Photo: Courtesy of Turtle Island
Since the honeymoon comes after the wedding, you'd think that logically you should plan it last. Wrong! Why do you have to pick out your dream honeymoon destination, resort, activities, and stay length as you're sorting out your wedding date, venue, and guest list? Because your wedding budget — the first decision you should ever make when wedding planning — largely relies on the honeymoon cost (which, unfortunately is often a lot more expensive than one would think). To ensure you get your dream wedding and your dream honeymoon, here's what you need to plan for your honeymoon — before you get to your reception's seating chart and ceremony's officiant.
As we said before, honeymoons are expensive. And like your wedding, you need to adhere to a strict budget to ensure both your big day and first romantic getaway as a Mr. and Mrs. goes off without a hitch. Maybe you don't need to book your honeymoon before you put a deposit down on your venue, but you should consider when you'd like to honeymoon (immediately following the reception or a few months later), where you'd like to stay, and how long you'd like to vacation. Also, figure out a general, realistic number you'd be ok spending. Once you take into account meals, transportation, souvenirs, sightseeing and all of the tips you'll need to be shelling out, the cost of your honeymoon starts to spike — you should be mentally prepared ahead of time. The worst thing you could do is get lost in the wedding planning and leave no money left for your honeymoon. Plus, who wants to rush coordinating what's supposed to be the most magical vacation of your life as you're scrambling the week before your wedding? That's right, no one. Best part is this is truly a team effort, something you can do together (besides, you know, getting married and jetting off to a gorgeous locale).