{"id":1803,"date":"2025-02-08T23:27:24","date_gmt":"2025-02-08T23:27:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/?p=1803"},"modified":"2025-02-11T18:36:37","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T18:36:37","slug":"25-budget-boosting-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/25-budget-boosting-ideas\/","title":{"rendered":"25 Budget-Boosting Honeymoon Ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

1. Register for the honeymoon, not the wine goblets<\/b><\/p>\n

Which would you prefer: place settings for twelve you’ll use once a year when your in-laws visit, or a honeymoon you’ll remember the rest of your life? You probably have enough stuff, so tell your friends and family to hold off on the housewares and chip in for a honeymoon instead.<\/p>\n

Among the honeymoon registry services, some charge a flat fee: HoneyLuna.com ($100 if you book the trip with them, $150 if you don’t), or GiftPile.com ($225). <\/p>

Others take a cut of the donations: TheBigDay.com (3.5% or 9% if you don’t book with them), or TheHoneymoon.com (5.85% to 8.85%, depending on the price tag). <\/p>

Or ditch etiquette and go low-tech: Just have everyone send you a check.<\/p>\n

2. Two birds, one stone: Destination Weddings<\/b><\/p>\n

Let’s face it: it’s not the honeymoon that puts you in the poorhouse, it\u2019s the wedding. So why not get the ceremony for free, and get married on a tropical beach to boot? Sandals, SuperClubs, and Beaches all offer free wedding ceremonies (add $200 to $300 for license fees) to couples that stay for the honeymoon. <\/p>

Bonus: it can weed that guest list way down, as only close family and true friends\u2014the ones you really wanted around anyway\u2014will pony up to fly to the islands for your big day.<\/p>\n

3. Delay the date<\/b><\/p>\n

Used to be, the father of the bride underwrote the whole wedding. But these days many couples foot a big portion of the bill, which can leave you strapped for cash right when you’re planning an exotic vacation. So wait. <\/p>

Check into a local hotel for the wedding night and frolic to your hearts’ content, but plan a true honeymoon in the near future. <\/p>

My cousin Katy was married on Hilton Head last summer, and while the happy couple stuck around the resort for a few days afterward to relax, the real honeymoon\u2014two weeks in Costa Rica\u2014came six months down the road.<\/p>\n

4. Choose cheaply<\/b><\/p>\n

Disney World, Mexico, and cruises rank among the cheapest popular honeymoons, but even with typically expensive spots, there’s always wiggle room. <\/span><\/p>\n

There are more islands in the South Pacific than just Bora Bora. Its lesser-known Tahitian cousins\u2014the dragon-back peaks of Moorea and hidden hideaway of Huahine\u2014start around $899 per person <\/b>for airfare and a week’s hotel stay (www.tahitivacations.net or www.pleasantholidays.com). Or try the islands of Fiji (from $999 with www.airpacificusa.com) or Bali (from $829 at www.escapesltd.com). <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span>For Europe, think east. You can have your own Adriatic island off the coast of Croatia for a fraction the cost of a mid-range hotel in neighboring Italy (www.traveltime.com). <\/p>

You can even do the Caribbean on a budget if you choose a less trendy island\u2014such as the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, or even Barbados\u2014or if you book with a discount specialist like www.atlasvacations.net, www.vacmart.com, www.eleisurelink.com, www.funjet.com, www.applevacations.com, or for divers, www.caradonna.com.<\/p>\n

In Hawaii, stay on Oahu, where there are plenty of options in all price ranges\u2014hotels in the Ohana chain, while not necessarily right on the beach, start at $89 a night for a double room with kitchenette (www.ohanahotels.com). Or splurge on Maui, but buy a vacation package that includes airfare, hotel, and <\/i>a rental car starting around $589 per person (www.pleasantholidays.com).<\/p>\n

5. Stay local<\/b><\/p>\n

Domestic travel can save a bundle\u2014there’s nothing wrong with the good ol’ Poconos or Niagara Falls\u2014and it’s your chance to visit some corner of the United States you’ve always dreamed of. Why not feast on fresh lobster on the Maine coast, tipple the California wine country, or explore the national parks of the Southwest? <\/p>

Besides, it’s easier to revisit (and re-create) the honeymoon on later anniversaries. My parents honeymooned in Gatlinburg, Tennessee\u2014faux bearskin rug before the fireplace and all. Rather than have it fade into a distant memory, they got to relive their honeymoon whenever our family visited the Smokies. <\/span><\/p>\n

6. Do some footwork<\/b><\/p>\n

Even if you use a travel agent, research the destination before you put the trip in her hands. Get a good guidebook or three, pick the hotels or resorts yourself, and price airfares and vacation packages online. Investigate the best deals, then take all your research to the agent and challenge her to beat it.<\/p>\n

7. Airfare I: Shop around<\/b><\/p>\n

Never pay retail for airfare\u2014and don’t settle for the fares on the Big Three booking engines (Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia). Use those to discover which airlines fly directly and to determine a baseline price. Then<\/i> start your bargain hunt. Hit the airlines’ Web sites, where you can be flexible about departure dates (often saving hundreds of dollars) and find sales that don’t show up on the search engines. <\/p>

Even better, use “aggregator” Web sites that canvas the entire industry, often including consolidator fares and low-cost airlines that the Big Three skip: www.kayak.com, www.cheapflights.com, www.mobissimo.com, www.sidestep.com, www.qixo.com.<\/p>\n

8. Airfare II: Frequent Fliers, it’s time to cash in<\/b><\/p>\n

Finally, a benefit to pricey weddings! Charge the entire shebang to a single credit card linked to a frequent-flier program\u2014either one you already carry or a new one affiliated with the airline you’ll be flying for the honeymoon. Chances are you’ll rack up enough miles to score a free plane ticket\u2014hopefully, two!<\/p>\n

9. Airfare III: Keep an eye on the sales<\/b><\/p>\n

Sign up for free e-newsletters that compile the best travel deals weekly: www.smarterliving.com, www.budgettravel.msnbc.com, and www.travelzoo.com.<\/p>\n

10. Time it perfectly<\/b><\/p>\n

Prices can plummet as much as 50% in the off-season (summer in the tropics, winter in Europe). At the very least, fly midweek; Wednesday flights are far cheaper than weekend ones. <\/p>

Start planning early, but don’t book plane tickets too far in advance or you’ll pay top dollar. Wait until six to eight weeks before your departure, when airlines start discounting to fill seats and airfare consolidators lock in their lowest rates. <\/span><\/p>\n

11. Ask for discounts<\/b><\/p>\n

Is it off-season? Are you staying more than three nights? Are you a member of AAA, AARP, or a frequent-flier club? Are you a student, teacher, employee of the government or of a company with a corporate rate? You never know which one might ring that discount bell. And here’s the big one: Are you on your honeymoon? Work that one to death. However…<\/i><\/p>\n

12. Play the Honeymoon Card wisely<\/b><\/p>\n

Get a price quote first, then<\/i> breathlessly confide that this is your honeymoon. Sometimes “Honeymoon Package” add-ons\u2014 an automatic upgrade, flowers and champagne in your room\u2014come free or cheap. Sometimes not. Prices can get padded needlessly if the words “wedding” or “honeymoon” enter the conversation too early. <\/span><\/p>\n

Once you’ve settled on a price, though, go hog-wild with the honeymoon schtick. Approach every check-in counter (airline, hotel, car rental) a tangle of loving arms and stolen kisses. Ooze romance and let them know you’re newlyweds. The good folk behind these counters are the ones with the keys to business-class seats, luxury model vehicles, and ocean-view suites\u2014and they’d much rather give free upgrades to a cute new couple than another grumpy member of their Supremely Elite Club.<\/p>\n

13. Consider a package<\/b><\/p>\n

Travel companies often buy plane tickets, hotel rooms, and rental cars at bulk rates, then pass the savings along to you as a package vacation. Regular airfare to Paris rarely dips below $350, even in low season, but packager Go-Today.com sells airfare plus <\/i>six nights’ lodging starting at $399 (they cover all of Europe, Latin America, and Asia). <\/p>

There are hundreds out there in addition to those mentioned in Tip 4. Check ads in your newspaper’s travel section, the sales-alert sites in Tip 9, and magazines like Budget Travel.<\/i><\/p>\n

14. Check the “all-inclusive” fine print<\/b><\/p>\n

Is a resort truly “all-inclusive” if you have to pay $12 for a poolside mai tai or $120 for an hour diving the reef? Here’s the fine print to watch out for: “non-motorized watersports” (scuba and jet skis extra), “wine with dinner” (you pay outside mealtime, and at all times for the stronger stuff), and “non-alcoholic drinks” (only soda and juice are free). <\/span><\/p>\n

Resort chains Couples, Sandals, Breezes, and Hedonism are truly all-inclusive, throwing in free scuba lessons and all the name-brand booze you can handle. Club Med, in catch-up mode, has recently upgraded most U.S., Mexican, Caribbean, and Polynesian resorts to what they have redundantly dubbed “Totally all-inclusive.” Of course, if you and your groom are teetotalers who don’t scuba, reconsider paying the premium for all-inclusive.<\/p>\n

15. Go condo<\/b><\/p>\n

Why condo? One word: kitchenette. Think of the savings when you don’t have to pay $25 per person per day for the hotel’s buffet breakfast. Go ahead, eat out at restaurants and enjoy yourselves, but use the kitchenette to whip up sandwiches to take to the beach rather than chewing on $15 burgers from the lunch grill. Bonus: you can plan a couple of romantic dinners to enjoy in your room.<\/p>\n

16. Go local<\/b><\/p>\n

Forget hotels. They’re pricey, and too, well, similar to every other hotel you’ve ever stayed in. Your honeymoon should be special. Rent your own pad\u2014villa, cottage, bungalow, apartment, whatever\u2014and play house for a week or two. <\/p>

It’d be impossible to list the hundreds of rental specialists here, but a few standouts include Hideaways International (www.hideaways.com) and the virtual classifieds of Vacation Rentals By Owner (www.vrbo.com).<\/p>\n

17. Forget 800 numbers<\/b><\/p>\n

Most hotel chains’ toll-free lines can book rooms only at the rack rate. Call the hotel directly and bargain with the manager for a long-stay discount, find out if cheaper rooms are available, and play that honeymoon card for all it’s worth.<\/p>\n

18. Lose the penthouse<\/b><\/p>\n

Get a nice room, yes, but skip the super-mega-deluxe presidential suite. You need a big, comfy bed. The rest of the room’s just icing. The same applies to luxury staterooms on cruise ships. <\/p>

Sure, spend for an ocean view\u2014a balcony if you can swing it\u2014but a stateroom? Use the extra cash for day trips and souvenirs at ports of call; that\u2019s <\/i>what you’ll remember. <\/span><\/p>\n

19. Avoid hotel money pits<\/b><\/p>\n

That telephone by the bed? Doesn’t exist. Hotels inflate phone bills by as much as 400%, even on local and toll-free calls, so share the honeymoon stories with bridesmaids after you’re home! Ignore the minibar, too (though do shove the overpriced peanuts aside so you can chill your own goodies, purchased for a fraction of the price at a local shop). <\/p>

I’d say forget the room-service menu, too, but hey: this is your honeymoon. Breakfast in bed is practically required, and if you feel the need to order strawberries with plenty of extra whipped cream after midnight, we won’t tell.<\/p>\n

20. Get out of the resort<\/b><\/p>\n

Eat at the little local joints up the street instead of overpaying for internationalized cuisine at the hotel restaurant. And if it’s fine dining you’re after, here’s another tip:<\/p>\n

21. Feast on five-star meals at two-star prices<\/b><\/p>\n

Dress up for expensive restaurants at lunch, when the same exquisite meals often cost 30 to 50 percent less than at dinner. Come dinnertime, arrange for a romantic picnic in your room? That way you can get to, um, dessert that much more quickly.<\/p>\n

22. Pay bottom dollar for your cabin<\/b><\/p>\n

Just as no two people on the plane pay the same price for their ticket, identical cabins on a cruise ship go for radically different rates. <\/p>

It doesn’t matter if you need to pinch pennies on an inside cabin or can splurge on a balcony suite, there’s one way to ensure you get the lowest price on any berth, any ship, any sailing. It’s called CruiseCompetete.com. You provide your preferred itinerary, ship, etc., and all the big cruise brokers email you with their best offers.<\/p>\n

23. Forego the Ferrari<\/b><\/p>\n

Rent only as much car as you need. I’ve never paid for a full-size in my life because a compact gets the job done. If you’re going to Europe, book through the consolidator AutoEurope.com, which sells Hertz or Avis rentals at bulk-purchase rates. <\/p>

And don\u2019t over-rent. If you’re flying into Rome for a few days, then spending a week driving the Tuscan countryside to Florence for several more days, don’t pay for a two-week rental! A car is useless in the city (terrible traffic, pricey parking). Pick up the car the first day you need it (leaving Rome) and drop it off as soon as you hit Florence. <\/span><\/p>\n

24. Adventure cheaply<\/b><\/p>\n

Start the adventure of marriage with an adventurous honeymoon. Not everyone wants a veg-on-the-beach honeymoon. <\/p>

If you’d rather go tandem kayaking, hike the Inca trail through Peru, or put those trust exercises to the test rock climbing, check out Adventure Center (www.adventurecenter.com). It has great rates and a packed catalog, but you’ll be in a group of eight to twelve people. <\/p>

Intrepid Travel (www.intrepidtravel.com) runs similar small group trips, but also sets up solo itineraries around the globe. <\/p>

Cream of the crop Mountain Travel Sobek (www.mtsobek.com) is rather more expensive, but does offer a bridal registry (see Tip 1).<\/p>\n

25. Never shortchange the honeymoon<\/b><\/p>\n

This is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. No matter how tight money is, give yourself as generous a budget as you can and let yourself enjoy the honeymoon. Go ahead. <\/p>

Take that helicopter tour over the volcano. <\/p>

Splurge on an over-water bungalow. <\/p>

Fly first class. <\/p>

Years from now, you’ll have forgotten the extra cost. But the memories you create\u2014those you’ll still be talking about on your 50th wedding anniversary.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A baker’s double-dozen ideas to help keep costs down so you can focus on each other and not the bill<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2021,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[94,17],"tags":[12,24,28,14],"class_list":["post-1803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-magazine","category-travel","tag-article","tag-magazine","tag-travel","tag-travel-tip"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1803"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1803\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2001,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1803\/revisions\/2001"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reidsguides.com\/rb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}