Where is he best place to go on a honeymoon in January for about 10 days for less than $7k ? What is the best way to book or arrange the honeymoon ?
I am interested in a relaxing beach honeymoon.
thank you in advance for the help
Best Places to Go for Honeymoon on a Budget
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thank you toristo for your response. I would like a relaxing beach holiday with clear sand and blue seas. Yes it is cheaper to go later january but Me and my wife to be will need to take time off work to go later which will be loss in income , comes to be more expensive that way.
Bali, Thailand, Vietnam or the Philippines are good cheap options with beautiful beaches. Get out of the cities and head to smaller coastal areas.
Scoot will get you to Singapore relatively cheaply, then there is heaps of low cost carriers to other destinations from there. Singapore is nice to visit for 2 days as a stopover if you want. Cebu Pacific will get you to Philippines from Sydney cheaply.
Whats the best way to arrange accommodation ?
@kagan09:
Any of the major travel sites. The nicer places will be listed. I like Agoda but check a few as sometimes they have specials on other sites like Expedia but watch booking fees and the currency they quote prices in.
@kagan09: Trivago and Airbnb are my go-to's (check the ratings and double check on trip advisor.
You'll have a ball somewhere like Phuket or Hoi An - I personally find Bali to be so gauche these days.
Don't waste money on resort accommodation, last time in Phuket we got a HUGE 2 bedroom 2 bath condo with full kitchen in a complex with 3 pools only 10 min walk to the beach for 1000 baht per night (about $37). Also look for any new hotels dong "soft" openings for your visit. Soft openings are when the main part of the hotel is finished, but some construction is ongoing, often daves you arounf 70% on some luxury digs.
If you are a little more adventurous, don't forget Cambodia - Sianoukville has some awesome accommodation options now and fantastic food/history.
@singlemalt72: Thank you for your responses I watched on The Checkout recently that booking directly from hotels is cheaper my concern was how trustworthy would it be booking directly will look at the websites you recommended as I wouldn't want to risk my honeymoon.
Link is below if you want to watch the episode with travel sites:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/thecheckout/episodes/s04ep1.htm
@singlemalt72:
Soft opening usually means there is also an abundance of staff on deck and they are trialing all areas of service.
If something is wrong they would attend to it quick snap.
(I've worked in the leisure industry).Sihanoukville can be a bit seedy but I would highly recommend to go to some of the islands off snooky for a romantic getaway.
@kagan09:
Airbnb - 100+ bookings, never a problem. THese are private (not hotels) usually houses/apartments/condos. the on site reviews are reliable.
Trivago is a meta search of various booking services like venere, booking.com, expedia - 200+ bookings, only a few minor problems.Also you are right, it is worthwhile first checking the fee through trivago and then contacting the hotel direct to see if they will match/beat. I tend to travel a lot and find that the points I earn through some booking sites are handy.'
If resorts are your go a friend of mine just returned from a week at sunrisehoian.vn and couldn't stop raving about them.
I wouldn't stress too much if you use someone reputable. For Vietnam for example, don't use Expedia, go with someone like Agoda for your hotel.
Vietnam is probably a great suggsetion - and I would also suggest Hoi An and Da Nang (which is like 30min up the road). Da Nang is a beautiful beachside town, and Hoi An is beautiful, has a lantern festival, riverside dining, is CONSIDERABLY cheaper accommodation. You can also get some nice cheap tailoring done, good quality handmade shoes, handmade bags, etc
have you thought about fiji?
I took my gf to an island resort called Nukubati Island for her 30th - groupon had a fantastic deal, and such a gorgeous location.
Theres 8 bungalows, and when we were there, only 2 other couples. All food, alcohol and beach activiies included. Groupon currently have a deal for about $4500 for 10 days (not incl airfares, which you can get for about $1500 TOPS 2pax (you do need a return domestic flight from Nadi to Labasa), and a few hundred dollars for reef snorkelling, sandbar picnic etc.
We had an awesome time, and we stayed 5 nights, wished we bought at least 7.
Heres the groupon: https://www.groupon.com.au/deals/ga-nukubati-private-island-…
Heres the resort: http://www.nukubati.com/If you need inspiration, check out the tripadvisor page for the resort, 228/234 reviews are 5/5. Those that arent are because theres no pool or wifi (both of which you don't want or need on a private island).
Highly recommended!!
I was going to say the same as it's a cheap and easy flight from Melbourne.. Problem is it's in the middle of wet season so probably not ideal. Bali will also be in the middle of wet season as will some of Thailand and East Malaysia.
Middle of wet season but also the cyclone season for Fiji. However Bali is too close to the equator to get cyclones.
Try Maldives\Andaman and Nicobar..
Maldives accommodation + flights for 2 people for less than $7K? Tell 'em they're dreamin'!
January - school holidays. crap airfare prices.
flying from melb. hhmmm
KL - then get an inexpensive Flight else where
Dep. Tue 17/Jan/2017 Ret. Thu 26/Jan/2017
MEL10:35 - KUL15:508h 15m
KUL19:10 - MEL06:00 (+1)7h 50m
Total Price Per Person. $589via IWTF
Palawan via Cebu Pacific. Your money goes a long way in The Philippines http://outoftownblog.com/25-photos-and-reasons-that-prove-pa…
+1
I was over there at Easter and have to agree that it's good value.Anywhere in particular you'd recommend for young kids? We travel to Bali at least once a year because we like just hanging by the pool but also having nice (cheap) meals and having places to explore. Places like Fiji don't really have enough for us to do. Thailand is too sleezy. Looking for somewhere new though.
Thailand too sleazy?
Karon and further south of Patong are most certainly not sleazy and well known and respected for being family orientated.
@OpshopDiva: we stayed at Karon last trip and still had the same vibe. We liked Koh Lanta and Krabi but not enough to return. We just don't get a welcome feel there any more.
Looks amazing! Anywhere in particular you recommend?
El nido resorts. Expensive but meals and activities are included.
Just checked the flight prices and it's coming up at about $800 return and then I'll have to get to Sydney and it looks like overnight in Manila both ways ( so probably about $1200 return from Brisbane). That sounds pretty pricey for a budget Asian airline…does it ever come on special for less than that?
Wait for the specials, they often have $300+ flights. Puerto Princesa is an amazing place especially the underground river http://www.leeabbamonte.com/asia/puerto-princesa-subterranea…. You'll often find places like Bali and Boracay to be heavily commercialised and overcrowded. It's not the place to go if you want to go bar hopping and get drunk. Palawan is more geared to couples and families.
Sounds perfect…we have three kids under 6 so no clubs for us. They love swimming and the beach etc. Simply family time. I'll keep my eyes open for some cheap flights.
Just be careful. Manila airport is pretty much the worst on the planet.
And taking a taxi with small children and luggage to and from the airport to CBD is a nightmare.
Big hotels take the details of the taxi driver on the inside of his door in case you get kidnapped or robbed. Not even kidding.
Puerto princesa was great. But keep your wits in Manila and get out ASAP
(26 y/o halfie who has been 3 times)
Not sure why you're being down-voted. You're right.
Most decent hotels will take down details of the taxi before you get in.
Most taxis would probably refuse to turn on the meter for a tourist.
Manila is actually great but this highly depends on what you want to do and what area. Manila is big.
Shopping is the best in Manila. And so is dining.
I'd recommend going to Coron, Palawan. (use Cebu Pacific to fly from Manila > Coron)
Just in case you are flexible with your relaxing beach honeymoon.
I went to Japan with my girl friend this year for two weeks (last week of April and first week of May), stayed in Hilton, we spent 7k (which was my budget). And anyone who have been there will say Japan is fantastic and will definitely go back. PM me if you want details, etc. Cheers!!
Japan is fantastic and will definitely go back!
OzBargain meet up.
We went to Port Douglas from Melb. Comparatively cheap (we went around December) and it was amazingly relaxing!
Except that it't the wet season and stingers are out so no swimming at the beach. Best time to go to Port Douglas is May-August.
Otherwise +1 from me for Port Douglas.
We went to langkawi - island of Malaysia, perfect honeymoon place, great accom and food etc wasn't expensive. Lots of relaxing on the beach and it's very relaxed - full of other honeymooners.
Accom was $2,000 for an amazing fancy place for 10 days, total spending there was about 2k (including eating at said fancy hotel and jet ski rides), plus flights.I did Langkawi in February. Splashed out a little more and went to the Danna (originally going to the Westin), only 4 days, but it was fantastic. Service was impeccable. If I had 10 days to do it again I'd probably do KL and Penang for 4-5 days and then Langkawi for 5 days then home.
We went to the Danna, but when it was first opened. Paid $210 a night for a room that's now about $1,100.
Went in off season, hotel had 16% occupancy. As you said, service was amazing. They made us cocktails not off the list just based on ''I want something fruity" and similar. We ate lunch at the hotel everyday, 2 dinners (one a seafood buffet) my husband drinking nice spirits, 3 days car hire and hotel bill only came to $600. We wouldn't believe it, was so amazing!
I saw a brochure in the room for this beautiful set of restaurants, right on a marina, and said to my husband - lets go there for dinner - for him to tell me it was literally across the road!
Best holiday ever.
I also went to The Danna for a week when it first open, it was about $250 a night which was an absolute bargain for the quality.
We booked a better room for the last two nights, then they upgraded us to a 120sqm suite overlooking the pool and beach, ridiculously big.. you could fit a family of 6 in there, but it was only us 2.
We also had the special dinner by the beach which was like $100 or so in your own small marquee.
Service and breakfast was great. None of this pre-made food rubbish for common people lol.
Would love to go back there now we have kids.
The only issue is that other restaurants are pretty far (with the exception of a few restuarants near the marina) but the local taxi drivers are cheap and friendly.
Australia has some good beaches, much cheaper than going overseas.
We always go to Bali because it's cheaper than Australia! We get two weeks with three kids for $3k flights, resort, breaky and transfers. We can't drive to The Sunshine Coast and stay for that much and then the meals are three times the price. You are right though…the beaches are better here.
Honestly.. not really. If you go somewhere like Bali, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam etc you will get a LOT more for your money. Flights can be expensive sometimes, but also sometimes you can snatch up a bargain. We got return tickets to Thailand for $200 or so last year. You can get a really good room for less than $50 in many places, the equivalent of what you'd pay $200-300 for here. Pay $200-$300 a night there and you will live like a king. Meals in Thailand i've had cost me $5 that were 4 times the amount and much higher quality than what i've bought here.. etc etc.
Luxury escapes.
https://luxuryescapes.com/what about this for your honey moon.
Look at fine print for peak season surcharges etc.I haven't used them but my non-ozb friends rate them highly.
Nauru. $1300 each return from bne. Stay at the menen hotel at about $150 a night. Good beaches, chill out at the pinnicles, then check out the detention centre. A few ww2 relics and the caverns. Dont even need to exchange money, they accept aud.
$150 a night? Pfff. If you fancy yourself a bit of a backpacker and don't mind communal accommodation, just turn up without a passport and you'll get for free.
Hell its a honeymoon on a budget. Jump in a dinghy bought off gumtree and head for christmas island. Try your luck. Free cruise on a customs vessel, free food and accomodation in nauru detention
I want to see the look on their faces when they eventually figure out (somehow) you are an Australian citizen.
@maolin95: You mean like what happened to this poor chap?
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2016/08/09/mistaken-ident…
Relaxing beach holiday?
Palawan Philippines, can't get more relaxing that that. Your budget will be more than enough.
Sri Lanka, it's a beautiful place with great food and really nice people, we loved it down there!
+1 - Hikkaduwa is still one of my favourite places on earth!
yeah it was totally magical :)
Which city/town and hotel did you stay at?
I would like to visit Sri Lanka one day.
Cook Islands I cant recommend enough. Go over to Rarotonga for around $800 return. Have a week there and then go over to Aitutaki for 3 days. You'll get change from $5k. Waters blue and beaches are beautiful…
Great barrier reef? Only time ive been we stayed at Heron Island which was amazing.. and would get plenty of change from 7k
I spent my honeymoon over in Perth and had a great time. The weather at that time of year is great.
Skip Bali and Thailand if you want to have a safe honeymoon,
The cheap food and nice beaches are leveraged way below the high crime, corruption and social disorder there.Visit other Aussie states and if you must leave the boundaries, i'd say NZ is a good spot,
My friends went to Malaysia and they thought it was great tooLook into Hawaii, they occasionally have very cheap flights from Australia. Not sure on the costs on ground but for a total expense of $7000 I am sure you can get heaps for 10 days.
Why don't you consider Lombok? It has some nice beaches and not as crowded as Bali.
http://homeiswhereyourbagis.com/en/15-things-you-should-see-…
https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Tourism-g297733-Lombok_West_N…
They also have some nice resorts:
https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Hotels-g297733-zff8-Lombok_We…
slightly above your price range (but unsure how the dollar has changed), but in 2013 we did french polynesia (tahiti, moorea, bora bora) for 14 nights for $7400 (flights, and accommodation) - organised through easytahiti
You could head over to Frankston , $8 by train.
Istanbul was great, cost just under 4K for flights and 5 days accommodation for two adults and a baby. Plenty of sightseeing & food was awesome. Gotta try their turkish tea!!!
umm high travel alert atm! i was just going yo book etihad flights for $800rtn and the a bomb exploded in the airport.
Anywhere around Australia, Australia is the best.
For $7000 grand my man you should just about be able to go anywhere.
Congratulations and have fun.
We went to Gold Coast on the $1/each/1way flight there. Stay in an apartment that cost $80/night for 7 nights. The apartment has a good size bedroom, living room, good size bathroom/toilet, washing machine and 2mins walk from the beach. Here is their site www.burleighonthebeach.com.au I can give you their mobile too if you want.
$800 for 10 nights, $6200 for spending is 3 times for than my budget at the time
Relaxing beach holiday I suggest Langkawi .. you can do diving and/or snorkeling on cheap and it has many secluded beaches ..
Vanuatu might be an option.
My advice would be to see both what packages you can get through places like expedia vs. calling the resorts directly to see what kind of a deal you can get, and buying your flights separately.
KL is a shithole.
Look at Scoopon
They have some really nice restorts which will costs you more than 5 times if you booked externally
Recently we booked our Bali accomodation via Scoopon
Could not fault a single thing , was 999/ 7 nights for family including breakfast
Restort had a private beach and most meals were from restort costing $100/ day for family.
For honeymoon, I would recommend going to Tahiti or Hawaii. Scoopon/living social/ Groupon always have deals for some great resortsWhat about a cruise? You could do a south pacific cruise and visit a few different islands and beaches. The cruises in January are more expensive than other times of the year because of school holidays, but it would still fall under your budget (even for a balcony room or maybe even a suite). Your profile says you're from Melbourne so you'd have to factor travel to Sydney or Brisbane because that seems to be where Australian bases cruises are leaving from at the moment.
Alternatively, you could travel to Singapore, spend a few nights there and do a cruise around South East Asia, visit some of the places people have mentioned above and spend a day in each of them rather than choosing just one of them to go to.
If you haven't been on a cruise or don't know much about them, the fare is inclusive of accommodation, entertainment and food while you're on board. Drinks are an added charge once you're on board or some cruise lines offer a package for drinks which you pre-pay. There are usually some speciality restaurants on board that might charge a small additional fee but the main formal dining room + the buffet are included in your fare, and usually some other options too (depending on the ship/cruise line). There's all kinds of entertainment available on board ranging from stage shows to bingo to basketball. It really depends on the ship but they make sure there's always plenty available for everyone to do. There might be small fees involved in some activities (eg. I did a martini tasting thing on one of the cruises I've been on, was something cheap like $5 or $10) but all the stage shows and facilities like the gym and pools are included in your fare. In the ports you have the option of doing your own thing once you get off (ie. relaxing on the beach) or booking some sort of shore tour or activity through the cruise line or by other means. Having said all that, pretty much, once you pay the fare if you don't want to spend much more money you don't have to - your travel, accommodation, meals and entertainment is all already taken care of so it can be a pretty cheap holiday.
If you're keen on doing a cruise it's best to check out a few different cruise lines (Royal Caribbean, Carnival, P&0, Celebrity, Princess, etc) and see what features their ships offer, the different destinations they go to and work out what fits in with your dates and budget (though I'm pretty sure you'll find heaps of options in your budget).
Here's a couple of examples of January cruises for you:
https://secure.royalcaribbean.com.au/cruises/booking?hasSeni…
https://secure.royalcaribbean.com.au/cruises/booking?hasSeni…
Cruises aren't personally my thing but I up-voted for the detailed response and enthusiasm
I hear Wangaratta is good this time of year..!!
if travelling in january i'd choose a ski trip to hokkaido or Zermatt with a stopover in dubai staying at the palms beach resort or asian stopover for a beach holiday to defrost. jan is perfect for powder snow.
shame its not a few mths later. the bargain atm is 14 day tour inc alaskan cruise and a canadian rockies tour and inc rtn flights from oz for as low as $2700 pp. my friend just left in peak season and she manage to package it for $3.5k can get rtn flights for >$1k, cruise $599 and rockies tour about $500 and some domestic flights if not flying with air canada. but january is too cold.
air asia flies to maldives and ive seen <$500 on special but accommodation there is exxy. still can be done with your budget.
look at bora bora.
personally, we want to go to Davao in phillippines next yr. its not popular yet but pretty amazing and so so cheap. i prefer undiscovered places. all the activities is so so cheap! white water rafting only $30pp, sky cycling $10, private boat hire for snorkelling $50 etc ziplining $10. those activities r getting very exxy even in bali n phuket. 4 days is enough for adventure then to the palawans to checkout the no 1 islands in the world as voted by conde naste traveller this year. not interested in manila or borocay.
def suggest you do things than you cant with kids. you will be doing lots of beach resorts with kids.
I would like a relaxing beach holiday with clear sand and blue seas
How about Noosa or Mooloolaba? Ever been to Byron Bay? I live at Sunshine Coast and it can get rainy in January but mostly in late January, and the wettest month is February. You should have plenty of sunny days.
Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays or Fitzroy Island off Cairns are good. Only thing is that there's a risk of a cyclone at that time of year.
We did Hawaii (Waikiki) on less than 7k for 10 days staying at the Outrigger on the beach and Hilton (new one) which are hotels on the pricier side. Def possible - just gotta get the cheap jetstar fares over there.
go to Bali but dont stay near Kuta/Legian. I would suggest spending a bit for the 4 or 5 star resort either in Nusa Dua, or in Ubud.
if you stay in Nusa Dua, you can always hire a car+driver and ask the driver to drive you to Legian area for some decent local food :)SE Asia is going to be very sweaty hot and humid as crap [but awesome fun and cheap].
Try Tassie, weather is beautiful and the island is amazing (do a B&B hop around the island).
OR
seeing it's your honeymoon, just buy a new king size bed, 200 bottles of gatorade and stay at home :-)
"Try Tassie, weather is beautiful"
That's horrible horrible advice.
That time of year, when I went, it was gorgeous.
Sorry that might of seemed harsh, we've just had 5 months of rain and snow though so it's not quite the tropical destination atm.
Check out Pangkor Laut Resort in Malaysia by the YTL group. has been rated as one of the best hotels in the world, http://www.pangkorlautresort.com/
Looks wonderful. But the accommodation looked like it had not insect screens. Wouldn't you be eaten by mosquitoes?
thinking outside the box check this place out Sharm El Sheikh https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Hotels-g297555-Sharm_El_Sheik…
I was born here but my parents were born in Cairo. I would not take my family there at the moment. It isn't safe especially for women.
Why isn't is safe for women?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_in_Egypt
"Rape is one of the most common crimes in Egypt.[1] Marital rape is not illegal in the country. By 2008, U.N. quoted Egypt's Interior Ministry's figure that 20,000 rapes take place every year, although according to the activist Engy Ghozlan (ECWR), rapes are 10 times higher than the stats given by Interior Ministry, making it 200,000 per year"Journalists raped in Cairo
http://humanevents.com/2014/06/18/rape-in-egypt-the-muslim-b…
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1381710/Lara-Logan-r…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q65eLnbmdhk
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_in_Egypt#During_protests
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_in_Egypt#Eid_al_Fitr_assa…@syousef:
Sorry but this can be said of any country including australia. Quick google search shows that the US and the Uk have very high rates of rape compared to the rest of the world.Oh yeah? When's the last time you heard of a woman being raped by a mob in broad daylight in Martin Place?
You might consider that reporting levels of rape will differ across the world as well
I looked at the website and Moevenpick Resort. Has a good feeling judging by the photos. A certain weird random there-ness. I like it because it's so random.
I think many people confuse getting better value from overseas with the excitement of visiting a foreign land.
Not to say Australia isn't expensive and that it's cheaper to stay home but this is your honeymoon. You (hopefully) only get to have one. So whilst a budget is a great guide and it's important to do the trip within your means, this will be an experience you'll want to remember forever. So going to a certain destination "just" because it's cheap doesn't seem like a great idea.
That being said, going somewhere you wanted to go anyway and getting a great deal is what your after here.
Others have commented on lots of places to go and I haven't yet had the pleasure to visit many of those places.
I've been eying French Polynesia for some time and you can get some pretty good deals as there are two direct flights from Sydney (Qantas and Airtahiti)If we are comparing apples with apples and you want a 5 star resort, these kinds of places cost 'real world money' everywhere. If it's some amazing bungalow on the crystal blue water, it's not coming for nothing no matter where you go.
I've been around the world a fair bit and it's not a stretch to say that some of the top beaches are in Australia.
However what you save on airfares you'll spend on everything else. The things people normally do on holidays (alcohol, eat out, watersports) I.e luxuries are very expensive here.
However you do get what you pay for. There are some islands in the Great Barrier Reef that are unrivalled in quality of sand, water, air and safety.Tldr; Grab a deal (this is ozbargain after all) but don't let money be the only deciding factor for this special occasion for you.
Why not go on a Pacific Cruise?
You'll need to depart from Syd or Bris.
We are going on a 10 night one to Vanuatu where we are stopping to get married.
5 of us (3 kids) for $3500.There's a lot to be said for this approach, 90% of your usual holiday related expenses/hassles are already sorted before you ever leave home with a cruise!
Just don't forget travel insurance and travel sickness meds…
Your bedroom. ;-) But whatever you do, don't skimp on the birth control or it won't be cheap anymore :P
Note the smileys - I'm kidding/ribbing, not trolling.
It's a sad indictment on our modern PC society when you need a disclaimer for a little lighthearted humour! ;)
We did both islands of NZ for ours in 2007 and it was mostly great. We will never do Fox Glacier again (long story). Franz Joseph was better.
South Island especially Queenstown and Wanaka were the highlights. Wanaka has a few unique tourist attractions lined up in a row. We went shooting, saw the toy and transport museum (nicknamed "the tip" by my wife), puzzle world and the airport. Don't know which of those are still running.
Tassie is nice in the summer time, very underrated budget holiday destination IMHO…
Yep great in summer, winters no fun though, especially if you work outdoors.
Yup, I've lived in middle & northern China, so I'm not unaccustomed to the cold…we're talking downwards of sub -20c to -30c for those who've never experienced it…but there's just something uniquely bone-chilling about a Tassie winter! ;)
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What type of holiday do you like?
NZ is great- lots of cheap flights regularly, easy to get there and it's another country (though another poster seems to think NZ currency should be accepted here…). It's got beautiful scenery, easy drives, wineries etc.
South East Asia - beaches galore or big cities if that's your thing.
Check out skyscanner.com and select where you're starting from and select 'Anywhere' for destination to get a range of the cheapest prices.
$7k will get you a luxury holiday in SE Asia for 10 days easily. If you want to trim it a bit, maybe wait until after school goes back (end of January) and the prices will drop considerably again so maybe you could take longer, stay somewhere nicer, or just save some money for spending.