Top 10: Honeymoon sweet spots

Soon-to-be-weds take note: The Ultimate Travel Company teamed up with Condé Nast Traveller honeymoon expert and editor of website 101Honeymoons.co.uk, Jane Anderson, offers her Top 10 destinations for starting married life in style.

South of France 

Best time to go: Summer

With average temperatures hitting around 24°C, Honeymooners should take advantage of the hot weather and scenery so close by. You can get flights from most major UK airports and won’t waste valuable honeymoon time on long haul flights.

Best for: Luxury, scenery

It’s such an obvious, glamorous choice, that takes next to no time at all to reach and the money saved on going half way round the world can be used to bump up your accommodation to something really special. The south coast of France has some beautiful coastlines and beaches as well as some beautiful traditional towns and villages to spend warm evenings.

]Where to stay: Terre Blanche in Provence. Easily accessible from Nice or Aix-Marseille, Terre Blanche is set in a private estate close to the Cote d’Azur and Monaco. Couples can hide away in private suites and villas infused with Provencal style or when the mood takes them enjoy two championship golf courses, the superb spa where all products are based on the local region, explore local villages such as Tourettes and Callian.

Isle de France, St. Barth

 

with its lavish private villas, Cheval Blanc Hotel Saint-Barth Isle De France with a serene Guerlain Spa and fabulous Le Cabane de l’Isle (just about the best boutique you’ll find in a hotel), and Le Guanahani, relaunching this winter with spruced up villas and plenty to keep couples occupied from paddle boarding to diving.

Expert tip: Head to Gustavia for some high end shopping. The French owned Island also offers some of the best food in the Caribbean.

Morocco 

Best time to go: Spring, autumn

Spring in Morocco comes late around April/May and is a great time to visit to catch summer weather in the south of the country. Autumn and winter can also have glorious weather during the day but it may be cold in the desert by night.

Best for: Culture, scenery

Morocco is a great choice for honeymooners looking for a sensory overload of exotic culture and adventure. If you’ve never been to Marrakesh, it won’t disappoint. It's still a surprise that just a four-hour flight can transport you to a land of snake charmers and Whirling Dervishes. The city is often frenetic and the souks a crazy labyrinth. Depending on the type of couple you are, you might like to take a guide to lead you to the best artisans.

Where to stay: The trick of a great honeymoon here is to book into a hotel or riad that’s an oasis of calm as an antidote to city pace. La Mamounia is a legend with its vast gardens home to ancient olive trees and a stunning pool where breakfast is served. Moorish Arab architecture and interiors make this place feel more like a palace than a hotel.

Expert Tip: When you’ve had enough of city life, head out to the Atlas Mountains for a stay at Sir Richard Branson’s Kasbah Tamadot with its Berber tents and venture out for a trek and a night under the stars.

Maldives 

Best time to go: Spring, autumn

The best time of year to avoid the heavy rains is early on in the year, so January to April. Temperatures are high all year round though so keep your eye on weather forecasts for a romantic autumn honeymoon.

Best for: Luxury, beaches, nature

The Maldives is legendary honeymoon territory. Over the last twenty years, private island resorts have been

outdoing one another in a bid to be the most luxurious and innovatively romantic. Well-known for their lavish overwater villas, often with glass tables or floors to view the marine life below, there are now over and underwater gourmet restaurants and spas, resident DJs in castaway open-air lounges and private infinity pools galore. There has also been a concerted effort to involve guests in marine conservation from coral reef repairs to turtle watches. And of course, if you enjoy scuba diving, this is one of the best places on earth to come.

Where to stay: COMO is one of my favourite hotel groups and Maalifushi by COMO in the Thaa Atoll offers classic private island, barefoot chic.

Expert tip: As the Maldives are 90% water, activities are naturally based around the sea. However, most of the top resorts have truly impressive wine cellars to indulge in.

Seychelles

Best time to go: Spring, summer, autumn

The island nation is blessed with warm weather year round but high winds in spring mean it’s great for sailing and a calm sea in the autumn mean it’s a fantastic spot for diving and snorkeling.

Best for: Beaches, nature, luxury

When I first visited the Seychelles twenty years ago, I was completely bowled over by the remoteness and fragility of these islands where frigate birds wheel in the sky and rays swim in the shallows. Some islands like Denis rely on bikes and horse and carts to get around and are home to ancient tortoises and historic plantation houses, and some are wildlife refuges - such as Bird Island, home to rare breeds including the Seychelles Magpie Robin.

Where to stay: Often considered the original site of Eden, the Seychelles excels in private island experiences.

My favourite is Fregate Island Private which I was lucky enough to visit shortly after it opened and it’s still going strong as both a conservation stronghold and a luxury hideaway. The size of Monaco, it has just sixteen vast luxury villas and seven beaches. Honeymooners can literally have a beach to themselves – with butler service included!

Expert tip: Everyone should make sure to visit the Vallée de Mai Nature Reserve, a beautiful UNESCO World Heritage site on the island of Praslin. Explore the ancient forest filled with endemic species such as the Seychelles Black Parrot, the tiger chameleon and the tiny Seychelles tree frog.

South America

Best time to go: Winter/spring

Visit the Andes in January and February for mild temperatures that lets you view the sights on both sides of

Hotel Explora Atacama

 

the border of Argentina and Chile in all their glory. 

Best for: Adventure, scenery

For well-travelled couples looking for an adventurous, memorable honeymoon, I would recommend South America and in particular the Atacama, known as the driest place on earth. This may seem a little extreme for a honeymoon, but that’s the point, to take yourselves somewhere completely out of the ordinary, to this vast desert that rises from the Pacific Ocean up into the Altiplano, the foothills of the Andes.

Where to stay: Explora Atacama has over forty different guided hikes, bike rides, high mountain ascents,

horseback rides and stargazing sessions. The lodge has incredible views of desert and salt mountains.

Expert tip: Popular with locals but not with tourists the Elqui Valley is ideal for trekking, biking and horseriding. With its dry desert like climate it’s also a perfect place for stargazing accompanied of course with a traditional Pisco Sour.

Bali

Best time to go: Summer

The ‘dry season’ in Bali is between July and August so the summer is the best time to take advantage of warm, dry beaches. The beaches will be less full in May and September if you’re pining for a private getaway.

Best for: Relaxation, nature

The gentle island of Bali is another iconic honeymoon destination, as enchanting as ever with its strong Hindu culture and multi-faceted landscapes. Of course honeymooners should experience Ubud at the heart of the island where its spirit is most accessible in temples, art and verdant rice fields.

Where to stay: Couples can go off the beaten track in the north and west in search of superb diving and surf,

but one thing is for sure, Bali has some of the most breathtaking resorts in the world. Alila Villas Uluwatu, poised dramatically at the edge of a limestone cliff with installation like architecture, and The Muli with its serene private villas, are both high on my honeymoon list. 

Expert Tip: For snorkellers or divers, Komodo is one of the best places on the planet. The islands are easily accessible by a one hour flight from Bali.

Sydney and the Gold Coast, Australia

Best time to go: Spring, autumn

While its spring and summer in the UK, it’s autumn and winter in Australia, not that that means much. It’s still lovely warm weather in the spring and you might even get a cheaper deal. 

Best for: Culture, relaxation

If there’s one special occasion that warrants a trip to the other side of the world, it’s a honeymoon, and if you

venture to Australia, you will always be rewarded with richly romantic experiences. Sydney is one of those clever metropolises that effortlessly combines an urban pace with chilling out.

Where to stay: It’s just a hop, skip and a jump to the Gold Coast, to world-class resorts such as the recently reopened One&Only Hayman Island in the Whitsundays. This iconic 1950s resort has had a ‘natural’ make-under that chimes well with the trend for more experiential, caring travel. The emphasis is now on organic gardens with your private villa and home-grown natural ingredients in your couple’s spa treatment. Luxury with love for the planet thrown in!

Expert tip: Visit Sydney in March and the city comes to a standstill with the spectacular Mardi Gras festival. The streets throng with revellers as hundreds and thousands of people watch the passing parade of colourful floats. 

African safari & sand

Best time to go: Spring, summer

Head out on safari late Summer when wildebeest migration in full flow in both Tanzania and Kenya. There will also be fewer visitors than in the peak summer months.

Best for: Nature, adventure

One of the classic honeymoon combinations is an African safari with all the excitement of spotting the Big Five and the glamour of staying in a luxury tented camp, followed by a stunning beach resort on the Indian Ocean to rest and replenish after the buzz of a wedding followed by all those early game drives.

Where to stay: Tanzania is high on my list for its extreme beauty and fabulous camps such as Sand Rivers Selous in the Selous Game Reserve, one of the largest protected wildlife areas in Africa. Couples stay in open-fronted stone and thatched cottages looking onto the beautiful Rufiji River. Azura Quilalea Private Island on Mozambique’s pristine coast is another fantastic honeymoon

destination.

Expert tip: Tanzania is an all-year-round migration destination. Stay in a mobile tented camp and follow the vast herds around the Serengeti and witness this natural phenomena.

California

Best time to go: Spring, summer, autumn

Shutters pool and ocean view

 

California is beautiful year round and there’s always plenty to do. In autumn (or fall) you can expect clear skies, clear roads and the golden leaves of the Sierra Nevada’s aspen forests.

Best for: Culture, adventure

I’m permanently in love with the notion of the American road trip (think Route 66, Kerouac’s On the Road and so on), and California plus a convertible equals honeymoon bliss in my book.

Where to stay: The Pacific Coast Highway from historic Monterey to Morro Bay couldn’t get much more

dramatic if it were fictionalized and with American institutions such as Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica to host you, this is a honeymoon no brainer!

Expert Tip: One of the most exciting ways to see the Grand Canyon is by helicopter. The aerial views allow you to get a perspective of the Canyon you wouldn’t get from the ground.