After the stress of planning your wedding, your honeymoon offers a chance to wind down and spend some precious time with your new spouse but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to opt for the standard honeymoon choices that usually involve hotel rooms and romantic beach resorts.
Why not choose a honeymoon that is a little bit more unique – and more reflective of you and your new spouse? Here is our list of 10 out-of-the-box honeymoon ideas for couples looking for something a little different.
Take a road trip
If you want to do something more mobile than sitting by a pool for your honeymoon, have you considered taking a road trip across the country? There is something truly romantic and more than a little adventurous about just tossing some clothes into the boot of your car, heading off on the open road, and ending up wherever the wind may take you! You can plan a route or just hop in the car and start driving, stopping only at attractions that take your fancy. Now, THAT’s romantic.
Go Glamping
Sleeping in a tent may not be your idea of a fun honeymoon, but with the growing popularity of ‘glamping’, or glamorous camping, you can enjoy the best of both worlds. Glamping is all about going camping, but with an added touch of luxury. Instead of sleeping on the ground in a tent, you can enjoy something a little bit more special, like a Romany Gypsy caravan, marquee-style tents, teepees and Yurts. With Glamping you get to enjoy the delights if nature while still having access to amenities such as hot running water and a comfortable bed! One fantastic choice for glamping is ‘Roar & Snore’ at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo.
Visit a festival or yearly event
If you’ve timed your wedding well, you could spend your honeymoon enjoying a festival or global event that interests you both. Perhaps it’s a big Summer music festival you’ve always wished to attend or a simple a harvest festival interstate? Then, of course, there are the big international festivals such as the Mardi Gras in Brazil, Chinese New Year in Beijing, Holi in India or the running of the bulls in Pamplona.
Charter a boat
For some couples, the journey to their honeymoon destination is the best part of their well-earned holiday; increasingly, couples are turning their honeymoons into one long, luxurious journey. Why not charter a boat and have your own private cruise? It is less expensive than you might think to charter a private boat – and there’s something truly romantic about heading off into the sunset – on your own private boat – on your once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon, isn’t there?
Enjoy a ‘staycation’
You don’t even have to leave home to enjoy a honeymoon. In fact, ‘staycation’ are making a return. Historically, honeymoons were month-long events that the newlyweds spent together, usually at home, ‘getting to know each other’. These days, with so many couples living together before marriage, no such formality is needed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t just take a few weeks off work, unplug your phone and internet and just enjoy each other’s company. You could work on projects around the house together or visit local attractions. It may not be terribly exotic, but it is time alone, together – and that’s what a honeymoon is all about.
Stay in a tree house
Across Australia, there are a number of resorts that offer unique accommodations high in the trees. These are not roughly built treehouses, the kind you may have enjoyed as a kid but, rather, they are more along the lines of high-class hotel rooms – up in the trees – equipped with all the amenities (even Wi-Fi) you could ever want. Imagine waking up surrounded by nature and the view is unbeatable.
Go underground
Technically, this idea does involve a hotel but, given that it’s an underground cave hotel, it’s certainly an out-of-the-box hotel idea that merits mention. In Western Australia’s Coober Pedy region, which is the world’s Opal capital, it’s so hot, most of the accommodation is underground, so the town is peppered with underground caves that have been turned into hotels. They’re cool, super-quiet and perfect for a little alone time with your new spouse.
Go on a vintage train journey
Ah, the romance of an old-fashioned train journey is something many of us never experience, but it’s an absolutely charming, old-world experience you’ll never regret. There are plenty of sleepover trains offering a chance to enjoy this traditional way of travelling long distances. The most famous of these is, perhaps, the Orient Express, but there are many other less extravagant choices such as Nambia’s Desert Express. You will have your own sleeping compartment and can dine in a traditional dining car. Just be sure to dress for dinner!
Have a working holiday
Your honeymoon doesn’t need to be actually a holiday. If volunteering is close to both your hearts, why not spend your time away, either volunteering at a local charity or heading off overseas to help an international organization you support? Helping a village build a well or supporting an orphanage will help a community in need, it can be so spiritually fulfilling and, for many, sure beats a couple of weeks lazing by a pool.
Play at being castaways
If you really do have your heart set on a more traditional beach getaway for your honeymoon, add a more interesting twist by hiring a private uninhabited island and playing at being castaways. There are a number of very affordable options around Indonesia and the Philippines if you like the idea of your own desert island.
Did you have an out-of-the-box honeymoon? Tells us about it in the comments below…
