The honeymoon conundrum

Let’s talk about The Knot and their insane list of wedding to-dos. When I first signed up on the site, I received an email that said something along the lines of, “Yay! You’re engaged (finally)! The fun part’s over. Now get your ass in gear because you only have 407 DAYS to plan the best day of your life and there are a ton of people counting on you, and let’s face it, judging you…SUCKA!”

I mean, at that point, I didn’t speak WEDDING yet, so that’s what I assume it said between all the flower and cake vendor reccos.

So, I’ve been diligently attacking this list of 189 TASKS like a semi-interested pitbull, and I’m finding out that my usual LOVE for making a list and checking it twice has been overshadowed by just how overwhelming this list actually is. I mean, they have everything down to the Nth degree, including “Getting in shape for your big day!” According to the Knot that was supposed to start about 4 months ago…way to be realistic, knot. (Did you see what I did there? I used “knot,” as the sarcastic zing from the 80’s known as “not.” Dan’s so lucky to marry someone so clever!)

So after getting all the huge things out of the way, like venue, photographer, and my dress (which I’m having serious second thoughts about), I decided to take a little break. As in, I deleted every email The Knot sent me for about 2 months and pretended the ring on my finger was just a ruse so I wouldn’t get hit on in bars, or by creepy people on the train who ask me if I’m Russian, to which I smoothly reply, “No, I actually left on time today!” because I thought he asked if I was rushin’. (True Story)

Anyway, it’s time to get back into the planning groove and I just checked “Find a DJ” off and I’m thiiiiiiiiis close to checking “find a florist” and “eat some cake” off the list, so now I want to move on to something FUN. But living in Chicago and planning a wedding in Michigan, means all the FUN stuff, like eating cake or picking our flowers has to be done in trips to MI. So I thought…what could I do that falls under the FUN category and includes the internet? EASY. Look up honeymoon destinations!

The thing is, Dan and I differ immensely on our ideas of what a honeymoon should be.

My idea: Go somewhere you’ve never been and experience together. I don’t know when we’ll have another week or two to just spend on vacation, especially once we start having kids, etc…so we should use this time to do something crazy our out of the ordinary!

Dan’s idea: A honeymoon is about spending alone time with each other and having your first week or two as a married couple be uninterrupted and relaxing. Basically, he wants us to be in some honeymoon love cocoon for 2 weeks straight…which, in theory sounds romantic, but I’m afraid it may get a little boring after day 3! So we’ve narrowed it down to a few places:

Hawaii

Dan has been promising to take me to see a volcano since we didn’t get to go on the excursion in Costa Rica. But I’ve heard Hawaii is just ridiculously expensive. And the thought of trying to narrow down which Island to go to gives me anxiety. If you’ve been and you have suggestions, let me know!

St. Lucia

We have friends who went here on their honeymoon and loved it. If we decide on the all-inclusive experience, this is probably where we’ll end up. And a island hopping from one Virgin Island to another might break up the experience a little so it doesn’t seem like we spent all our time in one place.

Ireland

I’ve been dying to go back to Europe since I backpacked with my cousin in 2006 and I’ve never seen Ireland! Our honeymoon would be the perfect excuse! Dan’s already been to Ireland, but I think we could have a nice mix of relaxing and sightseeing here. Plus, we could kiss the blarney stone and start our marriage off with some “eloquence,” whatever that means!

Canada

We’d start at Niagara Falls for some romantic picture taking, and then head into Canada. Montreal in the summer? I’m not sure any of the other places I’ve listed could be better! And Dan and I have both never been, so it would be new for the two of us.

A cruise to…somewhere

Is it tacky to go on a cruise for your honeymoon? I’ve never been on one. And I’m afraid it will be so structured as to what you can and can’t do/see, that we’ll have a miserable time. I don’t want to be on a schedule, at all, on my honeymoon, but this is a VERY economical option. P.S. Doesn't this look like a cruise from the future?

I also suggested Greece, but that was shot down IMMEDIATELY, although I’m still not really sure why.

Where would you go if the decision were up to you? Or, if you’ve had a honeymoon, where was it and was it everything you BOTH wanted?