The variety of honeymoon deals can seem overwhelming: research ideas, take advice and stick to your budget to really enjoy your time together, writes Alanna Gallagher
The term "honeymoon" has become a byword for the perfect holiday. The mood set by brochures is one of splendid isolation, bare-foot retreats set in tropical locations, flanked by palm trees, porcelain beaches and pure blue water. The pressure to pursue this dream is fierce. In reality most nearly-weds already know that there is no such thing as perfection - like coupledom itself, the secret to a successful honeymoon is compromise.
The path to enlightenment is easy but time-consuming. Discuss potential locations, construct a shortlist and get thee to a bookshop, go online and research the destinations. Order a copy of The Good Honeymoon Guide by Lucy Hone, published by Trailblazer.
Settle on a budget and stick to it. This is one time in your life when expert help might come in handy. Try to book a face-to-face appointment with the travel agent. This will allow both parties to fast-track ideas and allow the agent to suss out your style. Ask them for restaurant and excursion suggestions too.
Long-haul islands such as the Maldives, the Seychelles and Mauritius may sound perfect on paper, but if one of you suffers from jet-lag, why not be practical and stay in Europe? Stay in real five-star hotels and enjoy fine wine and food.
If booking a resort, ask about the demographic of your fellow residents. You don't want to find yourself in an 18-30s club, but you might find the idea of spending your holiday with other honeymooners even more abhorrent. Fully inclusive deals might suit a lot of budgets, but they do lock you into one location. Ask about day and overnight trips.
Cruises are another option, but they suffer from a severe case of fusty-ness. While aboard, isolation is a no-no, but it is a great way to graze the surface of many destinations in one fell swoop.
If you both have different ideas, investigate a multi-centre honeymoon. Dubai and Mauritius will tick the sun and sand boxes as well as shopping and fine dining. Culture vultures might like the beaches of Sri Lanka, coupled with an inland exploration of temples and film locations, such as the town of Kitulgala, where A Bridge Over The River Kwai was filmed.
To get a feel for Australia, you need three weeks, and unless you're loaded, the trip should contain a balance of reasonable hotels punctuated with some high-end experiences. South Africa is another "scorchio" choice. Cape Town is only a flight away.
For backpackers, try China, the new destination to discover in Asia if you have already paid your respects to Thailand and Vietnam.
If neither of you has any interest in a sun holiday, why not invest in a high-end ski experience? Stay in a cliché-ridden chalet, complete with Jacuzzi, blazing log fire and bear-skin rugs to help keep each other warm.
Ask your agent about the cost of living wherever you're considering. The package price might sound attractive, but if food and drink requires you take out a second mortgage, you might be better off considering somewhere that costs more to get to but offers a better return on investment.
If funds are tight, ask about weddingmoon options, where you get married abroad and stay to enjoy your honeymoon on site. Italy and Mauritius are two of the popular options. You could just hire a camper van and head out west, armed only with a copy of Ireland's Blue Book, like one couple I know did. Finally, you could follow the example of a couple I spoke to recently, who brought not only their daughter to Sardinia, but the au pair too.
Remember that when you come back from this holiday, the only thing on your horizon is a stream of bills and overdue invoices. Your wings will temporarily be clipped and you'll be thanking your lucky stars that you took my advice and asked for holiday vouchers as part of your wedding list. After all, how many fine bone china figurines does any household need?
TRADITIONALISTS
For inspirational excursions with a touch of old-world flavour, invest in Abitare La Storia, Hosterías Reales and Châteaux & Hôtels de France, sister publications to Ireland's Blue Book and covering Italy, Spain and France. For details, log on to www.irelands-blue-book.ie.
The Earth Lodge at Sabi Sabi Reserve in South Africa is a game lodge oozing old-style service, as well as a well-stocked wine cellar and the opportunity to dine under the stars. Contact www.sabisabi.com. The Earth Lodge is available as a two-day add-on to a trip to Johannesburg from Cassidy Classic Resorts. From €1,449 per person, including flights and game drives. Flights to Johannesburg cost from €650 ex-Dublin (01-8745000 or www.classicresorts.ie).
The Cipriani in Venice is one of the city's modern legends. Located on the tip of the island of Giudecca, it boasts views over the lagoon. From £530 sterling per night. Contact Carrier on 00-44-1625-547050. Aer Lingus flies direct to Venice, www.aerlingus.com.
MODERNISTS
With architectural twists on heritage buildings and uber-modern creations, Design Hotels offer some of the best in boutique and high-end modern luxury. The brochure costs €15 plus postage. Call 1800-554914, or see www.designhotels.com for free.
The Taj Exotica Resort and Spa in the Maldives consists of a collection of villas built on stilts over aquamarine water. Dive lessons are also on offer. From €2,169 per person for seven nights, including flights. Call 01-8745000 or see www.classicresorts.ie.
StyleCity New York is your ideal compass to the Big Apple. It points the way to the most magnetic spots of the metropolis, guaranteeing the insider information. Published by Thames & Hudson, it is £14.99 in UK.
EASILY BORED
See www.trailblazer-guides.com for activity ideas that range from trekking in the Pyrenees to investigating China by rail. Music fans can plan the soundtrack to accompany The Blues Highway, a travel and music guide that takes you from New Orleans to Chicago.
Investigate the Tropical Places multi-centre trip of five nights in Sri Lanka, followed by four nights in tax-free Dubai and a week lounging on white sandy beaches in the Maldives. From €2,207 per person including flights, taxes, accommodation and transfers. Call 01-4331020 or log on to www.tropicalplaces.ie.
Experience the genuine article with a Tanzania Classic Lodge Safari. Visit the Serengeti and see the Big Five (elephant, rhino, lion, leopard and buffalo). Team the bush experience with some beach bumming on the island of Zanzibar, where the Blue Bay Beach Resort offers direct access to the Indian Ocean. From €3,273 per person including flights and transfers. Call Sunway on 01-2886828 or log on to www.sunway.ie.
EASY ACCESS
The Magic Collection blends the cultural bright lights of Lisbon with the relaxing beaches of the Algarve. Stay in five-star splendour at the Hotel Lapa Palace in Lisbon then lounge in the grounds of the Hotel Quinta do Lago with beautiful sea views and total luxury, from €1,645 per person. Price includes direct flight, internal flight, excluding tax, insurance and transfers. Call 1850-201167 or log on to www.magictravelgroup.co.uk.
Dubrovnik is a wonderful-looking city that is fast becoming the destination to namedrop. Stay in either the Excelsior or Villa Argentina, the two Grande Dames with great sea-frontage and recent face lifts. Seven days in either, including flights ex-Dublin, cost from €920. For further details contact Concorde Travel call 01-8727822 or log on to www.concordetravel.ie.
Enjoy Paris, the world's most romantic capital. L'Hôtel, once home to Oscar Wilde in Saint Germain des Prés, offers the Cardinal apartment with its romantic roof garden. From €721 per night, www.l-hotel.com. Room 81 at Le Montalembert has fantastic views of the Eiffel Tower, from €560, www.montalembert.com.
CULTURE KINGS
Visit the vibrant city of Hong Kong. In Beijing explore The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square and walk on The Great Wall. A real taste of the exotic for bored palates. Five days in both cities from €1,549, including flights and transfers. Call Joe Walsh Tours on 01-2410888 or log on to www.joewalshtours.ie.
With pagodas, temples and spectacular palm-fringed beaches, Thailand offers an array of honeymoon ideas from bustling Bangkok to the islands of Phuket and Koh Samui. See elephants at work in the teak forests. Ten nights excluding taxes costs from €1,045 for Bangkok/Phuket and from €1,125 for Bangkok/Koh Samui. Call Twohigs Worldwide Holidays on 01-6480800.
Go camping, but make it high-end and learn a couple of things about the swamps and bush in Botswana with Quest Beyond Ltd. Journey into the wetlands in a "mokoro" and visit Victoria Falls. For the genuine Out of Africa experience call 053-44107 or log on to www.questbeyond.com. All-inclusive price from €4,300 per person including flights.
BEACH BUMS
Plage de Saleccia is nine miles north of St Florent in Corsica. Stay in the Hôtel de la Roya (00-33-4-9537-0040; www.hotellaroya.com), which offers a direct access boat ride to this hideaway. From €160 per night. Fly from Dublin to Bastia, via Paris with an airport change. Contact www.trailfinders.ie or call 01-6777888.
With direct flights from both Dublin and Shannon, Barbados couldn't be any easier. Tamarind Cove is an elegant resort situated on the fashionable west coast. Tropical Places offers full-board in this four-star resort on beautiful St James's beach. From €1,999 per person, including flights and full board. Call 01-4331020 or log on to www.tropicalplaces.ie.
Team the beach paradise of Mauritius, in the heart of the Indian Ocean, with the opportunity to flex your credit card in the architectural oasis and tax-free shopping mecca of Dubai - already a favourite with Premier League footballers. Call John Galligan Travel on 01-2076555 or log on to www.jgt.ie. Three nights in Dubai, followed by a week in Mauritius, from €1,899 per person ex-London.
FOODIES
Eat, drink and be merry on the island of Sicily. Base yourself in the elevated beauty of the Roman town of Taormina - a favourite of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, which boasts several fine-dining establishments. From €629 per person including flights and half-board accommodation for seven days. For further information call Premier Sicily on 01-4331055.
Learn Thai cooking in authentic surroundings with a two-day cookery course at The Boathouse, which includes an introduction to Thai spices, an afternoon spent shopping at the market and a Thai massage. From $1,290 excluding flights. Contact Gourmet on Tour at 00-44-207-3965550, www.gourmetontour.com.
Stay at home and perfect your culinary skills with a sojourn at Ballymaloe Cookery School. Prices from €195, €450 and €720 for one, three and seven-day courses. Accommodation extra, from €25 per person per night. Call 021-4646785 or see www.cookingisfun.ie.
HOME BIRDS
Enjoy the splendid isolation of the numerous properties owned by the Landmark Trust. A Victorian lighthouse in Wicklow, a farm house in Co Donegal and a gate lodge for two in Co Cork are some of the selection on offer. Prices per week €1,175, €960 and €465 respectively. For further information call 01-6704733 or log on to www.irishlandmark.com.
Book some time together in the capital's best-kept secret. The Hibernian in Eastmoreland Place has so far shunned the trendy boutique hotel design make-over. The hotel is due to undergo a facelift later this year, but for now retains a shabby chic charm. From €160 per night. Call 01-6687666.
Sail Ireland's inland waterways and discover a slower pace of life. Sleep aboard a cruiser and dock in a different place every day for lunch and dinner. Try your hand at fishing while throwing salty sea dog shapes on deck. A four-berth cruiser costs €270 per person per week. Contact Emerald Star on 090-9741120 or log on to www.emeraldstar.ie.
FEAR OF INTIMACY
For a honeymoon with a few of your favourite friends, book Sanjeeda, a newly built 93-foot sailing dhow, which is available fully crewed for private charter. Explore Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and the east coast of Africa, Madagascar and the Seychelles. It sleeps 12 and costs £6,000. Further details at www.sanjeeda.co.uk.
A 15th-century Norman keep overlooking the Shannon sleeps six. The property retains its traditional atmosphere while featuring all mod cons, and is available from Elegant Ireland. From €3,600 per week. Call 01-4751011 or log on to www.elegantireland.ie.
Rent a villa for two weeks and invite your friends to join you for the second week. For a selection of properties in Greece, Italy and France log on to www.mediterraneanvilla.com.
Be sure to work out a rota for kitchen duty; otherwise you might find yourselves catering for a crowd for the entire week.