How To Plan Your Dream Honeymoon
Okay so, pretty soon Ben and I will be on our way to NEW ZEALAND! I mean, I can barely think about anything else. I am so excited to see the sights, shoot beautiful photos, explore the mountains on horseback, and just spend some quality time with my best friend! Gosh I just can’t wait! It seems like just a week ago we were wondering when and where we would be able to go on a honeymoon. Through lots of changes and hard work, we made our honeymoon our ultimate dream trip!!! We just had to wait 6 months.
Ok, so lets be real for a minute… Weddings are SO EXPENSIVE! So I feel its perfectly fine to wait a few months, save up, and plan a trip that you really want to go on, instead of settling for whats doable the week after you just spent thousands of dollars!
How Did I Plan A Trip To New Zealand?
The internet is an amazing resource! I did a ton of research! I found some amazing vlogs that really helped me out. Shout out to my favorite vlogger Psycho Traveller.
Check out her videos — https://www.youtube.com/user/PsychoTraveller
There are incredible videos and blogs out there specifically to help people who want to travel.
Go to Youtube - look up the Country or City you are interested in - watch videos - learn from people who have spent time there.
Read books! Learn about the history of the place, learn about the culture, learn about the geography!
I bought some very helpful books!
New Zealand Frenzy by Scott Cook
Lord of the Rings : A Location Guidebook by Ian Brodie and Peter Jackson
DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: New Zealand
How Did I Afford A Trip to New Zealand?
A trip to New Zealand is expensive any way you slice it. Ben and I researched about 5 different locations, including Ireland, different parts of Africa (for a safari), all inclusive resorts in the Caribbean, and Greece. What we found was, they are all going to be expensive! They were all in the thousands and we decided to go for something that was a huge dream for us. - New Zealand.
We started with plane tickets, we purchased those first. We then waited a few weeks, and purchased some of the activities we would be doing (kayak, horseback). Then another couple weeks later we went to REI and purchased different gear we would need for our trip. Because our trip is focused on the activities, hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, ect… we are staying mostly in hostels. We have a private room and we will have to share a bathroom with other people. Staying in hostels really cuts down on cost and gives you that community of people that are all there for the same reason! TRAVEL!
If you spread out the planning, and pay for one thing at a time, it really makes the trip a lot easier to pay for than forking out the whole amount at once.
Planning it yourself is fun and cuts the cost of a travel agent or tour guide. If you put the work in, you can educate yourself, hand pick the things you want to do and see, and get a good idea beforehand of where things are located and the travel distances.
Where Do I Start?
Your dream honeymoon might be totally different than ours, you might want white sand beaches and cool drinks, you might want skiing and snowboarding, you might want a cabin in the woods away from it all. I encourage you to talk to your spouse/finance about their dream locations, make a list of actives you are both interested in, then figure out all the amazing places where those are possible!
RESEARCH - write down all of the important prices and information you find.
Make a chart, estimate the cost of travel, food, accommodations, rental car/bus/train, activities. Compare the different locations and costs.
Make a plan, give yourself enough time to plan the trip and pay for things gradually.
Make sure your passport is up to date and with the correct last name!
Watch Vlogs, read Blogs, look up activities and restaurant reviews so you can be sure to know about all of the amazing things in the cities you plan to explore.
Make a list of what you need for your trip. (Example - rain coat, hiking boots, bikini, go pro, compression socks, neck pillow) Buy these things little by little as your vacation approaches.
* Always important to remember - Travel Insurance, contacting bank, contacting cell phone carrier, letting everyone know you will be out of the country. Making copies of passports, ect...
Y’all, I am so excited to have gone through this process of waiting and planning. It makes it that much more exciting for me. If you have any questions about planning a honeymoon, wedding, or traveling abroad, ask away!!!
Can’t wait to hear about y’alls travels and share about ours!
