Honeymoons travel guide
With this ring, I thee… whisk off to Peru, or Sri Lanka, or Mozambique. Here's our guide to cliché-free escapes for newly-weds
Congratulations! You’re getting spliced, and the best part is you get to go on a trip of a lifetime straight afterwards.
Given all the planning that goes into a wedding, it’s tempting to think of the honeymoon as a chance to ‘do nothing’. But before you book yourself into an Indian Ocean all-inclusive, think what you’re missing.
The only definition of a honeymoon is that you take it (and hopefully finish it) as a couple. So instead of lounging by a pool, you could tick off a world icon together: swoon at the Taj Mahal, tackle Peru’s Inca Trail, wax nostalgic on a felucca down the Nile, or cosy up beneath the Northern Lights at Sweden’s Ice Hotel, perhaps.
Alternatively, you could bond (even more) over a journey: hire a camper van and trundle round New Zealand or Canada; link up Europe’s great cities by train; go island-hopping by sail in the Adriatic or the Caribbean; hike Nepal’s Annapurna Circuit or Spain’s Camino de Santiago.
Or you could learn a new life skill together: pick up salsa in Latin America, cookery in Morocco or Thailand, or painting in Malawi. Or simply pick a destination neither have you have ever visited – discover Mongolia or Paraguay together and you'll have a lifetime of "You went where?" party anecdotes.
You could even do some short-term volunteering in the developing world: after all the attention and razzmatazz of a wedding, it can be a relief to do something that’s not ‘all about you’ – several tour operators now offer ‘meaningful honeymoons’ in Africa, Asia or Latin America.
Wherever you choose to go, though, remember to build in some time for just the two of you. A honeymoon can be a thrill-a-minute, action-packed adventure, but even the most rugged explorers should slow down for a night or two á deux, under the stars, in the middle of nowhere…
Fancy a unique honeymoon?
Want more top tips, advice and inspiration to help you plan your honeymoon? Then check out Wanderlust's new magazine Unique Honeymoons – for your ultimate guide to the trip of a lifetime. Pick up a copy in the online Wanderlust shop.
Check out our new website www.UniqueHoneymoonIdeas.com.