Honeymoons
Honeymoon Planning - Preplan and stress less
That special moment has happened. He (or she) has proposed, a wedding is planned and then the dreaded specter of the honeymoon appears. Specter? Is honeymoon planning so difficult that it becomes a stress factor?
Not if you do some honeymoon planning. Your honeymoon should be a time of relaxation, exploration and bonding. However, if you don't plan your honeymoon correctly, it can be frustrating, time consuming and expensive. Honeymoon planning should not cause a divorce!
Here are some tips to make sure honeymoon planning goes smoothly.
Discuss with your fiancée your preferences for your honeymoon. Honeymoon planning is much simpler if you write down your preferences in order of location, budget, activities and amenities. Each person should create their own list then compare to find areas that overlap. Don't assume you know what type of honeymoon your fiancée would choose. Have a candid discussion of budget, time off available from work and minimum requirements for lodgings. This is not the time to spring the no electricity, no frills beach retreat of your fantasies! At least, unless it's fully discussed and agreed to before hand.
Then, talk with a travel agent. Travel agents will have great honeymoon planning insights and can help you make the best decisions based on you and your spouse's vacation preferences including budget, location and amount of time. Because honeymoon planning trips are one of the few areas that travel agents still receive commissions, you can get the expertise of a specialist without paying a research fee. You could spend hours on the internet doing research, but why waste that time when an experienced travel agent can do your honeymoon planning for you?
Once you've met with a travel agent and know approximate costs, begin a honeymoon savings plan. Many travel agencies now offer honeymoon registries that will allow guests to pay a portion of your honeymoon cost in lieu of the traditional gift registry. There a few things you need to know before you do a honeymoon registry. One, the travel agent retains a small percentage of the donation as a fee for managing the program. You should shop around to find the agent that charges the lowest fee. Two, you are responsible for the cost of the honeymoon. If there are funds in your account, the travel agent will disperse them. If not, you will pay the full cost. So, don't overspend when you do your honeymoon planning hoping/assuming that your registry account will pay for it.
When doing your honeymoon planning, prepay as much as possible. You'll have incidental expenses like gratuities and souvenirs. These tend to be manageable expenses. However, if you neglect to budget for hotel taxes, spa treatments, or car rentals, you can easily outrun your budget onsite. Your honeymoon is not the place to eat fast food hamburgers in order to pay the hotel bill!
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Last listing added: 07 May, 2008
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