Every couple dream of their perfect honeymoon. For some it might be laying on a deserted tropical island with only each other for company, sipping on fruit cocktails and spending your days swimming and relaxing with only each other in sight.For others, like myself for instance, that would be ideal for about one day, after that we would be tearing each others hair out in pure boredom. It doesn't mean we don't like each others company, we do or obviously we wouldn't have gotten married to result in us having a honeymoon in the first place.
My point is, we will be taking a significant amount of time off work for a once in a lifetime vacation. We can lay on a beach and do nothing in our retirement. We want to get out and have fun while we still can!
So, back to the whole point of this article. The honeymoon budget.
After planning a wedding you'll be well accustomed to budgets. Like your wedding budget there
are certain things, or in the honeymoon instance, places, which you just can't afford.
So before getting your sights set on a six week long tour through Europe, agree on how much money you have and are willing to spend on your honeymoon.
If you only have a spare $2000 then I'm sorry but Europe is not going to happen, save yourself the heartache and always set your budget before looking at any travel brochures.
What to include in your honeymoon budget
There are some fairly obvious things which you know need to be included in your honeymoon budget, but there can be some little things you forget about which have a tendency to add up very quickly.
- Travel - Flights, Train, Bus or Petrol for the car
- Accommodations - Hotels, Motels, Camp Grounds, B & B (don't forget to include accommodation for any over night flight stopovers you might have)
- Food - Breakfast (if not included in accommodation), Lunch, Dinner, Snacks & Drinks
- Car Rental Costs
- Taxi Fares
- Airport Transfers
- Gratuities
- Entry Fees (museums, theme parks & other tourist attractions)
- Passport costs if it needs to be renewed
- Travel Visa costs
- Vaccination costs
- Credit card charges - every time you use your credit card overseas your bank will charge you a fee, usually around $4 per transaction.
- Luggage - if you need to replace or purchase any new luggage
- House sitter for while you are away
- Cattery or Kennel for your pets
- Lawn mowing service to keep your grounds tidy
- Local airport taxes
- International phone charges if you phone home
So you can see there are many different costs involved when taking any vacation. Make sure you have a thorough honeymoon budget now to avoid having a shortfall later.
