time in your room (which I’m sure we’ll still do plenty of, but when I take a trip, I want to see things:), then I would go with the timeshare option. Otherwise, if you want to go out and do things, you may not have the money with that option - but with the Cali trip, you’d be saving on airfare and have that to spend on sightseeing options.
Am I making any sense here whatsoever? Whatever you decide, best wishes and congratulations!
California isn’t going anywhere; the timeshare may not be available the next time you’d like to use it. Go to Cabo this year, and alternate road trips and returns to Cabo as desired on anniversaries.
If you go to CA, go to Napa Valley - San Fran country, especially Calistoga Springs, it is a resort/spa - mud baths, massages, facials (might take the edge off of the Road Trip) - small, charming town, very romantic, good resturants and shopping. It is on your way to Disneyland.
I’d do Cabo. Weddings are stressful, and although right now you might not really need a week to veg out, chances are that after the wedding you will. Plus, you’ll get a lot more direct one-on-one time if you’re set up in a nice place, as opposed to being on the road trying to figure out where to stop for the night and what to have for lunch.
Don’t assume you’ll need spend a ton of money in order to see the sites and have fun, either. Days at the beach are free, as are walking through historic areas of towns and cities. Most museums are inexpensive. A day or two by the pool vegging out is cheap. Walking up and down the beach holding hands and saying “Can you believe we’re married?!?” is free and incredibly romantic. Llunch at that cool hole-in-the-wall place that serves the best Mexican food you’ve ever eaten is cheap. Shopping can even be cheap, if you stick to window shopping!
Cabo would be my choice, but I live in CA so you can see why!
We chose Hawaii for our honeymoon for a couple of reasons.
One, we had both been there several times, so we wouldn’t run into logistics confusion, which can be a drag.
Two, it was far away enough and tropical enough to seem like a vacation, but English is still the primary language, which again cuts down on confusion and frustration.
Three, whatta baaagain! Cheap flights and reasonable condo on the beach.
My advice would be this- choose the option least likely to be a hassle! You will want to relax and enjoy the trip and each other, not stress out about lodging, travel, etc.
PS- the whole “not leaving the room much” thing is funny. We were married June 11, 1994. We got to Maui on June 12, 1994. That day, OJ did it, which was good for about a weeks’ worth of TV coverage, and the Rangers were in the Stanley Cup finals that week. Damn right we didn’t leave the house much!
I vote Cabo. The whole experience will be much more of a vacation than a driving trip, which is definitely a good idea for a honeymoon. Also, once you factor in gas and hotel costs, especially if you plan to stay along the coast or anywhere near the Bay Area, they’ll start being comparable to the $1200 you estimated for airfare. So the savings isn’t as great as you might think, and a timeshare will be a lot nicer than your typical cheap motel.
