Real Honeymoon: Italy

Posted on August 26, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

Like some of their closest friends, Shira and Marc decided to honeymoon in Italy earlier this year. Read all about their incredibly romantic Italian honeymoon below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

We went on our Honeymoon to Italy on May 20, 2013. We started our honeymoon in Positano (with day trips to Capri and Ravello), then went to Rome, Tuscany, Florence, and Venice.

Beautiful Positano

How long was your trip?

15 days (May 20-June 5).

Striking a pose at the Roman Colosseum

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

We both agreed that Italy would be the most romantic place we could go for our honeymoon. Plus, as an art history major, I have been dying to go to Italy my whole life and my parents also went for their honeymoon. Marc had already been to Rome so we decided to spend more time in Positano, Tuscany, and Florence.

Not too shabby of a view from Castello Banfi in Montalcino

The best part about our honeymoon was…

Definitely the food and wine. Every meal (and snack) was amazing — it was so fun to try new things.

A gorgeous meal at Le Sirenuse in Positano

If I knew then what I know now, I’d change…

The weather. Apparently this was the first May in 200 years that felt like winter. It probably rained every other day at some point. Normally Italy is supposed to be hot in May, but this year it wasn’t.

How much planning did you do in advance?

Not much planning — 10 hours. We hired a travel agent that was recommended by a friend and were able to focus on planning the wedding while they planned the honeymoon.

A romantic meal at Ristorante La Giostra in Florence

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Real Honeymoon: France & Monaco

Posted on August 12, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

Valley Girl Jesse Draper and her husband Brian recently jetted off to Europe for a fabulous honeymoon in southern France and Monaco. Read all about their luxurious trip and check out their cute photos below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

We honeymooned in June in the South of France. We actually started in Monaco and made our way through Provence and ended up in Nice. More specifically, we rented a car at the airport, went to Monte Carlo, Monaco, then to Aix-en-Provence, followed by Arles from where we did a day trip to Avignon and Les Beaux and we ended in Nice with a day trip in Cannes.

How long was your trip?

A luxurious two whole weeks!

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

I speak French and he had never been to France. He actually chose the destination. Since I was planning most of the wedding, his job was to plan the honeymoon, so I actually didn’t know much other than where we were headed when we took off to Europe which was very relaxing for me, everything was a bit of a surprise.

The best part about our honeymoon was…

I would have to say the luxury of time. It isn’t often you get time alone, in a foreign country nonetheless, to spend with your significant other (without technology or social interruptions). Typically when I have the opportunity to travel internationally I am trying to fit in as much as possible in a little amount of time. For example, I have 10 monuments marked in my travel book that I need to see in one day so I am running around. We spent quite a few days in each city, so we were really able to take everything in with a more natural feel. We wandered around the streets of Aix-en-Provence aimlessly and drove around the countryside looking for wineries, not sure where we were going to end up. It was so much fun! It was the perfect balance of relaxation and exploration. So the best part was the free time we had to spend together, that, and the chocolate, cheese, and wine that we consumed along the way, of course.

If I knew then what I know now, I’d change…

I really had such a great time, there’s not much to change. We decided we could do without Arles, the hotel options aren’t great there and it’s more of a historical town that you could hit on a day trip. Also, I wouldn’t change this because I had a lot of fun, he may say differently, but we went on a hike in Arles and got lost in the middle of the forest by this Van Gogh bridge and probably walked 5 more miles than we planned, so that might have been nice to know ahead of time, but had we known, then it wouldn’t have been such a fun adventure!

How much planning did you do in advance?

He did a lot of research and had general ideas of where we were headed, but all he booked in advance were the hotels and flights. We had a few days in each city which was plenty of time to relax and get to know the places easily and TripAdvisor is a lifesaver and we really based most of our meals off of what was recommended on their app.

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Real Honeymoon: Southern Italy

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

While Italy has been the most popular honeymoon destination on this blog so far, Alex and Brandy’s trip is unique because they planned most of it only two weeks before they went! And from what Brandy sent me, it sounds like they did a more than excellent job with the last minute arrangements. Read all about their gorgeous Southern Italy honeymoon below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

We spent our honeymoon in beautiful Italy, spending time in Rome, Positano (on the Amalfi Coast), and Sicily. Our wedding was on April 27th, 2013- and we left for our “luna di miele” (as the Italians call it) about 2 weeks after the big day.

How long was your trip?

We spent 10 days in Italy, though we should’ve spent much longer!

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

We narrowed it down the same way we usually narrow down all of our travels: food and drink. It had to be a place where our stomach would be happy, and then from there, we wanted to find a place that could offer both an urban landscape and some beautiful beaches. Southern Italy seemed to be the best bet on all accounts!

The best part about our honeymoon was…

It’s so hard to choose! The drive along the Amalfi Coast and our views from our hotel in Positano were amazing. Though at the time, Alex definitely wouldn’t have agreed that the Amalfi Coast drive was fun (we rented a car and he was the appointed driver). Afterwards, he did admit it was exhilarating. The views were spectacular! Same goes for our views in Positano – the bluest waters and gorgeous cliffs, plus lemons as big as your head! Sicily was also amazing, with wonderful seafood and cannolis, plus amazing white-sand beaches. Hello heaven!

If I knew then what I know now, I’d change…

We’d have spent more time in Sicily. There were so many towns to see, and we really didn’t get to explore Palermo as much as we wanted to. There’s such a vibrant energy to the region.

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Real Honeymoon: Mediterranean Cruise

Posted on July 8, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

Remember when I wrote my confession that I like cruises? Well Sara and Morgan went on a pretty amazing one for their honeymoon in Europe. Read all about their voyage around the Mediterranean below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

Morgan and I went on a 10 day Mediterranean cruise at the end of September and into early October.

How long was your trip?

2 weeks…the 10 day cruise and a day in Rome on either side…plus travel.

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

Morgan had never been to Europe and we wanted to experience as many places as possible with as little travel as possible. The cruise was perfect combination…we had so many great stops (Rome/Florence and Pisa/Monte Carlo/Barcelona/Mallorca/Sardinia/Naples/Sicily) without having to worry about how to get there or where to put our stuff!

The best part about our honeymoon was…

Touring the best parts of Europe during the day and gorging ourselves on multi-course dinners at night. I loved that we were able to be active and adventurous during the day and relax and enjoy ourselves at night. Not having to worry about getting from place to place (both us and our stuff) was a great bonus!

If I knew then what I know now, I’d change…

Don’t pack so much! I mean, did we really need 2 pieces of luggage each?? While it wasn’t a big deal while we were on the ship, schlepping all that baggage around Rome and the airports in 80+ degree heat was a mistake!

How much planning did you do in advance?

Almost all of it. On top of booking the flights, the cruise, and the hotel nights in Rome, we also pre-booked most of our tours. The only downside to that was that several of our tours got cancelled due to lack of attendees (it didn’t help that our cruise was 90%+ retirees and our chosen excursions were always pretty active) and we had to book tours we didn’t like quite as much. The only thing we really left unplanned was the sightseeing we did in Rome before and after the cruise.

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Ireland Recap: Dublin, Slane, Galway, Cliffs of Moher

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

This was my second trip to Ireland, the first being nearly seven years ago when my friend Becky moved to Dublin on a whim after we graduated from college. I never would have guessed that the next time I’d go back would be for her wedding! A lot of our friends from home visited another country first before heading to Ireland, so it was a lot of fun swapping travel stories once we were all together in Dublin: one friend got yelled at in Barcelona for taking photos in a bakery without asking permission, another friend visited her brother in Prague and ended up sharing one bath towel with him and her husband for four days, and someone else actually got sunburned on the (usually cold and rainy) Aran Islands.

Slainte!

We decided to spend three nights in Dublin at Blooms Hotel in Temple Bar. Despite the central location and good price, I wouldn’t necessarily want to stay there again (and it’s certainly not honeymoon material). Although the rooms were clean, they were really basic, the bathrooms were comically small, and the internet in most of our friends’ rooms was spotty if not nonexistent. However, the rooms did have flatscreen TVs that allowed for plenty of late-night music video watching (which will always score points in my book).

When I wasn’t watching classic Shakira vs. Beyoncé music video countdowns (which was totally amazing, by the way), we did a lot of fun stuff in Dublin. Here are some of the highlights:

Trinity College – Even if you don’t want to pay to see the Book of Kells, the classic college campus itself is definitely worth a look.

A sunny day at Trinity College

St. Stephens Green – If you’re fortunate enough to visit Dublin in good weather, relax in this gorgeous park that’s close to Trinity College and the good shopping on Grafton Street.
Guinness Storehouse – It’s practically impossible to be a tourist in Dublin and not go here. It’s a modern multi-level museum devoted to all things Guinness, and the general admission ticket includes a free pint at the top floor Gravity Bar.

Good times with good friends at the Guinness Storehouse

Pubs, pubs, and more pubs – The (Irish) groom’s favorites include Kehoe’s, Mulligans, and The Stag’s Head. Another fun one is Hogans, where the bride and groom first met!

Pub night at Hogans

Queen of Tarts – Cute place for lunch, two locations in Dublin. Very touristy, but undeniably yummy.
Yamamori Noodles – If you need a break from pub food, we really liked this Japanese restaurant.
Zaytoon – The only place to go for late night food. Don’t get a kebab from anywhere else; you’ll regret it immediately.

On the morning of the wedding, we rented a car from the airport and made the hour journey to Slane in Meath County. A couple of things to keep in mind when renting a car in Ireland:

They drive on the “opposite side of the road” in Ireland (i.e. the left hand side), and the steering wheel is on the right hand side of the car. Repeat the mantra, “Little lefts, big rights.”
The rental company told me that buying insurance through them was mandatory in Ireland, which nearly doubled the price of the estimated quote we received online before making the reservation.
Renting an automatic car is WAY more expensive than renting a manual one. If possible, learn to drive stick!

Main Street in Slane

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Scotland Recap: Edinburgh and Glasgow

Posted on July 2, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

Wow, it’s been awhile since I’ve had the chance to work on a non-Real Honeymoon blog post! We were in Europe for 11 days, and then I spent the past week getting caught up on work and everything we got behind on while we were out of town. The trip was pretty excellent though, and I would highly recommend both Scotland and Ireland to anyone who’s considering a visit. It was especially fun to visit both countries in June because it stays light out for so long. The sun sets around 10:30 pm, which meant we could sleep in late guilt-free and still have plenty of daylight for sightseeing.

In front of Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh

Although Scotland and Ireland are seemingly similar in landscape and culture, I’m going to recap our trip in two separate blog posts because it’s too difficult to lump both destinations together. As this one’s title suggests, it’s all about our time in Scotland!

So how did we decide on Scotland in the first place? Our friends were getting married in Ireland, and since I’d been there before we knew that we wanted to go somewhere else, and we didn’t want to travel too far between the two places. We narrowed down the options to Iceland, Portugal, and Scotland. We ruled out Iceland once we found out that there are currently no direct flights between Reykjavík and Dublin. Then a friend happened to mention to us that Bruce Springsteen was going to be on a European tour this summer. Intrigued, we immediately looked up his schedule, and wouldn’t you know it Bruce had a show in Glasgow a few nights before the wedding. At first I was a bit disappointed about missing the beaches in Portugal, but once we started talking about going to Panama over Memorial Day Weekend I got really excited for Scotland.

A look up at Edinburgh Castle

We had four nights to spend in Scotland, and we chose to do three of them in Edinburgh and just one night in Glasgow. The two cities are just an hour apart by train. In Edinburgh we stayed at Angels Share Hotel, a boutique hotel with a nice restaurant and hip bar. The location was perfect – just a short walk to pub hopping on Rose Street, shopping on George Street, and all things touristy on The Royal Mile.

The Royal Mile, Edinburgh

Here are some of our favorite bits from Edinburgh:

Cafe Marlayne – I have to admit that I was not looking forward to food in Scotland, but our first dinner at this wonderful French restaurant proved me wrong. (Two locations in Edinburgh.)
Rose & Crown – Rose Street is absolutely full of pubs, so what drew us into this one? Some guy playing “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” on his guitar. We spent the rest of the night there, and even went back for more the next day.
Brew Dog – Our tour guide recommended the beer from this “anti-Stella” brewery that has bars all throughout the UK (and coming to Sweden soon), and we were not disappointed. Make sure to get a tasting flight so you can try all of the varieties.

Brew Dog Paraphernalia

Whistle Binkie’s – This pub has a live band every night, but we were told to avoid Open Mic Mondays. There was a Red Hot Chili Peppers cover band the night that we went, which was less than fortunate.
Pub quizzes! – You can find a pub quiz almost any night of the week in Edinburgh. Great way to enjoy a few pints and meet other people.
The Edinburgh Castle – The castle is set high on a hill looking down on the rest of the city, and it is is the number one tourist draw in Edinburgh. Huge crowds show up to watch the daily 1:00 pm gun, but we chose to skip that and visit later in the day when there would be fewer people. (Alright, who are we kidding here? We slept in until noon and just couldn’t get there in time.)
North Berwick (pronounced “North Berrick” – When we asked a tour guide for a recommendation for getting out of the city, he suggested walking around his hometown, North Berwick. It’s a lovely seaside town located just 45 minutes away from Edinburgh by train. Great for golfing, too.

The beach in North Berwick

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Real Honeymoon: France & Italy

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

My friends Alex and Sarah went on a seriously incredible European honeymoon last summer, and it has (understandably) taken them nearly an entire year to write a blog post worthy enough to do it justice. (Spoiler alert: they nailed it.) For those of you who may be interested in honeymooning in France or Italy yourselves, Sarah provided lots of great information that should help you plan your trip. Read all about their travels, and check out their gorgeous photos below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

France/Italy in August/September 2012.

We started in Paris (4 nights) and rented a car and drove through Burgundy (2 nights at B&B in Pulingy Montrachet near Beaune), the Rhone Valley (2 nights at B&B in Avignon) and Monaco (2 nights). We dropped the car in Nice, flew to Naples and stayed 5 nights in Sorrento on the Amalfi coast. After that we took trains to Rome (3 nights) and Florence (3 nights).

Sunset in Florence

How long was your trip?

3 weeks (but don’t remind our bosses). We were married on a Saturday and flew out on the next Wednesday to be able to enjoy all the friends/family in town, rest up, and get cheaper flights. Highly advisable to take a few days after the wedding.

Ravello, Amalfi Coast

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

We wanted to take advantage of the excuse we had to take 3 weeks off of work and tour some parts of Europe that we hadn’t experienced. We live by the beach and knew that we wouldn’t be able to sit still on a beach for more than 2 days. While going to Paris is cliché, it certainly did not disappoint and was just as romantic as people say. As for Italy, we can’t wait to go back.

Sunset in Monaco

The best part about our honeymoon was…

Seriously not even sure where to start. How about a top 10?

10. Renting city bikes in Paris and using them to bike all around the city. Sign up on their website and pay about $2/day. Bike depots all over the city allow you to park. Great way to see the city, save money, and get a little exercise.

Yes, that is a baguette in Alex’s hand

9. Hiring a driver in Sorrento to take us around the Amalfi peninsula and an amazing meal at Ristorante La Tagliata in Positano. If we ever make it back to this area, we will stay in Positano.
8. Running after the tour bus as it pulled away nearly leaving us in Sienna. Since when do Italians run on schedule?
7. Shopping in Italy for clothes and shoes
6. Private wine tour around the Rhone valley

Rhone Valley Wine Tour

5. Raiding the chocolate shop free samples in Tain L’Hermitage (Valrhona)
4. Limoncello tasting along streets of Sorrento
3. Gambling at Monte Carlo dressed to the nines
2. Somehow partaking in “Fashion Night” in both Rome and Florence where the shops stay open late, have live music, complimentary cocktails/champagne/appetizers.

Fashion night in Italy, no big deal

1. ALL meals in Italy (especially their amazing house wine by the jug)

Wine by the jug in Sorrento

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Real Honeymoon: Scotland & England

Posted on June 17, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

I’m really excited to share this week’s Real Honeymoon with you while I’m in Scotland because 1) massive soccer fans Julia and Mike went to Scotland too (!), and 2) Julia has really mastered the art of leaping solo shots. You’ll see what I mean below:

When and where did you honeymoon?

Mike and I went to Scotland and Northern England [in April 2013]. We stayed in three locations: Edinburgh, Newcastle and Loch Lomond.

Balmy Edinburgh

How long was your trip?

2 blissful weeks.

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

The number one question we got on our honeymoon was: why did you choose Scotland and Newcastle? So you would think I have a good, practiced answer for this, but alas no. Here is my best shot at it.

We are homebodies and not adventurous. This was our first big trip alone together, and we have been together for over 10 years. We wanted to have an adventure, but not too big an adventure. We have always wanted to visit Scotland, and I am English/Scottish. Mike is also a HUGE soccer fan and Newcastle United is his favorite team. It was the perfect opportunity to make his dreams come true and see Newcastle United play their local rival, Sunderland.

#1 Newcastle fan

The best part about our honeymoon was…

Getting to spend so much quality one-on-one time together. I work long hours and we don’t vacation much, so this was a really special experience for us. And of course the Newcastle United game.

If I knew then what I know now, I’d change…

Don’t rent a car from the Hertz in Newcastle. Otherwise, I can’t think of anything we would have done differently.

Awesome leaping solo shot #1

How much planning did you do in advance?

We booked the hotels in advance and Mike spent a lot of time researching different things for us to do. We did not have each day pre-planned out, but we always had options to pick from.

Awesome leaping solo shot #2

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Bring on the Whiskey and Guinness, We’re Off to Scotland & Ireland!

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

Even though it feels like we just got back from Panama, we’re already about to embark on our next adventure. First up is Scotland, where we’ll explore Edinburgh for a few days and then take a train to Glasgow to catch a Bruce Springsteen concert. After Bruce rocks our socks off, we’ll fly to over Dublin to drink plenty of Guinness and celebrate our good friends’ wedding* in County Meath. Assuming that we recover from the wedding in time (rumor has it that Irish weddings often last until 7 AM the next morning), we’ll drive over to Galway and check out the Cliffs of Moher as well.

I don’t plan on spending much time in front of a computer during this trip, but I do have a couple of really great Real Honeymoon posts scheduled for publication on the next two Mondays, and I’ll definitely write about our own trip once we’re back home. In the meantime, enjoy this Scottish/Irish travel playlist that my husband just created for our trip.

Sláinte!

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* Even though these friends live exactly one mile away from us in San Francisco, it’s so awesome that we’re going to celebrate their wedding over 5,000 miles away in Tankardstown! You just can’t find wedding venues like this back home.

Real Honeymoon: France

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Peonies to Palm Trees

I’ve made it pretty clear in previous blog posts that I’m a total beach person, so when I was planning my own honeymoon I only considered tropical places with white sand and warm water. However, Lauren and John’s incredible honeymoon in France is a completely non-beachy honeymoon that I would have been thrilled to go on. Planned around their love of good food and wine, they ventured all over France and went to some of the world’s best restaurants. I’m salivating just writing this, so I’ll let Lauren take it from here. Foodies, enjoy!

When and where did you honeymoon?

John and I headed to France in April of 2013. We spent time in the Loire Valley (Orleans, Blois, Amboise and Tours), Bordeaux, Toulouse, Montpelier, Lyon, and of course Paris.

Posing in front of a Loire chateau (Azay-le-Rideau)

How long was your trip?

Two weeks.

Amboise Chateau in the Loire valley

How did you decide on your honeymoon destination(s)?

John and I have always loved France (and French food and wine!), and have been a couple of times together. For this special trip, we picked cities and towns where neither of us had been, so that we could explore them together. We started with the Loire Valley because it’s our favorite wine and cheese region in the country; then, based on train routes and lengths, planned a loop around France.

So much ham!

The best part about our honeymoon was…

This is a tough question! We had an amazing time in each and every place we visited. Like most of our trips, we tried to avoid museums and most tourist attractions so we could focus on the heart of the city. We always ask for recommendations at our hotels and bed & breakfasts, and were able to try some amazing restaurants which we would never have found otherwise.

Our biggest surprise stop was Bordeaux. No one we had spoken to mentioned the actual city, although many had visited the vineyards in the area, so we didn’t know what to expect! The city went through a renovation about 6-7 years ago, and now is clean and beautiful, with a long riverfront for strolling. Our b&b there, Ecolodge des Chartrons was also spectacular, and the owner, Veronique was very helpful for where to explore…and where to avoid! We were also lucky enough to end up in Bordeaux during the annual Antique Fair and Ham Fair, so we poked through French antiques and enjoyed some delicious ham sandwiches from tiny purveyors.

Overlooking the village of St. Emilion in the Bordeaux region

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