What Makes a Great Honeymoon Destination?

What is a honeymoon? Supposedly, at one time it was a month-long celebration of the newly married couple, during which the bride's father supplied the couple with honey-wine or mead. In accordance with several historical fiction books, the tradition of the honeymoon refers to a week where the couple is left to entertain themselves alone.

Today we know the honeymoon as the first adventure the newlyweds set out upon together. So how do you choose between the Adirondacks and the Alps? What makes this trip different from all other trips?

1. Many honeymoons take place immediately following the wedding. Given how overwhelming a wedding can be (think of the last time your whole family visited, and multiply it by ten!) the honeymoon destination should be a time for relaxation. It's important that you choose a place you'll be comfortable. For some people, this means a location where you don't need to worry about understanding a foreign language. For others, it means picking a destination where you won't need to make too many decisions once you arrive - like an all inclusive resort, or an area known for its hiking or guided tours.
2. If you're always up for an adventure, the honeymoon may take on a special significance, as this is your first adventure as a married couple. Choosing a place where neither of you have visited, or a location of you visited long ago and wants to share with the other can give your honeymoon that special feeling. Whether you're journeying to China or Chicago, this kind of adventure is worth researching well in advance, before the wedding itself comes into play.
3. Remember to take time alone. As much as your honeymoon will be influenced by destination, many couples find that they don't take full advantage of their surroundings. We may not be in ancient Babylon anymore, but newlyweds still value their alone time. Whatever your destination, it's important to leave yourself the flexibility to spend some time ignoring your surroundings in favor of your life partner.

If you're looking for suggestions on how to make your dream honeymoon affordable, leave a message in the comments or send me an email. Most of all, remember that you have a full life to fill with your partner. Your honeymoon is your first trip together, not your last.

Puerto Rico and other honeymoons

This is the first of a few posts I'll be writing up this week in regards to honeymoons. I just returned from Puerto Rico, and I was struck by the great combination of relaxation and activity available there. I put it high on the list of great honeymoon destinations!

What makes for a great honeymoon destination?

How do you choose your honeymoon destination?

Answers and suggestions on all this and more coming soon. :-)

Tip of the Day: Take a Break!

It's been a full week since I posted - which reminds me of a great tip for today: don't forget to take breaks for yourself!

There are all sorts of different types of people, obviously, and with that come all sorts of different ideal ways to relax. Here are a few people have sent in to me:

The Scheduling Sort: some people just can't take a break unless something is scheduled. If that sounds like you (meant to go to bed early, but got caught up in just one more thing?) schedule yourself some downtime. Book a pedicure, or buy tickets to a movie in advance. My favorite is going to see live theater - enlightening, uplifting, sometimes thought provoking, and always relaxing.

The Overbooked Sort: just the opposite... don't plan anything! Block off three days in a row in your calendar where you cannot schedule a thing. Will last minute things come up? Absolutely. But when you find you just have to go meet with the florist tomorrow, you'll realize you have all afternoon free to go, and still have plenty of time to sleep in and take yourself (and maybe your fiance!) on an impromptu picnic.

The Overwhelmed Sort: this can happen to anyone, whether you have lists pinned to every surface or you made a list once, but lost it under one of those piles of clothes in your room. It's not about how organized, how stressed, how busy, or how laid back you are, unfortunately the sense of overwhelming Stuff To Do comes to all of us. Taking time to relax can't be put off until next week when you're overwhelmed today. Put aside MUST be done today (or if you're not sure, put off thinking about it for now), and take an hour for yourself right now. Do you play piano? Go drill some Rachmoninoff until your fingers ache. Are you a runner? Go log 6 miles. Enjoy the mall? Gift yourself $75 and go windowshop for a treat.

How do you know?

One of my favorite films is Enchanted. Lately, as I hear a lot of brides say something along the lines of "I want a casual wedding - a really down to Earth, just fun wedding..." and then, almost embarrassed, add "but I kind of want to look like a princess too," I think of this scene. Nothing down to Earth about it - but sometimes it's nice to feel like a princess!

TotD: Flower Arrangements

Congratulations to Laura and Aaron!

Laura and Aaron were married this past Sunday. It was a beautiful ceremony in Austin, Texas. Laura's mom Lynn offers a tip for flowers:

"We found a grocery store that makes table arrangements for 35 percent over the cost of your flowers! I dropped off vases and picked out the flowers and they made them for us."

Thanks Lynn, for the Tip of the Day. :-)

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Today Boston has seen several freak rainstorms, and now there's rumor a tornado could come our way. How do you deal with emergency situations? What if there's a weather emergency on your wedding day?

As much as it's about the marriage, not the wedding, it's tough not to put an eeeeensy bit of importance on the Big Day. Here are a few tips:

• remember that old wives tale: rain on your wedding day is good luck? Whether or not you believe in old wives tales, let that make you smile.
• think about all those cheesy romantic movies - every great kiss is in the rain, from Little Women (in the book, at least!) to The Notebook (in the preview, at least!*)
• take a deep breath. Now another. And another - look around at all the amazing people celebrating your big day with you. In rain or shine.

*I admit, I've never seen more than the preview of The Notebook. At first I thought my distaste for overly romantic movies meant I wasn't allowed to be a wedding planner. Now I know, it actually means I just have good taste in films.

Cupcakes!

It's been 6 days since the London wedding and 5 since my return stateside. I'm nearly over my jetlag, but while I can still claim a hint of London-time, one more post with tips from Rachel and Jay's wedding... cupcakes!

Rachel and Jay had a beautiful assortment of cupcakes arranged for their cake. As more and more couples are experimenting with less traditional wedding cakes, it's good to have some resources (and of course, lots of photos!)

The image on the left is from Cupcaketree, though I'll add a photo of the actual arrangement as soon as I can.

Once again, congratulations to the happy couple!

A British Wedding

I'm back from my whirlwind Spain and England trip! I was at a beautiful wedding in England, the wedding of the beautiful Rachel and her groom Jay. One piece of their wedding structure stuck out to me:

How do you manage a small wedding with a large group of friends??

Rachel and Jay solved this problem with a simple three-step wedding dance.

Step One: The ceremony was a quiet affair with mostly family and a handful of close friends - 60 people in total.

Step Two: Post-ceremony a dinner was held, on the deck of the same rooftop where they had the ceremony.

Step Three: Three hours after the ceremony had begun, and just as the very young and the very old were beginning to prepare to leave, the rest left for the reception. The reception, held on a docked boat just down the street from the ceremony, was really more of a dance party. Another 60 friends were invited, another wedding dessert awaited on board, and the "reception" - a more casual affair, continued well into the night.

Great idea Rachel and Jay, and congratulations!

Barcelona weddings

I'm in Barcelona for a few days, visiting family. It was almost 6 years ago, but I still love looking at photos from my cousin's wedding, held in Barcelona in July of 2005 - check out my favorite shot. :-)

The Royal Tennenbaums

I'm not sure which I love more about this blog post on A Practical Wedding: the story, or the Royal Tennenbaums photos.

@marsweddings

News of the day - I'm now on Twitter! Follow me at @marsweddings.

Looking forward to connecting on Twitter :-)

Pearls of Wisdom, Jewels of Knowledge

Looking for inspiration for your wedding invitations? Check out the design blog Veer.

Welcome to Weddings from Mars

Once upon a time, nearly three years ago, I sat at a rehearsal dinner. Beside me, someone was telling a story about a production company hired to run a wedding. Behind me, I could overhear two of my closest friends as they laughed about the frustrations and happinesses they had experienced during their year of wedding planning. And from across the table, our eyes met.

No, this is not a love story.

My eyes met Kevin's as we both had the same thought: we should be doing wedding planning! As an experienced stage manager and project manager, I love nothing more than diving into a new project and helping keep creative, passionate minds organized. As a web developer and entrepreneur, Kevin is always interested in finding new projects to undertake and find ways to make any process simple, effortless, and enjoyable. What are people more passionate about, more creative with, or more in need of an effortless and enjoyable process than wedding planning?!

And now, after three years of consideration, planning, and more than anything learning, Weddings from Mars is here to help.

Just because you're on a budget doesn't mean you're on your own!