Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Other People's Honeymoons

(Graphic: Jinah Kim)

Wedding season is upon us, and for those anticipating their upcoming nuptials, the most important thing besides the ceremony itself is the honeymoon.

Today more than ever, there is pressure to make your honeymoon the very best trip you have taken in your entire life. It needs to be romantic and aspirational, and most of all — it needs to look great in pictures.

Related: The Top International Honeymoon Spots

We get that planning for this milestone trip is overwhelming — the choices are endless. But planning is a lot easier when you don’t do it alone. Fortunately, the folks at Hipmunk have shared some enlightening results from a recent survey mining couples for info about honeymoon destinations, activities, and budgets.

Destinations

Not surprisingly, most newlyweds head for warmer locales by a beach. The top honeymoon destinations right now are Fiji, Italy, Hawaii, New Zealand, and Greece. For the more adventurous couples, Australia, Croatia, Costa Rica, Ireland, and Japan are the most popular.

Most couples still want to relax on a beach for their big vacation. (Photo: Thinkstock)

Related: Let Pinterest Tell You Where to Take Your Honeymoon

Activities

The great thing about a honeymoon is that no one can tell you what to do. Most couples say they prefer eating out, lying on the beach, hiking, having a day at the spa, or exploring museums.

Money Talk

Some people might argue that the honeymoon is more important than the wedding. In fact, 84 percent of survey responders say that they would look for ways to spend less on the wedding in order to have a longer, fancier, and more exotic honeymoon. This enthusiasm might not be split equally between partners. Hipmunk found that 70 percent of men say they’re more excited for the honeymoon than the actual wedding, while only 36 percent of women say the same.

There is a wide range for how much couples believe is realistic for a honeymoon budget. About half the people surveyed think $3,000 to $5,000 is a decent number, while 19 percent think a heftier $5,000 to $10,000 range is realistic, and 23 percent are on the other end of the spectrum, landing in the $1,000 to $2,500 range.

Honeymoon Spoilers

What can make that special vacation a little less special? No surprises here: 50 percent say food poisoning would ruin their experience, 33 percent say losing their wallet would severely dampen the mood, 13 percent say bad weather could kill their fun, and a mere 3 percent say that running into an ex would ruin it.

Some key takeaways for a great honeymoon: Head for the beach, plan activities that are engaging but not draining, start saving up early, and … be sure to bring along some Alka-Seltzer and a fanny pack for your wallet — just in case.

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