When to go on honeymoon?

There are various options when you’re deciding when to head off on honeymoon. You can do it the traditional way and set off straight from the wedding reception, you can delay it by a couple of days while you enjoy the aftermath of the wedding, or you can leave it for weeks or even months and go at a more convenient time. Here are some thoughts to help you to decide when to go on honeymoon.

Leaving straight after the wedding

You woke up in the morning as a Miss and by the end of the day you’re a Mrs and jetting off on your honeymoon. In the movies, the newlyweds are always shown making their way straight from the reception to the airport, and this is generally considered the most exciting and romantic honeymoon option.

Leaving immediately after the reception means that you get to avoid all those petty post wedding tasks such as returning the hired suits, and arguing with the venue over any mess you might have made, and you can extend the excitement and exhilaration of the big day.

There are some drawbacks to leaving for your honeymoon immediately. Firstly you may be extremely tired after months of wedding planning and a day of celebration, and embarking a long trip might seem like the last thing you feel like doing.

Also you will probably have to make your exit just as the wedding party is getting merry, and you might miss dancing to the band that you spent ages choosing or enjoying the scrumptious evening food you’ve been longing to taste all day. You’ll also miss any post wedding gossip – which single guests ended up snogging at the end of the night for example.

Waiting for a couple of days

Waiting until the day after the wedding to set off on honeymoon allows the couple to stay at the reception right until the end, and they can even sleep at the same hotel as their wedding party so they can say goodbye to their guests over a relaxed brunch in the morning.

Departing the day after your wedding will still give you the chance to be with your guests again the next morning, but will ensure you start the trip when you’re still under ‘wedding euphoria’.

If you have quite a few out of town guests who have come over for your wedding, it seems a shame to waste the opportunity of spending some time with them by dashing off immediately after the wedding. Some couples are giving themselves a couple of days before they start their journey so they can enjoy a couple of days catching up with long distance guests and taking them round the local area.

If you wait for a couple of days after the big day to go on honeymoon you can make sure your suppliers are all paid in full, organise any last minute holiday packing, unwrap your wedding presents and post the thank you cards, and have your dress dry cleaned and packed away.

The possible downside of waiting a few days to go on honeymoon is that you may have time to crash back down to earth after the celebrations. You will have countless things to sort out so you won’t actually have a lot of time to spend with your new husband and for a few days you might have the feeling of anticlimax or being in limbo.

Delaying the honeymoon

Some newlyweds feel that they have enough to organise with the wedding, and they want to postpone the planning of a honeymoon until after the wedding is over. Maybe you’ve taken quite a bit of time off work for wedding planning you can’t take any more until the following year, or your job is seasonal so you can’t have two weeks off straight after your big day.

Some couples feel they have spent a considerable amount on the wedding they need time to get their finances back on track. Perhaps the weather at your holiday destination is at its best six months after the wedding so it makes sense to wait.

If you take this option make sure you put a lot of thought into planning your honeymoon to make it extra special, and if you are delaying your main trip for a long time try to go away somewhere for a night or two straight after the big day to have some time together as a married couple. The main problem with delaying your honeymoon by such a long period of time is that it may feel like just another holiday.