A Series Of Unfortunate Events
We are in the final weeks before the wedding and have been trying to get our honeymoon nailed down. No, we aren’t really procrastinators, at least I’m not (hi Liz!), it’s just that the honeymoon has been something a moving target. The plan was this: a week after the wedding we hit New Orleans for two nights, then we hop on a cruise from there to the Caribbean and a bit of Mexico. We figured we would be in pretty decent shape because the cruise was scheduled just past the end of hurricane season.
Then along came hurricane Katrina, and New Orleans was devastated. I didn’t really want to write anything about our minor inconvenience when there were so many people in need of help. Our problems are pretty insignificant in comparison. The only reason I am writing about it now is because I find what’s currently happening to be kind of interesting.
After a couple weeks, the cruise line offered a full refund or a transfer to the rescheduled cruise departing from Houston, TX. We were weighing our options when the weather people announced Rita, the next scary-sized hurricane, setting about her course to… Houston… which is now experiencing a mass exodus as people head further inland to safety.
Two signals like this are tough to ignore and we got to thinking that we probably shouldn’t be going on that cruise. We’re going to ask for that refund after all, and seek out a new honeymoon. We aren’t really certain where we will go yet. The original plan was for white beaches and clear water, but we may be broadening our options past that. Any suggestions?
On one last odd note, the next hurricane in line will get the name Stan.
- Posted at 10:28 am in Personal, Random
Commentary Closed (59)
You’ll never go wrong going to Vancouver and then on to Whistler/Blackcomb.
White beaches and clear water? You should really check into La Paz, Mexico.
I think the Seattle/Alaska combo is in order. Ask Jeremy Keith… it’s the shiznit.
Due some meteorological peculiarities, Europe does not experience hurricanes. Perhaps a return to the Mediterranean?
I was just going to suggest the same Canada trip. Maybe take in Banff if you get a chance - and Calgary.
I agree with Mike D. (!) and say you should go with Alaska/Seattle.
My wife and I did that back in May and we had a blast. Of course, we opted to roam around ourselves, but either way, it’s beautiful.
Now is not the time to go to Alaska, save that trip for June.
The Dominican Republic has some amazing beaches. Check out the Bavaro Princess All Suites resort in Punta Cana.
I’m just back a few weeks from my honeymoon in the Maldives. For white sands, clear water, and relaxation, I couldn’t recommend it more.
In particular, the Kuramathi Blue Lagoon resort where I stayed was impeccable, both in facilities and service.
The only downside was the lengthy travel involved (26 hours door to door coming from Ireland).
H & I are headed to Maui for our h’moon next month. Because of the unpredicatable hurricane season, we decided to go West Coast/Pacific instead of Keys/Gulf Coast/Atlantic.
Also, we have HORRIBLE luck w/ weather on vacations. Better luck to you and your bride-to-be as you make your next destination decision.
Well, since it’s been 5 years and my wife and I still haven’t honeymooned, I couldn’t tell you where to go. Perhaps the Italy, Middle Earth or Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Or you could go to the Apple Store and use the money you got back from the cruise to buy neat toys.
I would love a trip to Alaska, personally, but then, my wife was born there and her parents live there. I’ve been shown photos of its beauty since we started dating 10 years ago.
Definately check out the Mayan Riviera. My wife and I honeymooned there last September when Ivan was coming through. We had clouds for one day and that was it. The Mayan Riviera is far enought south that it is pretty well off. We did an all expenses paid trip through Apple Vacation. We plan on going back in a couple of years we loved it so much.
If you still want to visit Mexico, we did an all inclusive week in Playa Del Carmen through Apple Vacations. Really reasonable (we spent less than $3,000 for the entire trip) and the beach can’t be beat. It was voted in the top 3 worldwide by the Travel Channel.
We did a New England roadtrip around the same time and it was really freaking great. Berkshires, Rockport/Gloucester MA, up to Maine. Beautiful too, it being fall and all. AND I could hook you up with Great Barrington accomodations in the Berkshires.
I recommend that or Phoenix. Hot dry sandy cowboy boot fun. Hurricanes rarely visit.
Istanbul is extraordinary.
Mike’s right: a cruise up the inside passage of Alaska in a (small) cruise ship is indeed, as he puts it, the shiznit (although Greg speaks from experience when he says that this is perhaps not the best time of year).
I’m going to be totally mercenary and suggest that you take a trip to the Southern shores of the British Isles instead. I hear Brighton is lovely this time of year.
Go to Brazil
it’s a beautiful country, you will have a great time.
Philippines, dude.
Oh. Wait. You’d’ve just been married. Shit. Stay the hell outta the Philippines — too many hot-assed women there.
It would have sucked to have been annihilated by a storm named Stan.
Hey, Cleveland’s beautiful this time of year…
No? You’re sure?
Okay, so I’ll second the Mayan Riviera. Kat and I stayed there a few years ago and enjoyed it quite a bit. I particularly recommend snorkeling at the Xel Ha ecopark; you can swim with dolphins there as well, for a hefty extra fee. If you or Liz are sunburn-prone, though, pick up some SPF 70. No, I’m not kidding: it’s available and it is quite different than SPF 45. It made a huge difference for me, anyway.
We went camping for our honeymoon. A great expereince.
There’s always Mexico (fairly inexpensive & I hear it’s lovely) or the Azores- a group of islands off Portugal that are supposed to be beautiful & full of pampering opportunities…
Being from Florida, I could recommend a ton of great places to stay down there. Sure, it’s usually a hurricane target (at least it WAS last year), but there are so many places to go. For our first anniversary, Ames and I stayed in a bed and breakfast in historic St. Augustine. Not only can you get the sun and sand from the nearby beaches, but in the historic district there has great restaurants, shops, bars, and museums.
thailand. not bangcock, not phucket, but further south on the andaman sea in the krabi provence - ao nang. accommodations and food are cheap as hell, and the beaches are stunning. rent a longboat with a driver for the whole day for $12 and snorkel/frolic around uninhabited islands.
Kauai was amazing. Though, I’m not sure what cruises are available in that area; I bet there are tons. If distance isn’t a problem, Greece is quite nice; not terrific food, but amazing beaches and history there, also Southern Italy is out of control fun/cool/beautiful. And if you don’t go there on an anniversary, definitely go sometime. It’s amazing.
My brother and his wife just came back from Bali and had an amazing honey moon.
There’s always the Jersey Shore! (not-so-white beaches and not-so-clear water)
No matter what you guys decide you’ll be married and away together to celebrate it.
friends of mine honeymooned in rumania a few years ago—sounds perfect for an october wedding…
Costa Rica
Galapagos Islands
Morocco
Banff
You definitely cannot go wrong with any of these locations. Simply incredible.
Come to Philadelphia. It’s lovely this time of year. Rich in history and the people are friendly too.
I worked as a photographer for a wedding company on maui for a year. You can’t beat the beaches and sunsets there. There are so many things you can do after or during your stay: rainforest hiking, snorkeling, star-gazing 10,000 feet on Haleakala or Horseback riding in Paniolo country to name a few.
I would highly recommend Hawai’i.
I would recommend Dominican Republic. I was just there and it is so beautiful. You cannot go wrong with Punta Cana at all.
Have you considered space? You don’t have to be an astronaut anymore. You could orbit the earth, or enslave moon-men…
We were just looking at places for our honeymoon (next November). There’s a place in all the wedding magazines that has tented rooms on piers over the water. That would be great, but you have to watch the water temperature, I think it was in Bermuda, which can get a bit chilly as the year winds on.
If you’re going to the DR, Punta Cana is great, but we just stayed at Bayahibe (southern coast) instead of the east coast. It’s sheltered from a huge current that kills the diving (well, it’s not your typical caribbean diving). Bayahibe was a great set of dives, the beaches were wonderful, and the all inclusives there are fantastic (and inexpensive).
We’re currently looking into Trinidad & Tobago as well as The Turks and Caicos. But we’re big divers, so that drives things for us.
just don’t plan to come to memphis, since hurricanes seem to follow it. how about iraq instead?
Well, it’s not exotic or anything, but Clearwater/ St. Pete have just about the nicest beaches in the lower 48. You should be all nice and clear of hurricanes by that time as well. It’s relatively cheap and the beaches are mostly public. Water’s still warm, too (hence all the Gulf hurricanes). Oh, if you are still looking to do a cruise, the port at Tampa has quite a few ships leaving regularly.
Of course, my wife and I went to London in March for our honeymoon, so obviously we didn’t give a damn about weather. Traveling with a cool chick is usually fun in of itself.
Did ya think of Vegas yet?
Just be carefull walking down the sidewalks.…
Good luck.
I’m with Lou, why not check out somewhere like St. Lucia or the Turks. They are beautiful places (at least from the pictures I’ve seen) and they are just, slightly under the radar of being too popular, if that makes any sense.
The Seattle/Alaska combo is interesting. I spent my honeymoon in Victoria B.C. with a little time in Seattle.
Nice place to be this time a year, and the Empress hotel in Victoria is gorgeous.
At any rate, good luck finding the right spot.
we honeymooned in tahiti last year on the island of moorea in one of their overwater bungalows.
highly recommended.
I’d say hit Mauritius. Supposed to have the finest beaches anywhere.
For white beaches, you cannot beat the Maldives - we’ve also been to the following and none of them come close …
Phi Phi Island
Langkawi
Zanzibar
Tobago
Go on; try the Maldives, I guarantee you won’t regret it!
In Soviet Russia, honeymoon goes on you!
Yikes, thanks so much for all the suggestions! Especially those of you who offered info on Playa del Carmen and The Mayan Riviera, because those were the ones we’ve been considering :D
I agree with hismajesty that Istanbul is quite nice and you should definately visit sometime in your life. But I wouldn’t quite classify it as honeymoon material.
Instead, I recommend Aruba - a quiet little island just off of Venezuela with beautiful beaches and crystal clear water. The weather is quite nice this time of year. After all, you can’t beat the island that has the highest visitor return rate in the Caribbean.
And they have Dunkin Donuts. Two of them!
J
I can’t recommend St. John in the USVI enough. Crystal-clear water, white sand beaches and a low-key attitude all exude relaxation. I kept an online journal from our most recent trip here. There should be enough info to get you started on where to stay, go and what to do.
Good luck and enjoy!
FWIW: not a single traffic light on the island.
B
As Bruno said, already, here in Brazil we have white sand beaches in Fortaleza and Ceará, for example… no hurricanes last time I checked.
Your title really says it all: it looks like a Baudelaire affair. Brrr.
I hate to sound like an advertisement, but I don’t think enough people ever think of visiting Iceland.
Iceland is always a good choice (remember that the wise Norse intentionally swapped the names of “Island” and “Greenland” to mask the true nature of each). Iceland is a truly dynamic place with a lot to offer. The original Geysir is there. There are volcanos and glaciers (the largest in Europe) and cliffs and Blue Lagoon. Iceland Air offers some great deals to travel there as well. It’s pretty affordable from the metro NYC area. Good deals can be found at Iceland Air Holidays. They make great vodka too.
Costa Rica…
I suggest Costa Rica, not only because I live here, but also because I live here… and it rocks!
Mmm … honeymoons and islands are always nice romantic combo.
I agree with Aaron … Iceland would be really different and very
memorable.
My wife and I sent our honeymoon in a cabin in Colorado! That was fun and Colorado is beautiful!
UK!! Think of all that warm beer!
The south shore of Lake Superior has clear water and clean beaches, though you’ll probably not want to swim!
Otherwise, I highly recommend the Pacific coast of Guatemala—beautiful and not quite as touristy as some other places.
Brisbane, Australia!!!
Was there when I was in the Marines. Had the time of my life. Plenty to do, shopping, SCUBA, sightseeing, etc. And if you tire of Brisbane (I doubt it) you could always hop over to Perth or Sydney.
Been trying to schedule a return trip there with my wife for some time now.
Come over to Malaysia. Perhentian Island is the perfect “alone” honeymoon spot. Or you can just head to Pangkor Island, Langkawi. If you can, try coming by early November, you might get a taste of lemang + beef rendang… or even durians. Lol.
I’m getting married this coming weekend and just booked a cruise for the Mexican west coast starting from San Diego for 11 days. There are seats still available and no hurricanes in the forcast.
Just to letcha know ;)
Costa Rica - hard to beat for its value.
Otherwise you can’t go wrong with Hawaii. Maui and Kaui is particularly good if shopping in Chanel and Luis Vuitton for 2 weeks is not your cup of tea.
I’m with Aaron. Haven’t been but I’ve heard wonderful things about Iceland. And I second that I always see pretty decent airfare going there out of NYC.
go to playa del carmen! i’m on my way and i love it. i have been there numerous times. i always go two weeks, and have never had bad weather! you’ll love it go go go
Next time release like three books at the same time. It would be way better.
Best Place is Austria in Spring time, now.