I'm getting married this weekend, and after tying the knot with Mr. TravelSpark, seeing how my colorful yet sophisticated vision plays out at the reception, and dancing the night away while wearing what is in my opinion the most gorgeous gown ever, we'll be off on our honeymoon in Greece. We'll spend two nights in Athens, four nights on Crete in Elounda, and four nights on Santorini in Oia.
Usually, I plan out every aspect of our vacations and dig through the depths of the internet to find great deals. This time, though, I'm taking a cue from my hubby-to-be and just letting it ride. We have a guidebook which we'll likely read on the plane, and only a general idea of what we want to see and do. For the first time, that's actually ok with me.
Honeymoon planning carries a great deal of pressure. For many people, it's the most significnant vacation of their lives - so it had better be good. Here are some tips to make it a bit less stressful.
1) Figure out your budget. I don't believe in going into debt for any reason, let alone your vacation. As soon as you get engaged, start saving a bit of your paycheck every month, preferably by automatically deducting it from your check and putting it in a savings account, or automatically transferring it from your checking to savings account. No matter how you do it, save - in the end it'll save you a lot of stress. You can even register for a honeymoon at sites such as
TheHoneymoon and
Honeyfund and have your guests help you pay for it. However, be sure to
check the fine print to avoid unexpected fees. Please don't specifically ask for cash to fund the honeymoon though - that's just tacky.
If, even after your diligence, you still don't have enough to go to your dream destination, don't fret! There are lots of amazing places to go, and you have a lifetime to visit them. Go where you can afford to go so you don't start off your marriage fighting about finances.
2) Decide where to go. Make a list with your SO. Where does he or she dream of going? Which destinations have you read about or seen on TV?Do you want to go back to a favorite destination, or check out a new one? Write everything down and see which locations you both have in common. I keep a list of all the places I want to go in my lifetime, and used this as a starting point.
3) Determine what the theme will be. In addition to agreeing on where to go, you'll also need to determine what you want to do. Do you want to sit on a beach all day, every day in the Caribbean? Do you want to spend your time going from museum to museum trying to find your favorite impressionist painting in Europe? Does the idea of zooming down a zip-line through the jungles of Belize sound like your ideal trip? Whatever you choose as your overall theme, be ready to compromise. If he wants to golf for a day, make an appointment at the spa or camp out by the pool, or go to that museum that would bore him to tears.
4) Do the research. Whether you use a travel agent, like we did (
Liberty Travel), or book on your own, you'll still need to decide how you'll get there and where to stay. For me, how to get there seemed easy: I'd been saving Delta miles for ages and had amassed over 100k. Surprise! Even booking the tickets as soon as they were available, we still spent my 100k miles on only
one ticket. And, it leaves from JFK, but we live in BOS. Argh. There are so many fare-finders out there for airfare and hotels, so check out TravelSpark's "How to Go" and "Where to Stay" section for links to many of the popular search tools. If you stumble upon a great link, let me know and I will add it to the list.
5) Organize your house. When it's time to go, ask the post office to stop your mail, bribe a friend to water your plants, ensure your pets will be looked after, set timers on your lamps to trick would-be thieves into thinking someone's home. Oh, and please don't leave any food on the counters for our little rodent friends to snack on in your absence. When I was little, my family would watch our neighbor's house and go in to feed their cat. I still remember being shocked at the state in which they left their home: open containers of food, cereal and milk in a bowl on the kitchen table, and loads of dirty dishes in the sink. It was almost like they had to evacuate or something.
Remember to relax! Wedding planning is so stressful, don't let planning the honeymoon, be, either.
We left our hotel around 10am for the 15 minute ride to the Musee d'Orsay. There was a line, but it moved quickly. I was pleasantly surprised that I still qualified for discount admission for those age 18-30 (free for those under 18). 
The museum opens at 9:30am and is closed on Mondays. This is one of my favorite museums for its beauty (it was built in an old train station) and the ease with which you can see everything in a short amount of time. It's also home to a fabulous colleciton of impressionist paintings.
After a little over an hour, we were ready to walk across the Seine to the middle of the Jardin des Tuileries, up to the Louvre to take photos of the impressive and controversial I.M. Pei designed pyramid and the museum behind it. If you only have one day to see Paris, don't even bother going inside. Unline the Orsay, the Louvre requires at least a full day to see all it has to offer.
Next, we took the metro the Champs Elysees and l'Arc de Triomphe for a photo op, before we set out along the George V Boulevard towards the Eiffel Tower. Our RER station was nearby, and we made it back to our hotel by 6:30pm.
His reaction was not what we expected - he collapsed on the floor, laughing hysterically. The words 'fanny pack' had reduced a very serious London cop to a mess of tearful giggles. It turns out that in England the word 'fanny' is the equivalent to the derogatory four-letter word for the va-jay-jay. So why in the world would you want to wear a va-jay-jay pack around your waist? Uhh.... ok that just sounds wrong.
Designers may try to dress it up, but even a skinny supermodel looks ridiculous with a fanny pack around her waist. There are so many other, better options out there that there is no reason to add another ten pounds to your hips and be the butt of jokes during your travels. So, what's the solution? The fabulous Longchamp tote. I saw so many of these at the airports during my recent European jaunt, so they're not exactly unique. They're not trendy either - they're just incredibly practical. The tote has a nylon exterior, zip top, sturdy leather handle and ability to fold into itself - so it's small when you need to stow it in your luggage for the journey to your destination, and large when you need to carry home souvenirs.
