Where do honeymooners go?

AKRON, Ohio - Planning a honeymoon isn't simple. Couples have to decide when to take it, how long to stay, and where to go.

Coralie Fabijanic, an Akron, Ohio, travel agent, has planned honeymoons for couples who chose a cabin in the woods or who retreated to Caribbean islands. A surprise trip to Disney World that she helped a groom plan was the most unusual honeymoon she booked. "The girl loved Disney, but never had visited the park," Fabijanic says. The groom had her print a phony itinerary that said they were going to Myrtle Beach, S.C., (the supposed destination), with a plane change in Orlando, Fla. Most honeymoons are planned by both parties, of course. Fabijanic says cruises have become so popular that many cruise lines have changed departure days to accommodate couples who marry on weekends. A typical cruise, she says, costs around $1,200 per person, including airfare. However, the price is about $200 more between Jan. 15 and Easter. Other popular destinations are Caribbean resorts offering all-inclusive packages costing around $4,000 a couple. An exotic honeymoon Fabijanic helped a fellow agent plan was Bill and Becky Klingbeil's trip to Tahiti two years ago. The Klingbeils, marrying at 40, were financially secure enough to consider far-off places. Tahiti's main appeal, Bill Klingbeil says, was that it "looked like no other place in the world. Not only was it beautiful, but there weren't McDonalds or Burger Kings on every corner." He says they traveled 22 hours and 6,000 miles to reach Tahiti, but felt it was well worth the time and the $8,000 price tag. The Klingbeils loved their eight days there, but he says he knows "people who went 30 miles away and had just as much fun. It's the time alone and together that's so important. The honeymoon lets you spend time with your new spouse without thinking of work or daily life. It's the initial bonding and celebration of the marriage." Mia and Doug Koch of Chicago, Ill., who married in July 2004, also opted for the unusual. Armed with frequent-flier miles the groom's parents donated, they focused on their destination. "We wanted something unique, different and special - somewhere neither of us had been," Mia Koch says. So they searched the Internet, and for about $4,000 the couple spent 10 days at luxurious converted sugar plantations on the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis in the British West Indies. Each island offered a five-day package with such perks as a beach picnic, intimate dinners, access to tennis and snorkeling equipment and - these are British islands - tea and scones by the pool. Budget conscious honeymooners might choose a single island package for half that cost. Although money wasn't the real consideration, Ryan and Sue McNulty managed to combine a unique getaway with a rock-bottom price for their August 2003 honeymoon. The Schenectady, N.Y., couple, outdoor enthusiasts and marathon runners, planned their honeymoon to reflect who they are. Ryan McNulty says they needed flexibility because fewer than 20 of their wedding guests were from the New York area. "Almost everyone had traveled a long distance," he says, "and we wanted to be able to spend time with people who'd traveled so far." The flexibility helped because the couple didn't leave for their honeymoon for two days and then drove to Lake Placid Resort in the Adirondack Mountains. Although there were tentative plans for one tent-camping night, he says it turned out that "one of us likes camping more than the other," so they slept at the Holiday Inn. Not only did they hike while there, but since Lake Placid is a training site for winter sports athletes, they got to watch ski jumpers practice skiing into pools in August! The couple's trip cost less than $600, even with the $300 hotel bill and a few nice dinners. Like Bill and Becky,and Mia and Doug, the important thing to Ryan and Sue was the celebration of what they all called the most important event in their lives. --- McNulty is a free-lance writer in Akron, Ohio.

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Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops