World’s Most Inspirational Honeymoon Destinations

In our recent article about the Personal Recommendations for the Best of Asia, there was some interesting discussion about honeymoons, which got me thinking: Where is the most inspirational honeymoon destination? If I were Mickey Mouse I’m sure it would be going over Niagara Falls in a barrel, but let’s get real folks. I’m not married, so I did what any good journalist would do: I asked people who thought they had *the* most inspirational honeymoon to tell me where and why. The interesting piece is lots of people commented on places they’d have their honeymoon if they’d got married, and there are a few suggestions for places to go even if you’re not married, not on a honeymoon, and just want a little R&R! Enjoy.

Mongolia

Courtesy of Rachel Cotterill, who triggered this whole trek in the first place (thanks Rachel!), photo by tiarescott

For our honeymoon, we took the transmongolian line from Russia, through Mongolian and into China. Seeing Asia unfolding by train was a magical experience. Mongolia was an unexpected gem – everyone was friendly, there were very few tourists, and an interesting museum of national history in Ulanbatar. Definitely recommended.

The Northeastern beaches of Brazil in the state of Ceará

Courtesy of Liz Caskey, photo by JAIRO BD.
[We] spent our honeymoon in the far flung northeastern beaches of Brazil in the state of Ceará. From Fortaleza, we drove 6 hours, the last hour no roads, only state park beaches, to Jericoacoara where huge, Sahara-like dunes abound. We spent five days in paradise exploring blue lagoons, wind surfing, and eating/drinking/lounging in this charming village (now with an awesome boutique hotel/refuge). We then ventured up the coast in a private overland jeep (no roads) for two days up to Lencois Maranhenses national park–100,000 square miles of desert meeting the Amazon that fill with thousands of azure lagoons. We finished in the Afro-Caribbean capital of Sao Luis whose colonial heart is like an undiscovered Salvador da Bahia. As a follow-up, be sure to check out our informative beach buzios article.

It was romantic, adventuresome, exotic, delicious eating scores of fresh shrimp and limey caipirinhas. It was about total disconnection from home, email, friends, family, and reconnecting to essential ourselves and nature–and stepping forward in our life together. It was all so local too, and I will confess that I had wanted to go here for years after a brief stint in Brazil. So, so, so far from the tourist trail. We saw people still living in mud huts who dedicated their lives to make yucca flour–but so happy!

The Amanpuri in Phuket

Courtesy of Charles Crockett, photo by erm.
My wife and I went on our honeymoon 9 years ago to Phuket, Thailand and I still think about the trip all of the time. While Phuket is generally not considered inspirational, particularly after the tsunami, the Amanpuri in Phuket is just amazing.

Perched on a hill above Pansea Beach and set in an old coconut plantation, the Amanpuri has spectacular views of the Indian Ocean. Each of their only 40 pavilions (rooms) have their own outdoor sun decks and dining terraces. The sunsets were just incredible. The walk to the beach involves descending down this long majestic staircase. Even the length length of the staircase was not a problem because the staircase was so beautiful. Sitting on the main pool terrace or in the spa, one always looks out over the Indian Ocean with these incredible unobstructed views that make it seem like the Amanpuri seamlessly falls into the sea.

The Amanpuri was so amazing that it was able to get my wife and I, who are both “type A’s”, to mellow out and relax. It was also so inspirational that it gave me the nerve to go down to the Karon Beach (the “main strip” Phuket) and try bungee jumping.

Two kids later and nine years later, my wife and I are still happily married. If we are lucky, we may return for our 10th year anniversary and, hopefully, will be similarly inspired.

Andy’s Note: Charles, luck is only part of the equation. But I’m pretty sure we’ll be hearing from you about your second trip to the Amanpuri.

Santorini, Greece

Courtesy of Denise McVey, photo by navin75.
Getting married on the rooftop during the stunning Santorini sunset overlooking the volcano caldera was absolutely a thing about which fairy tales should be written. Greece is an amazing place – I didn’t even think I liked Greek food, how wrong I was! The people, the food, the views, the history…it was all a perfect 10. We got married on Santorini, but included other Greek isles in our honeymoon – Mykonos (party all the time, eat breakfast at 8pm, go to sleep 6 am…); Crete (about the size of NJ, enjoyed the Italian fortresses incorporated into the shoppes, and dipping our toes in the Libyan sea); and of course the mainland, Athens. For extra credit, don’t miss all the things to do in Thessaloniki.

Andy’s Note: Wow, eat your heart out Mamma Mia! It sounds like a wedding fit for Meryl Streep!

Pohnpei, Micronesia

Courtesy of Gary Arndt, whom you may remember was one of our first interviewees.

While I haven’t been married, I found a spot 2 years ago which will be where I’d have my honeymoon. It is on the island of Pohnpei in the country of Micronesia.

Pohnpei (and all of Micronesia for that matter) gets very little tourism. It is very difficult to get to as it is a five hour flight from Hawaii or Guam. There are no large resorts on Pohnpei. The lagoon is as beautiful as Bora Bora and it has the ruins of Nan Modal, which are a little known ancient structure which is sort of a cross between Machu Picchu and Venice.

The hotel I stayed at is probably the only real hotel on the island. It is a small place owned by an American couple who have lived there almost 40 years. All the rooms were in bunglows overlooking the lagoon.

Steamboat Springs, Colorado USA

Courtesy of Amberlece and Joshua Oldham.
We stumbled upon our honeymoon destination while searching for places online. Our interests were skiing, horseback riding, great food and log cabin housing. The first search generated Vista Verde Ranch in Steamboat Springs, CO. I don’t remember looking further…

Upon our arrival on January 20, 2009, to Hayden Airport, a “ranch hand” met us, carried our baggage to a VVR SUV and drove us to the ranch. We stopped in town for some things we forgot to bring with us and continued on to the ranch. Mountains surround Vista Verde and it was the most incredible land I’ve seen only on television. Snow covered every branch, every cabin rooftop, passages were cut out with a blower and a large amount of horses grazed on hay in an open pasture. As the night grew darker, evergreen trees glowed in the night with lit white lights which lead the way to each cabin. A hot tub awaited our entry on the covered front deck.

We arrived in time to taste the most incredible 5-star dinner. Appetizers, wine and great service greeted us in the main dinner cabin immediately before dinner. The atmosphere was warm and absolutely inviting. Other guests introduced themselves and was no surprise to find that each guest had previously vacationed at the ranch several times before. A crackling fireplace could only be heard after conversation. The place settings were fabulous and professional. My husband and I felt very fortunate to be a part of Colorado’s best kept secret.

We took advantage of horseback riding and extended ourselves to helping with the morning and afternoon feeding. We met Zig and Zag, the work horses as they pulled the sleigh through the horse pasture. The wranglers were professional, friendly and well educated. The ranch truly felt like a home away from home, our dream all wrapped up in one big ranch! My husband and I could go on and on about this ranch. Pictures speak a thousand words so we took LOTS of them!

Andy’s Note: I’ve been to Steamboat Springs for skiing and I agree – it is a *gorgeous* place with the most unbelievable sunrises and sunsets. What a nice story to round off our list.

---

Well that was certainly a whirlwind tour of romance and inspiration, wasn’t it? I had so many replies with your stories, it would have taken me days to publish all of them. But thank you so much for your compassionate stories – and some of those stories we received we’ll be digging into a bit further as a different topic. Stay tuned!

Photos courtesy of the submitter unless otherwise noted.