Anyone Been To Italy, Greece, or Jamaica? Honeymoon Ideas.

I went to Italy for spring break about 7 years ago... and it was AMAZING! First, if you plan on going right after your wedding, it still may be a bit cool out.

We book every thing on our own with no tour package. (AAA does offer tour group packages if you wanted to go that route) I used Venere.com to book our hotels and would use them again. We booked authentic hotels, not a national chain because we wanted the whole experience.

We visited Rome, Naples/Pompeii and Venice. Rome, you could easily spend about 3 days. The city is so full of history and culture that I wanted to see everything. The coliseum and Vatican are must see. You can get tickets the morning of or the day before. I'm sure you could also get them online. Naples/Pompeii was a day trip for us, but we could have used 1 more day. Again, Pompeii was so rich in history and a great experience. Our driver up the mountain was so vibrant and fun; he even sang Sinatra to us! Venice is maybe a 2 day trip. We spend 3 nights, and we felt that was a bit long. The island is simply amazing. Really. We visited the Island of Moreno (glass factory) and ventured to St. Mark's square. The island is quite small and without cars, is easily walkable in about a day.

We traveled on the Eurorail and by taxi with no trouble.

If nothing else, the food really exceeds any and all expectations. I have been searching for pizza just like the pizza I had in Rome since my trip.

I stayed at Secrets Wild Orchid in Montego Bay, Jamaica. It was wonderful I would definitely recommend it for a honeymoon as long as you are straight because homosexuality is tragically very illegal in Jamaica and you would have some real issues there. It's a beautiful place though. We did a waterfall and river raft tour and also toured the Appleton Rum factory.

I have been to Italy and Greece a couple of times. Venice is prob my all time fave place, so amazing. If I was to recommend a honeymoon dest I would say greece or even turkey though. Get on a gulet boat and sail round the islands for a few days, magic! Sorry cant offer much info in the way of getting around and spending money, I was a young backpacker in those days and most of my budget went on booze, lol.

We spent two weeks in Italy during Christmas break, one week Rome and one week Florence. We LOVED IT!!!!

We took trains and local transport. If you are looking for other options other than hotels we used Airbnb.com We have used this site for many of our vacations and haven't had a bad experience. In Rome we stayed about a 10-15 minute subway ride outside of the main touristy areas, but it was only a 5 minute walk to the station and we saved a ton!

I would recommend if you book on your own, Rick Steves travel books (I bought the Rome and Florence books) and you can download MP3 and listen to his tours. It was fabulous, we just listened to Rick Steves and wandered around the sites! For example, some people said skip Pisa, we did a day trip and his audio guide guided us through a great walk of the city to the tower.

I've been to Jamaica several times including my honeymoon in 2004. That is the last time I went. I've stayed at the Jamaica Grande in Ocho Rios the last three times I went and love that place. It may be under new ownership since I last went, so definitely research that property.

If you choose Ocho Rios, definitely do a day cruise to Dunns River Falls. Had a ball there. And the first time I went I stayed in Montego Bay but don't remember the name of the hotel. But I took a day trip to Negril and next time I go to Jamaica, I definitely want to stay there.

I've been to Greece but it's been several years so I don't know how much help I will be. I went with a friend so we went to several places around Greece: Athens, Navplion (also called Nafplia), Crete, and Santorini.

I would highly recommend Santorini, it's a beautiful island where you can just relax. There are only two major towns on the island though (Oia and Fira) so stay in one of those if you go. I loved being able to just go to a bar and just look out over the water (everything is built into the hillside so you have an amazing view of the water pretty much wherever you go).

Navplion was absolutely amazing. It's located on one of the bays so the view of the water are stunning. I've never been to Italy but the town kind of reminded me of what you would expect with all of the brightly painted houses and friendly locals. We splurged and stayed one night at the Nafplia Palace Hotel. It's up on the hill and you literally have to walk inside a cave to take the elevator up to the hotel. I believe they've remodeled recently but it was amazing when we stayed there.

Crete is also another beautiful island. I took several art history classes in college so I was interested in going there to see the Knossos palace and the beautiful paintings.

Athens was also fun for both us. We were two single Americans so we got a bunch of free stuff when we were there The food is amazing (moussaka, gyros, baklava, excuse the spelling). There's a lot of history in Athens that I really loved seeing. We spent several days there to try and soak it all in. Be prepared to pay to get into every historical site though, it can add up.

Let me know if you want more info!

I have been to them all. Not a huge fan of Jamaica, but some others here certainly are. I think it depends on where you stay. We stayed in a house in Ocho Rios. It was beautiful, but I was not a fan of the culture there, or the people really.

Greece- I loved it for a couple days- We traveled all over, and a few days was enough, unless you do all the little islands as well. Just gorgeous!

Italy- My favorite by far. So many beautiful cities. Went to Rome (historical and fun), Venice (my favorite- SO romantic!), Vicenza (small, quaint, and beautiful), and Verona (Romeo and Juliet- again, so romantic and gorgeous). You can go ALL over and spend several weeks without getting bored. I wanted to go to Italy for our honeymoon, but FH, who has never traveled outside of the US, wanted to do London and Ireland. I decided we would do that instead because I knew I would love it just as much!!

I have never booked packages. I always book stuff on my own, because I am a control freak

Congratulations to you both! Italy, Amalfi Coast is a beautiful and romantic place for your honeymoon. Greece, Santorini is also romantic and breathtaking. As you have never been I honestly suggest using a travel advisor to help guide you through the process. You want it to be memorable not stressful for you both. Happy planning!

@SandM were the flights decently priced? Also how was the weather when you went I would be going in April. Where did you book through and how long was your stay?

@rachey thank you I will definitely look into it.

I am leaning towards Italy I just don't want to be rushed so what's a good amount of days you guys think where we can relax as well? FH wants to relax on our honeymoon.

I've been to all 3 of these places and Italy is far and away my favorite. Jamaica is definitely the most inexpensive and relaxing. In Europe you'll be out and about visiting places so it's not that same relaxing feel that you get from chilling on the beach. We went on a Mediterranean Cruise so we hit all the big spots in Italy and you can choose to do 2 or 3 days extra before and after. It's a great way to go.

FH and I will be flying into Athens next June, spending 4 days, then over to Malta and hopefully to Rome for two nights before flying back out of Athens...since all the flights except the oversea are relatively quick and inexpensive I plan on getting in as much as I can!

If you're trying to buy something now, I saw Groupon has a sale for an all-inclusive stay in Jamaica! Livingsocial also has some good sales on 10 day stays in Europe

I always recommend Jamaica to everyone! I'm half Jamaican and have grown up going there. We've done the staying at relatives, staying at hotels (nice and not so nice) and the last time we stayed at an all inclusive. It really depends on what you feel like doing.

-All inclusive: easy to stay at the hotel all week. Usually they'll pick up from the airport (no rental car needed!) and if you want to venture out they have guided day/shopping trips. Really great for a week of relaxation and laying out at the pool or on the beach. Everything's included in the price. I've stayed at the Rose Hall Hilton and you have direct access to everything. The beach, the pool, the lazy river. For two it might be around 2-3K. Depends on what time of year. If you're going in April right after the wedding it's not a super busy time as many people are in school and enjoying their own spring weather at home. December/January is crowded with people fleeing winter!

-DIY sightseeing is also great. I recommend staying in Montego Bay or Negril. Both have tourist sights and are only a couple of hours away from other adventures like Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Kingston. Staying in big cities is better if you like to go around the island. Most locals are very friendly and want to help you out should you get lost, but almost everyone expects some sort of trade or payment. A lot of the beaches in Negril and along the way are nude or topless so don't be surprised if you see that. If you stay in Montego Bay, don't waste your time at Margaritaville...just don't believe me. Dr's Cave Beach in Montego Bay is amazing as public beaches go. You can also book places at the Half Moon Bay & Resort and get your own private villa.

-Look for deals with AirJamaica. They fly out of a lot of big cities, don't know where you are leaving from but sometimes they're deals are amazing and you can fly directly instead of stopping in Miami.

-Cities to stay in are any major city. I wouldn't recommend the smaller ones unless you are used to a 3rd world country. A lot of people are surprised by European cities being so different from America but this is even different than smaller spaces. (Think geckos in the shower with you depending on where you are...no AC....not even window panes or glass in some hotels)

-Don't get on any "tours" where a guy randomly walks up to you in the street or when you're shopping. That is usually a local rasta trying to get you to buy drugs.

Let us know where you end up booking!

FH and I are planning to go to Greece and Paris on our honeymoon. The majority will be in Greece and so far we have Athens (2 nights), Mykonos (3 nights), Santorini (3 nights) and Crete (2 nights). A travel agent was helping us and found a good deal through adventi tours. We are still looking on our own though but that was priced at $4k plus airfare.

I've been to Italy twice, 3 years ago for a month backpacking, and just now for our honeymoon. If you're going to Italy for the first time then I recommend seeing Venice (definitely my favourite city there), Rome for all the ruins/statues etc, and Florence (basically what you have on your list). You could easily spend just over a week seeing just those three cities and Pisa. 3 days for Rome, 1 day for Pisa (the city itself is nice to walk in, but there's not much else to see apart from the tower), 2-3 days for Florence, and 2 days for Venice (try to get accommodation on the actual Island rather than further away). I found the train system fairly easy to use. You definitely don't want to drive there...

Backpacking, my spending averaged out to be 100 Euro a day (including flights). So you'd want to double that figure for two people, and add a bit extra for better accommodation (assuming you won't be staying in hostels/cheap hotels).

We just got back from Sandals Whitehouse Jamaica and it was the best vacation I have ever been on. (and I'm not just saying that because it was our honeymoon) it's all inclusive and it's been rated one of the top 35 island resorts for food. Every room was beachfront and you were secluded from the outside world. (Unless you went on an excursion) H and I cannot wait to go back!

@LSC_sf Was that 4k for both of you or each?

The flights were decent when I went but again it was like 5 years ago so things might have changed. We stayed for just over a week. A few nights in Athens, 1 in Navplion, 1 in Santorini, 2 in Crete and then I stayed one night solo in Athens before flying home (my friend stayed behind and met up with her parents).

The weather was beautiful when I went, I think I went in May. I'll have to look when I get home though.

Edit: My friend booked all of the hotels, with my input, because she had been there before. I'll try and look up the hotels when I get home because the place we stayed in Athens was awesome. It was a smaller hotel but the proprietor was so nice and breakfast was free every morning. We did wing it on the island of Santorini and I would not recommend this. We stayed at a very sweet family's hotel but it was a little run down. They do have a Best Western in town, it's a bit more expensive but would have been worth it for us.

@SandyM Ok if you can let me know that would be great thank you!!