Leave later
A wedding day is more exhausting than a house move: a short night, emotion, alcohol, hours on your feet and three months of organising that all lands at once. Leaving the next morning at six for a long-haul flight guarantees three days of recovery on arrival — three days lost out of seven.
The remedy is well known and increasingly common: two or three nights somewhere very close straight after the ceremony, then the real trip a few weeks or months later. You gain on every count — rest, off-season prices, and the pleasure of still having something ahead of you once the party is over.
How much to spend
There is no rule, but there is a useful question: is this trip worth, to both of you, what it represents in months of saving? A honeymoon paid for on credit starts a marriage in debt, and studies of newly married couples consistently find money to be the leading cause of arguments in the first year.
- A honeymoon registry. Guests contribute to the trip rather than to a dinner service. It is now the most common arrangement and is well accepted.
- Off-season. The same hotel can cost three times as much depending on the week. Going three months after the wedding lets you pick the right week rather than the right date.
- Less far, for longer. Two weeks three hours away often costs less than one week twelve hours away, and is infinitely less tiring.
Choosing the destination together
The honeymoon is the trip on which people most readily give in to the other's dream, and most often regret it. If one dreams of diving and the other of a city, two short stops beat a compromise neither wants. And if one of you has already been there, say so.
The practical points people forget
- The name on the ticket. It must match the passport exactly. A spouse taking their partner's surname must not book under the new name while the passport still shows the old one.
- Passport validity. Many countries require six months' validity beyond the return date.
- Vaccinations and malaria prophylaxis. Weeks ahead, not the night before.
- Cancellation insurance. It genuinely makes sense here: the trip is expensive, booked far ahead, and the period is prone to family emergencies.
- Contraception that does not depend on time zones, if you do not want a pregnancy straight away. A pill taken at shifting hours for a week is a classic cause of accidents.
What goes wrong most often
Three things, invariably: an overloaded programme, an overstretched budget, and the unreasonable expectation placed on these few days. A honeymoon does not have to be the best trip of your life. It needs to be restful, enjoyable and free of arguments about money — that is already a great deal, and it is achievable.