Plan your honeymoon from destination selection to packing for two. Covers timing, budgets, travel documents, romantic experiences, and recovering from wedding week exhaustion before your trip.
Last updated:
0 of 24 completed0%
Copied!
Destination Selection
Each partner independently lists their top 5 dream destinations
Compare lists for overlap — there's almost always at least 1-2 shared picks. If no overlap exists, look for destinations that combine both styles (e.g., one wants beach, one wants culture: try coastal Italy or Thailand). Decide within 2 weeks to lock in early booking prices.
Check weather patterns for your travel dates at the chosen destination
Shoulder seasons (1-2 months before or after peak) offer 20-40% savings with mild weather. Caribbean hurricane season runs June-November; Southeast Asia monsoon runs May-October. A rainy honeymoon destination is nobody's idea of romantic.
Research visa requirements for both partners
If you're changing your last name after the wedding, book the honeymoon under your maiden name — your passport won't be updated in time. Some countries require 6+ months of passport validity after your travel dates. Visa processing takes 2-6 weeks for most countries.
Consider flight duration versus available vacation days
A 12-15 hour flight eats a full day each way. For a 7-day honeymoon, destinations within 5-6 hours of flight time maximize your actual vacation time. If you have 10+ days, long-haul destinations become worthwhile — you need 3+ days to recover from jet lag across 6+ time zones.
Budget and Booking
Set a total honeymoon budget and break it into categories
Average honeymoon spending is $4,500-6,000 for domestic trips and $8,000-12,000 for international. Split it roughly: 35% flights, 35% accommodation, 15% food and drinks, 15% activities and extras. Agree on the total number before researching — it's easy to creep up once you start browsing resorts.
Book flights and accommodation 6-9 months before the wedding
International flights are cheapest 3-6 months ahead; resort peak-season availability disappears 6+ months out. Booking early also locks in prices before wedding budget fatigue sets in. Set up price alerts after booking — many airlines offer free rebooking if the price drops by $100+.
Book refundable or flexible rates in case wedding plans shift
Register with the airline's loyalty program before booking
Set up a honeymoon fund if preferred over traditional wedding gifts
Honeymoon registry platforms charge 2-5% fees on contributions. Cash registries through your bank avoid fees entirely. On average, honeymoon funds collect $2,000-4,000 from wedding guests. List specific experiences ("sunset sail in Santorini — $150") rather than generic cash requests to boost contributions.
Purchase travel insurance covering trip cancellation and medical
Travel insurance costs 4-8% of your total trip cost. A $10,000 honeymoon policy runs about $400-800 and covers cancellation, medical emergencies, lost luggage, and trip delays. Wedding-related cancellations (venue issues causing date changes) are covered by most policies if purchased before problems arise.
Travel Documents
Verify passports are valid for 6+ months beyond your return date
Passport renewals take 6-8 weeks for standard processing and 2-3 weeks for expedited ($60 extra). Many countries reject entry if your passport expires within 6 months. Start the renewal process 9-10 months before travel if your passport expires within the year.
Apply for any required visas with your current legal name
Visa applications must match your passport name exactly. If you're changing your name after the wedding, the process takes 4-6 weeks after filing. Travel on your pre-wedding passport and name to avoid the time crunch — you can update documents after the honeymoon.
Make digital and physical copies of all travel documents
Store photos of your passport, insurance policy, booking confirmations, and credit cards in a secure cloud folder accessible from any device. Carry one paper copy separate from the originals. This cuts replacement time from days to hours if originals are lost or stolen.
Packing for Two
Coordinate luggage — one checked bag each plus one shared carry-on
Splitting essentials between two bags means if one is lost, you both still have clothes. Put swimsuits, one outfit each, and toiletries in the carry-on. Two checked bags plus a carry-on gives you 120-140 lbs of total luggage capacity on most airlines.
Pack 1-2 dressy outfits for special dinners
Many resorts have dress codes for fine dining — collared shirts and closed-toe shoes for men, sundresses or equivalent for women. A wrinkle-resistant button-down and a versatile dress each weigh under 8 oz and cover 2-3 nice dinners without repeating outfits.
Bring a basic first-aid and wellness kit
Pack pain relievers, antacids, motion sickness tablets, band-aids, and any prescription medications. Post-wedding exhaustion combined with travel often triggers headaches and stomach issues. A small kit weighing under 1 lb saves you from hunting for a pharmacy in a foreign language.
Pack a small "just married" sign or sash for photos and perks
Hotels and restaurants frequently offer free upgrades, champagne, or desserts for honeymooners — but only if they know. Mentioning your honeymoon at check-in leads to a room upgrade about 30-40% of the time at resorts. A small sign also makes for fun travel photos.
Romantic Experiences
Book 2-3 special experiences in advance
Sunset cruises, couples spa treatments, and private dining experiences sell out 2-4 weeks ahead at popular destinations. Budget $100-300 per special experience. Space them across the trip — one near the start, one mid-trip, one near the end — rather than front-loading everything.
Research the best sunset and sunrise viewpoints
Golden hour photos at the right spot become the images you frame at home. Identify 2-3 viewpoints with west-facing views for sunsets and east-facing for sunrises. Arrive 30-45 minutes early at popular spots to claim a good position, especially at cliff-side and waterfront locations.
Leave 2-3 days completely unplanned
The best honeymoon memories often come from spontaneous moments — a hidden beach, a local festival, a restaurant you stumbled into. Over-scheduling turns a romantic trip into a tour group experience. After the structured chaos of a wedding, unstructured days feel like luxury.
Post-Wedding Recovery
Schedule at least 1-2 buffer days between the wedding and departure
75% of couples report feeling physically and emotionally drained the day after their wedding. Flying out the morning after means arriving at your honeymoon exhausted and potentially hungover. A 2-day buffer lets you sleep in, open gifts, and start the trip refreshed.
Pack your honeymoon bags before the wedding week
The week before the wedding is chaos — rehearsal dinner, family arrivals, last-minute details. Pack your honeymoon bags 7-10 days out and set them aside. Label them clearly so a family member can bring them to your post-wedding hotel if needed.
Plan a low-key first day at your destination
Schedule nothing on day one except checking in, eating a good meal, and taking a walk. A 3-hour guided tour after 20+ hours of travel and wedding recovery is miserable. The pool, the beach, or a quiet cafe is the right speed for arrival day.
Set an out-of-office reply and silence wedding-related group chats
You will get 50-100 messages about thank-you cards, photo requests, and lost items from the reception. Mute those chats until you're home. Your honeymoon is for you two — vendor invoices and seating chart post-mortems can wait 10 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I avoid overpacking?
Lay out everything you think you need, then remove 30% of it. Pack items that mix and match into multiple outfits using neutral colors that work with everything. Laundry services exist almost everywhere; plan to wash clothes every 4-5 days rather than packing a fresh outfit for each day.
Should I use packing cubes?
Packing cubes compress clothing by 20-30% and keep your bag organized throughout the trip. Color-coding cubes by clothing type (tops, bottoms, underwear) eliminates rummaging through the entire bag for one item. Compression cubes with dual zippers squeeze the most air out and are worth the $5-10 premium over standard cubes.
What size luggage should I bring?
A carry-on bag (22x14x9 inches) handles trips up to 10 days if you pack strategically and plan to do laundry. Checking a bag adds 30-45 minutes per flight in wait time and carries a 1-3% chance of loss or delay. For trips under a week, a 40-liter backpack offers more mobility than a rolling suitcase on cobblestones, stairs, and public transit.
What items do travelers forget most often?
Phone chargers, adapters, prescription medications, and sunscreen are the top four forgotten items. Create a packing checklist on your phone and check items off as they go into the bag, not before. Pack a universal power adapter if traveling internationally; outlet shapes differ across regions and buying one at the airport costs 3-4x the online price.
How do I pack toiletries efficiently?
Transfer products into reusable silicone travel bottles (GoToob, 3 oz size) rather than packing full-size containers. Solid alternatives like shampoo bars and toothpaste tablets eliminate liquid restrictions entirely for carry-on travel. Hotels provide shampoo, conditioner, and soap; skip packing these unless you have specific brand requirements.