The California Wine Country for Your Honeymoon

How about a visit to California’s wine country for your honeymoon destination?

When you visit California you can’t help but make a stop at the wine country. California has 58 counties and out of those 58, there are 46 counties that are producing wine. California’s climate allows for optimal soil and growing conditions. With so many counties involved in growing wine the state of California offers several different events and activities geared toward the wine. Wine tasting can be quite enjoyable and educational as well. Sampling the wine is very important in order to appreciate the difference in the wines. California wineries are a old business that have been around for generations. Winery’s take a long time to perfect and to raise the grapes just right for picking.

If you want to arrange for a tour of the winery you need to do some checking around to find out the schedule, be sure to tell them you are on your honeymoon for that extra special service (and trust me, they will do just that!). Each one offers a schedule of tours and wine tasting and some require an appointment before touring. The wineries take their tours seriously and they offer the tourists several different options. When wine tasting is in season you will be able to access an endless amount of wineries. Each winery is different and they have their own set of rules. These rules include the number of guests per party and hours available to tour some require an appointment ahead of time.

Wine tours are scheduled around harvest time when everything is ready and being processed. Other events you may get to see while at the winery include crush events, concerts and auctions of vintage wines, balloon rides over the vineyards, gardens for the perfect atmosphere, museums of the winery and the vineyards, local restaurants come to the festival to display their variety of dishes, and other recreational activities that will make your visit to the winery the most enjoyable.

Because after several wine tasting events you may find that driving is difficult, you and your newly wed spouse may decide to rent a limo which will offer you a safe ride to and from the winery.  If you drive yourself, a lot of the roads leading to the wineries include long, narrow winding roads. It is important to drive slowly and carefully if you decide to drive yourself. They are well off the beaten path and you may not realize how long it takes you to travel to each vineyard. There are also hotels, motels and fantastic resorts to stay at near the vineyards that make beautiful honeymoon stops. Stay at just one or travel up and down the area and enjoy a few.  Many of the hotels and resorts offer spa packages as well as wine tasting tours, so check with them before booking your tour to save a few bucks.

Because California is so big you may not know where to go in order to find a winery. Here is the way that it is divided out:

Northern California offers the Napa Valley and Mendocino Wine sections

Central California offers Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Monterey Wine and Santa Barbara wine sections.

Southern California offers Temecula and San Diego wine sections.

The Central Valley offers Livermore, Clarksburg, Amador, Calaveras, Lodi, and Sierra wine sections.

There are so many places to enjoy during your stay. Viewing each vineyard is a picture perfect memory that will last you forever.

How to Get A Free HoneyMoon

The honeymoon after a wedding can be very expensive. It can pose an unnecessary burden to the new couple or the family. You can go on your honeymoon for free if you have it well planned in advance and are smart about it. After you have determined where you will honeymoon and the amount needed for your trip and all necessities, take that number and put it aside- time to find it free.

Tip #1

There will always be people who will ask you what would you like as a wedding gift. Ask those individuals for cash, a loaded cash card, or a donation made to the honeymoon destination of your choice. Cash, however, is indeed king and you can buy whatever you want including your honeymoon package.

Tip #2

Contact a new resort that has not been widely publicized, or perhaps an old resort that is offering specials. You can offer to write a review or document your honeymoon trip and get paid or receive a large discount on your trip for doing so. Not all resorts will do this, but if you search around and ask your local travel agents or even call the resorts on your own, sometimes you cna work out a great deal. This has worked really well at some of the smaller B&B’s that are looking for free publicity.
Tip #3

Join a honeymoon registry at. That’s right. Most people just sign up for a general bridal registry; then they pick out china, knives, linen, etc. You end up getting just those things. A honeymoon registry provides gift givers an opportunity to purchase services at the place of your honeymoon, such as a spa treatment or dinner for two. The gift givers can also give quantities (of their choosing) of cash to your registry that can be used toward your package or services at your travel site. This concept is not widely known and is under utilized. Its a fantastic concept because its pretty much the same as friends and family giving you cash for your honeymoon, but its more personal. Get enough gift givers to your honeymoon registry site and you will get your honeymoon for free along with the extras such as massages, facials, tours, etc.

Tip #4

Place a small money tree at every table at the wedding reception. This gives everyone a chance to give something. This is especially true for those persons who are too embarrassed to give smaller amounts of cash. You can also hold a cash dance in which people donate dollars to dance to dance with the bride and or groom.

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Plan a Honeymoon Destination to Aruba and Save Money

If you are looking for a honeymoon destination with a tropical theme but a little worried about the cost? This year but with the rise in gas prices and food costs and other expenses you may be worried along with the rest of us about the cost of a tropical vacation.  Don’t give up on going to Aruba on vacation, just change when you go.

If you visit Aruba during the off season you can save a lot of money on every part of your trip. The off season in Aruba is usually from the end of April until November. Unlike other popular vacation destinations the most popular time to travel to Aruba is from December to April. This is because the weather in Aruba is usually quite beautiful all year long so the time when most people travel to Aruba is when the weather is snowy and cold and unpleasant throughout most of North America which is between December and April.

So you can take a summer vacation to Aruba to enjoy the wonderful sunny tropical weather and pay a fraction of what you would pay if you took the same vacation during the popular tourist season between December and April. You can look on the Internet and find great deals on airfare for vacations to Aruba during the off season. Comparing prices and booking online instead of going through a travel agent can save you even more money. When it comes to booking a place to stay you have a lot of options. Most hotels are practically empty during the off season which means you can get usually get really luxurious accommodations for the price of a regular room so if you want to stay in luxury while you’re on vacation in Aruba then booking a room or a suite at a fancy hotel or spa resort will be perfect for you.

But if you want to have some privacy on your vacation and you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of tourists you should think about getting a vacation rental instead of staying in a hotel. During the slow season you can find amazing deals on vacation rentals. Usually the owners of these rentals have the places already fully booked for the high tourist season but the homes just sit empty during the off season so you can book an entire home or villa or cottage on the beach for you and your family for very little money. The owners might even appreciate having off season guests and offer you further discounts if you are planning on staying for a week or longer.

Saving money on airfare and accommodations is just the beginning though. Everything will be cheaper during the off season in Aruba. Restaurants will be less crowded and less expensive. There won’t be as many lines at popular family attractions, water parks, horseback riding tour facilities, golf courses or any of the other activities that you’ll want to do while you’re there.

Pamper Yourself with a Spa Vacation in Aruba

If you really need a chance to get away, relax, rewind and rejuvenate yourself you should plan a spa vacation to Aruba. Aruba is also a beautiful place to get married or as a honeymoon destination. There are lots of high quality world class spas on the island of Aruba where you can get all the pampering you need to feel relaxed and refreshed.

Most of the spas are located within high end resorts so you will have to book a room at the resort and then add on your spa treatments. When you do that make sure that you have a spa advisor or a hotel concierge book your spa treatments and spa days at the time when you book your room to make sure that you get the appointment times that you want and the treatments that you want.

If you want more privacy and more relaxation than just getting spa treatments at a hotel you can book a stay in one of several destination spas that dot the island. These destination spas often have private beaches and private cottages for guests so that you get lots of privacy and lots of down time to relax.

Unlike some spas where your days are strictly regimented these destination spas let you choose your own schedule, your own treatments and sometimes your own menu so that you can really relax. Since the weather in Aruba is beautiful throughout the year you can save money and have more privacy if you take your spa vacation to Aruba during the off season. The off season in Aruba, the season that has the least amount of tourists, is during April to November so you have lots of dates to choose from.
Want to give your best friend, sister, or partner a great gift? Take her with you on a spa trip to Aruba. That way you will have a loved one to travel with and do things with but you will both get the benefits of a few full days of spa treatments, meditation, and total relaxation. Spa vacations are becoming very trendy and more and more destination spas are popping up in places like Aruba where the natural beauty and tropical climate combined with the relaxation and luxury of the spa experience can make a vacation truly unforgettable.

Couples spa treatments and spa vacations are also becoming popular. If you could use some time away with your spouse to reconnect or recharge your relationship a spa vacation in Aruba is a great way to get some quality time together. Do you know a couple that has a small baby? For their anniversary this year give them a couple’s spa vacation in Aruba. They will be very grateful for the chance to spend some quality time alone together and to relax and get a break from the stress of being new parents.

A spa vacation also makes a great wedding gift. Planning a destination wedding? You could book a few days of spa treatments at the spa in your hotel and head down to Aruba with your bridal party a few days early to get in some girl time with your attendants. Giving your friends and family a few days at the spa is a wonderful way to thank your bridal attendants for participating in your wedding.