The Go Frugal Guide to Honeymooning on a Budget

There’s nothing more rewarding after six to 12 months of meticulously planning wedding details, negotiating with vendors and trying your hardest to appease your family and your in-laws than leaving it all behind to veg out for a few days with the person you just committed to spending the rest of your life with. Don’t think of your honeymoon as a normal vacation — use it to truly unravel all the stress you’ve been feeling and to enjoy your new spouse.

Make your honeymoon last as long as you have the vacation days for, but use them wisely. Time spent recuperating and relaxing at home can be just as much or more memorable than spending the entire time in another city. And if the number one honeymoon destination is Hawaii, why not do something more original? Below are some tips for honeymoons of all shapes and sizes.

The Reason for the Season
There are three seasonal categories in the tourism and hospitality industry that will cause rates to fluctuate — high season, low season, and the shoulder season. Costs are lowest, obviously, during the low season, but there’s a reason. The weather could be horrible. The high season could carry the most favorable weather conditions, but not always. The shoulder season bridges the other two season and often has just as nice weather as the high season. Use Internet travel sites to do research about what you can expect during these time periods.

Do Not Disturb
A stay-at-home honeymoon is the least stressful way to spend your first days together as husband and wife. It can also be just as romantic. Ask your florist for a bag of extra rose petals (they often do this as a service anyway) that you can line your bed or bathtub with. Candles will set the mood, along with music, and the right foods. Often couples who do choose to stay at home get the added benefit of being able to hang out with friends and family who are still in town after the wedding. Now that the wedding day is over, you’re free to relax and be yourself again.

Book a Single Night
My husband and I spent our first night together in a four-star hotel downtown that I found a discounted rate for by booking online. The room was luxurious, and we didn’t have to travel after the wedding ceremony. We got to relax before driving to our destination the next day. If you have your heart set on a really nice hotel, consider booking just one or two nights there, then go to a hotel or resort that’s more affordable for the rest of your stay.

Another option is to find a family member or friend who has a timeshare or owns a vacation home they’ll let you use for free or at a steep discount. Instead of spending all your money budgeted on the honeymoon for accommodations, you’ll be free to splurge on eating out or local activities.

Get somebody else to pay for it!
Honeyluna.com is an online honeymoon registry service where your guests can opt to pay for individual services on your honeymoon. Your friends and family can sign up to pay for a day of pampering, or cover a night’s stay. The Knot has a “create-a-gift” program that directs guests to gift checks they can give to the couple for them to spend on whatever they want. Similarly, some banks offer wedding accounts where guests can drop money into an online account for the couple. Just make your invited guests, friends, and family aware of these options. Include links to the sites from your bridal website and have friends who are throwing you showers include the registry information along with your more traditional registries at department stores.

If you paid for the wedding on your own and your parents are looking for a nice wedding gift, there’s no shame in your game if you tell them how much it would mean to you to have a couple night’s stay in a luxurious resort. But if they seem set on buying you a washer and dryer instead, don’t push the issue. (Go with the online registries instead.)

Avoid Honeymoon Packages
You’ll likely pay a lot more for special “honeymoon” packages — and all you might get out of it is a bottle of champagne. Forgo the package and purchase your amenities or activities a la carte to save money.
    
Read Hotel Reviews
No matter where you vacation, make sure you do your homework. Don’t stay at a hotel you haven’t read reviews for. Websites like www.traveladvisor.com posts reviews of hotels and vacations from people around the world. Additionally, when looking at the website for the hotel, make sure they show pictures of the accommodations, and not just the perfectly manicured lawn and pool.  

Spend Less on Your Trip

• Eat your biggest meal at a nice restaurant during lunch when the prices are cheaper. Buy snacks or eat lightly for dinner. And of course, take advantage of your hotel or resort’s free breakfast.
• Steer clear of souvenirs. Of course you’ll want something to remember your honeymoon by, but will you really wear that $32 T-shirt a year from now? Instead of buying cheap souvenirs, I found one item I loved (a large framed Victorian-inspired portrait on sale at a local shop). I think of my honeymoon every time I look at it. I treasure it.
• Avoid the mini-bar like the plague. Bring snacks and drinks or buy them from a local store when you arrive at your destination instead of paying a ridiculous $5 for a bottle of water in your room.
• Flaunt your status. Let everybody know you’re newlyweds on your trip — you’ll get free stuff. (But don’t tell people when you’re booking your trip — you’re likely to get charged for extras.) Even a local shop gave us a free item of our choice when we told them we were on our honeymoon.