Where is your dream honeymoon location?

As much fun as planning a wedding can be, my mind often meanders over towards the honeymoon.

I’m almost more excited for the honeymoon than the wedding.  Overall, the wedding still takes the wedding cake, but it will be infinitely more stressful than 10-14 glorious days of rest, relaxation, and enjoying our newlywed-ness on some remote, sandy beach for the honeymoon.  I really think we should try to make this honeymoon thing a yearly tradition…

Sandals, please

For the honeymoon, we’re leaning towards one of the Sandals resorts.  Cliché? Yes.  Do I care?  Not at all.  Sandals has everything I want in a honeymoon:

• beach
• eating
• drinking
• privacy
• catered towards honeymooners
• all-inclusive

We want to go away for at least 10 days (maybe more) and spend those days relaxing on the beach, going to romantic dinners, having more sweets and decadent desserts than we probably should (and I’ll be dying to do that after cutting out sugar in order to fit into my wedding dress), and generally just enjoying being newlyweds.  Not so much to ask, is it?

The goods will cost ya…

With that said, Sandals knows their game and they know it well.  They lure you in with all those tempting accommodations and then leave you wanting more … which they will happily offer since they have such a wide variety of room choices (standard room with view of tennis courts to deluxe room with oceanfront view to a private villa with your very own pool).

When you bring up a quote on their Website for your stay, the standard room will pop up first with a price that will floor you.  Something like $2,000 for 10 days per person (remember – all-inclusive).   Sounds pretty good, right?  Then you see that the view is of the garden and that the room is teeny-tiny.  Bummer.

So … you scroll down a bit and see a $3,500 room with a private pool!  Score!  Only to find out that the view is of another pool … no oceanfront view here.

Finally, you’ll scroll down to see the Deluxe Oceanfront View room for $4,500 a person with a beautiful ocean view and you immediately fall deeply in love with this room.  You become so attached to the Deluxe Oceanfront View room that you can no longer even fathom going on your honeymoon if you have to stay in the … ick … standard room.  You MUST have the Deluxe Oceanfront View room!

Reality Check

But at $4,500 a person plus airfare, there’s no way I can swing that.  I cannot and will not spend over $10,000 on our honeymoon.

Yes, we’re getting married, and, yes, we want to have a special honeymoon, but after those two things are over, it’s back to life.  Back to our full-time job and our quest to save for a house and for retirement and for children.  As much as I want to wake up to an ocean view with my husband on our honeymoon, I can’t justify spending $11,000 for it.

Our budget is about $6,000 for the honeymoon for the two of us.  I, personally, think that is already a little ridiculous, but it’s a once in a lifetime experience and I don’t want to miss out on it.

Hey, Readers!  Have you been to Sandals?

I have several friends who have been to Sandals and absolutely loved it.  I haven’t heard a bad thing about the place!  Even my matron of honor and best friend said she loved it and I value her opinion more than anything.

So, I ask YOU:  have you been to Sandals?  If so, did you like it?  Hate it?  Did you get a good deal on your stay?  If so, tell me your Sandals money-saving secrets!  I’d love to have that room with an ocean view if it fit into our budget!