Contrary to popular belief, even in a setting as serene as your luxury honeymoon, excursions can provide meaningful moments that you’ll reminisce about for years to come. And, the real charm of a honeymoon excursion is you can put it on your registry. Forget the matching set of Tupperware or the fine china you’ll never use; have your friends and extended family shower you with the gift of experience and book an excursion (or two, or three) in your name. With that, your registry is your domain to curate — a wish list of fantasies on the brink of manifesting. Here are a few top choices from go-to honeymoon destinations to get your gears turning on what to include.
Cenote
Mexico
Cool Off at a Cenote Swimming Hole
Cenotes are sinkholes, filled in with mystically cyan water. They are, in essence, the most romantic grotto you could possibly imagine. Forgo a beach day with your beloved to instead cool off at one of nature’s private, preciously unique swimming holes.
Play Archeologist at Maya Ruins
The remnants of the Mayan empire dot the Mexican Caribbean like seashells — any and every one of them makes for a surreal afternoon adventure. The proverbial emperor of the ruins is Chichén Itzá: This archaeological site hosts the excavated ruins of a large Maya City, with an iconic step pyramid (the Temple of Kukulcan) sitting seemingly at the center of it all.
Catamaran Sailing
Caribbean
Snorkel the Antilla Shipwreck
The SS Antilla is a 400-foot, WWII-wreck off the coast of Aruba that doubles as a thriving coral reef, and thus a snorkeler’s (or scuba diver’s) nirvana. Picture it: The two of you, the body-high of your honeymoon mingling with the pleasant shock of the cool ocean water, floating over an alien landscape of time-worn metal, coral reef and seabed, tag-teaming a silent game of I Spy; there’s a lobster! There’s a school of parrotfish! There’s brain coral! There’s your partner in life, floating next to you, just as giddy as you are at the one-of-a-kind moment you’re sharing together.
A Catamaran Joyride at Sunset
There is no specific country for this; just about every Caribbean isle is going to have this as a possibility. Charter a catamaran and sit back for a joyride as you sail off into the sunset; enjoying a glass of bubbly and trading windswept looks with your beloved as you glide atop the water like a hot knife through butter.
An Afternoon Expedition through El Yunque
As the only tropical forest in the U.S., El Yunque National Forest is a surreal experience. Perched within the mist-wreathed Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico, the forest has a feel of otherworldliness to it — lush green landscapes of this caliber are few and far between in this world, anyway. Now, sure, you could explore El Yunque on your own — the trails are maintained like any national park or forest — but you’d miss out on scores of hidden gems. A proper guide can lead you to open-secret waterfalls, swimming holes equipped with rope swings and sections of river that double as waterslides.
Haleakala Crater
Hawaii
Attend an Authentic Luau
Few experiences in Hawaii are as quintessential as a luau. Polynesian dancing and cultural performances combine with authentic Hawaiian dishes and delicacies to create an evening utterly drenched in revelry. Depending on where you stay, there’s a good chance that your resort offers their very own luau on their private beach or grounds, but if not, then it’s just as likely that you’re not too far a drive from several.
Cage-Dive with Sharks
The pristine, deep blue waters surrounding the isle of Oahu absolutely hum with all sorts of marine life. Marine life like … sharks. You and your partner might initially think you’re playing daredevil by cage-diving with a shiver of sharks, but the truth is far more informative: you’ll learn all sorts of fascinating facts about shark biology and behavior on this outing that dispels their fearsome narrative. Of course, those facts don’t make the souvenir photos of you cage-diving any less impressive.
Catch Sunrise on Haleakala Crater
In a word, Maui’s Haleakala Crater is … awesome. Unreal. Sublime. Humbling. Divine. Pick your adjective: Visiting the crater is the sort of outing that unofficially becomes the main event of a typical vacation. Your honeymoon is no different — a tour will escort you to a perch on the rim of the crater, 10,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean, where you’ll watch the sunrise sweep across the ocean and island, seemingly setting it all alight with brilliant hues of orange and gold. Other memories might blur with time, but this view is the sort of thing you’ll both reminisce about for years to come.
Lake Como, Italy
Europe
Vineyard-Hop the French Countryside
France is a patchwork of utterly dreamy romantic locales; what could be better than sipping sumptuous glasses of wine while looking out on it all? Treat you and your partner to a day (or two, or three) of vineyard-hopping — nothing distills “living in the moment” quite like picking out individual notes of a stellar glass of wine with your boo, while sitting contently at some stately palace or villa, overlooking gently rolling hills blanketed in vineyards. Like the glass of wine, each scene of bliss has its own subtle differences, ready and waiting for the discerning to admire.
A Boat Day on Lake Como
The entire shore of Lake Como, Italy, is a buffet of charm; each town and village a postcard setting of stunning architecture and scenery. Why settle for just one? Charter a boat and have a picnic on the lake’s placid surface, admiring the dramatic mountain ranges that seem to swallow the lake and its surrounding towns.
At the end of the day, no matter where you choose to honeymoon, the secret to making the most of your time with your newly significant other is simply: Working with a travel advisor. Your travel advisor works with all the leading names in travel to guarantee the start of your happily ever after is better than you’ve ever dreamed it could be.
