honeymoon... fantastic resorts needed!!!

You could try Sardinia or Corsica.
Plenty of options on these islands.

An absolutely gorgeous property is Reid's Palace on Madeira, a place I plan to go to someday. Discounted rates are offered through Virtuoso, which also provides free amenities (upgrade at booking, daily buffet breakfast, and more). You'd get there from Lisbon, Portugal ... which is also a very interesting city.

What time of year are you looking at for your European honeymoon?

What time of year?

Would you consider Taormina? Would Ravello be an option--Hotel Caruso or Villa Cimbrone would certainly be romantic!

Do you want definitely to be on the sea?

Santorini and Crete should be on your short list.

In Santorini, we stayed in Oia, overlooking the Caldera, which was one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited, including my usual favorite, the Amalfi Coast!

We stayed at Perivolas in a one-bedroom suite, but there are better places to stay, I think, like KATIKIES, or ASPAKI SUITES. Check previous posts by the incredibly helpful Brotherleelove2004, who is one of the Greek experts (esp for Santorini!) on this board.

In Crete, we visited Chania, a gorgeous city on an old harbor that dates back to Venetian times. The city is a blend of Venetian, Turkish, and Greek cultures, and offers much to see and do in a very beautiful place. There are some excellent beaches within a two hour drive, as well as hikes, biking, and ruins to explore. AHHHH...

We went to the Cote d'Azur for our honeymoon last year. We loved it.

those ideas look great. a couple comments...

i looked into Reid's and it looks great, but i got mixed reviews on-line. did you hear it was great?

i've never heard of anyone going to Sardinia or Corsica. any great resorts there?

santorini/mykanos is an option.. i'm worried there wont be enough to do and it might not be as exciting as italy, spain, or france.. i've been to corfu and liked it though.

any places on cote d'azur? ive been to nice, which was nice. not as spectacular as positano i thought.

we are looking to go in October.

Here are my top picks in the Cote D'Azur:
Hotel La Reserve de Beaulieu in Beaulieu sur
http://www.reservebeaulieu.com/

Hotel De Cap Eden Roc in Cap d'Antibes)
http://www.edenroc-hotel.fr/

La Colombe d'Or in Saint Paul de Vence

http://www.la-colombe-dor.com/

Chateau de la Chevre D'OR in Eze
http://www.chevredor.com

I am not sure if all of these hotels are open during the whole month of October.

I think we need more info about you before we can really make on target recommendations. Some resorts are quite posh and yes, snobby. We've had this happen a few times over the years, most notably in Beaulieu ( Le METROPOLE) and Mykonos ( GRECHOTEL BLU). Much depends on your personal style, but we prefer casual places, where it's an option not to suit up at night, and we can easily walk into town for dinner/shopping. What about you?

You might investigate Spain's "paradores", which are very special, one-of-a-kind hotels in interesting locations.

For something a little more exotic, you might consider a holiday in Turkey (and it might be less expensive than an EU country). A day or two in Istanbul (either at a high-end property like the Four Seasons or an exotic B&B), a few days in a high-end resort (some are too touristy but there are some very nice areas) and then a couple of nights in Cappadocia. (For an appropriate honeymoon theme, you could stay in a "hotel" that's built into one of the "fairy chimneys" - some people say that these bizarre land formations are rather suggestive in shape ...

Given that you're going in October and want some beach time, you need to head south, as far south as you can, so Santorini is a great choice (and spectacular location).

Flowr asked for places in the Cote D'Azur and also mentioned that price wasn't an option.
I agree that Santorini would be a better option in October. The Katikies would be my choice.
http://www.katikies.com/

Try this resort; it's in the hills above Cannes: http://www.fourseasons.com/provence/attractions.html

Another fine hotel/resort is the Hotel du Cap Eden Roc (which takes only cash!):

http://www.edenroc-hotel.fr/

wow.. i really like the Kakities in Santorini.. looks really beautiful.

i did see Chateau de la Chevre D'OR on-line and thought it looked fantastic.

andrew8- i will definitely look into the ones you sent. they look GREAT!

The four seasons near cannes looks great as well!

i guess this is how i'm feeling... my fiancee has never been to most places in Europe, so i am thinking of doing one of the following...
1)take him to Positano (i've been already) and maybe another spot in italy like Lake Como (which i haven't been)
2) go to sevilla and an island in Spain, like canary or tenerife (i had a friend who recently got back from spain and said it wasn't great... !!?)
3) go to marseilles and maybe eze village or cote d'azure
4) greek islands

we want to pick 2 places and have a little bit of culture, are romantic, and not just beach, which is what i'm worried about w greek islands. any thoughts??

also... we may go in September instead of October

If you decide to go to Positano you must stay at Le Sirenuse.
Another place you should stay when your on the coast is the Palazzo Sasso in near by Ravello.
Both of these places are the best in the area if not in all of Italy. You will have great weather and warm enough ocean temps in September.
If want a to stay in Rome before or after you visit the Amalfi Coast, I suggest the Hotel Hassler where we also had a great stay.

http://www.hotelhasslerroma.com/

http://www.sirenuse.it/

http://www.palazzosasso.com/

wow... those places look amazing! i really love them! do you think we should do that option? i went to positano a few years ago with friends, but did not stay anywhere nice. i really, really loved it, but was hoping to go somewhere new.. maybe we can do positano/ravello and then lake como since i havn't been there yet. i'm sure i will get a different experience being in a nicer hotel, like the ones you suggested.. will def keep them in mind! thanks for the great suggestions!

I would do that option Flowr. I would start in Positano/Ravello, then use Rome(Hassler Hotel) as a mid point before going on to Lake Como.
Your going to have such a great time if you do this trip. I am really happy for you both.

Hi, Congratulations! On Lake Como, we really enjoyed Villa D'Este, www.villadeste.it It is beautiful with lovely restaurants. Good Luck!

i saw the villa d'este and it looked fantastic!

thanks so much for all your help!!! i am really excited now!!!

do you think all these places are driving distance if we get a car??

is there another good spot to stop between the amalfi and lake como besides Rome? i have spent a lot of time in rome and thought it might be more fun to try another town...

Near Rome, but not south:


http://www.lapostavecchia.com/

You could fly in and out of Rome, stay at the Il Pelicano in Porto Ercole on the coast--Relais and Chateau resort with beautiful pool and grounds with tall pine trees that whisper in the wind and swimming in the Med an option if you descend steps. Great food. Discreet service. Some cute towns nearby--Porto Santo Stefano, Ortobello and Giglio Porto on the nearby Isola del Giglio. Then hop over to Orvieto for a lovely Umbrian town before returning to Rome to fly home. Check out the Il Pelicano on the Relais and Chateau website. We stayed there several years ago and still talk about it. Prices are way up from when we stayed, so quality must be continuing or they'd not be able to continue to charge so much. When we left, the people checking out ahead of us booked their vacation for the following year before leaving. It's a place that inspires loyalty, among those who can afford great luxury. I think you'd like it.

Il Pelicano and La Posta Vecchia both look GREAT... exactly what i am looking for!!!! Il Pelicano looks like a really beautiful setting..

you are all so helpful!!!

Hi F,

Totally off the subject, but is there any chance you can begin a sentence with a capital letter?

All these places in Italy are great... I didn't mention the places on the Amalfi Coast since you had been there before. Villa d'Este is one of the world's most gorgeous hotels. Virtually all of the properties that have been mentioned are members of Virtuoso.

If I were you, I would stick either to the south of Italy (Rome down to Amalfi) or the north (Florence, Tuscany, Milan, Como). You wouldn't want to drive from Amalfi to Como; it's a LOT of driving.

Flowr, whatever you decide, give a look to the Choupana Hills resort
http://www.choupanahills.com/en/en_index.html

Is there a way besides driving to get from lake como to naples that is not very, very long? Is it reasonable time-wise to take a train or a short flight?

Flowr,
Would you be interested in staying in Capri at one these hotels instead of going to Lake Como??

JK Capri(brand new hotel thats super hot now)
http://www.jkcapri.com/index2.php

Grand Hotel Quisisana(always been a classic, right in the middle of town)
http://www.quisisana.com/en/home

You can take an Al Italia flight from Naples to Milan Malpensa airport thats less than an hour flight. Its an hour car ride to Villa D'Este from Milan Malpensa airport.

Here is a former royal residence that's a possibility on Sardinia:
http://www.hotelvillalastronas.com/
Maybe combine with this place:
http://www.hotelsugologone.com/

For Corsica, options include:
http://www.dominique-colonna.com/
http://www.hoteldespecheurs.com/

i thought Capri was nice, but i really wasn't thrilled. i was hoping to combine the amalfi w a place i hadn't been yet. a flight from como to naples may be a good option. is that a lot of travelling for a honeymoon?? is lake como worth the extra flight? i just thought the ville d'este looked so fantastic...

You could also easily combine Villa D'Este with a trip to Nice and the French Riveria. There are flights between Milan and Nice, and/or you could take the train, which is only about four hours between Milan and Nice.

Flowr, I was perfectly content staying in the Amalfi Coast along with Rome at the end our trip. It it were me I would just stick with the AC and not bother with Lake Como this trip. If you want to do Villa D'Este some day you could combine it with Venice as thats what my wife and I have planned down the road.
I think if you were to stay at one the hotels that I listed on Capri you would have a better time.

What I almost did during our AC trip was go to Portofino to stay at the Hotel Splendido, but at the end I thought it was too much traveling due to my health problems.
http://www.orient-express.com/web/ospl/ospl_a2a_home.jsp

flowr,

Are you going for one or 2 weeks?

Do you have any kind of a budget?

I love the suggestions for Palazzo Sasso and Hassler but they are both pretty pricey.

I think on a honeymoon it is nice to go someplace neither of you has been before. This way you can explore together instead of one of you being the "expert" - kind of a honeymoon philosophy of mine.

Our wedding was in mid September.

We honeymooned in Greece. It is a fascinating and romantic country. We saw the Acropolis, then flew to Mykonos for 5 days for R&R and other honeymoonish endeavors. Then we boarded a cruise there and saw a number of other islands plus Ephesus in Turkey over another 5 days and then spent the last few days on Corfu. It was interesting and fun but also restful and romantic.

We spent our 20th anniversary at the Palazzo Sasso in Ravello. It was romantic, good food, gorgeous views. Not so much to see or do without a bit of a drive down the mountain but still charming. We did go to Capri and Pompeii as day trips. We climbed a million steps to work off all the tiramisu from PS - it's soooooo good.

We also just spent a week in Spain. I think you could put together a nice combination of beach and culture there if you head to Andalusia and Costa del Sol. Choose your resort carefully, however, as we were underwhelmed by some of our accommodations...It is a romantic country IMO and not as expensive as Italy. Plus, I felt a bit beyond the whole tapas scene at this point in my life but I think I would have really enjoyed it when I was young and still liked to drink and hang out at bars Amalfi will still be there when you're old...

your suggestions are all great... i do agree that it would be nice to go somewhere new. i've been to the amalfi and the french riviera. in my opinion, positano was the most beautiful. i went there with friends 4 years ago on a backpacking trip, so this may be different since we are staying in a resort... ?? i've been to corfu, but no other areas of greece. i've seen some really great hotel recs in santorini, so that is an idea. i do want to get a lot of culture along with beach. Believe it or not, i have been getting mixed reviews of Spain. I've been to Barcelona and didn't love it. I thought it was too industrial. I was considering sevilla, cordoba, and/or costa del sol. I am open to places there bc there is so much culture but haven't been blown away by any hotels. I am also wary because i want the trip to be spectacular and places like ville d'este, Il Pelicano, Le Sirenuse, and The Katikies all look really unbelievable. Budget is not a concern and we will make our trip 2 weeks or a little less. It is a really tough call because I think Positano was pretty hard to beat and would be very romantic. Yet, at the same time, would like to try somewhere new that is just as great. That is why i was hoping to combine lake como with Positano. I didn't realize how far it was though.

I really think you should look seriously at Greece. Santorini, as I posted before, is at least as pretty and romantic as Positano, if not more so. Katikies is one of the top hotels there, and I'm sure you'd have a fantastic time in Oia, a gorgeous town perched on the edge of the caldera. You could take a private boat tour of the sulphur springs and the volcano, and eat the most amazing seafood ever (!) down at Amoudi Bay, which is accessed by a long staircase below town.

From Santorini,it's an easy trip by boat to either Crete or Mykonos, both of which would be perfect for a honeymoon. I prefer Crete to Mykonos, but in all fairness, we didn't get a chance to explore the other, less touristed side of the island.

Oh- and by the way, like you, I fell hard for Positano, and never thought I'd find a destination that would match how I felt about it until I visited Greece for the first time two summers ago.

Then Flowr it sounds like its Positano for your trip which is a great choice.

Weadles, I can't wait to visit Oia some day.

andrew8,

If you loved the AC, you'd definitely love Greece, although the food in and around Positano is enough to make me swoon!

Weadles,what are your favorite spots in Greece other than Santorini??

Ok,as a lover of Provence, I suggest the Crillon de Brave.

andrew8,

I'm actually returning to Greece next week ( husband has conference there!) and will be visiting the islands of Hydra, Paros, and Naxos, so I will try to report back when we return.

So far, our favorite islands besides Santorini are Rhodes and Crete, which are wonderful cultural and resort destinations.

As I posted earlier, we have also visited Mykonos, but I think I've left my partying years behind, and I didn't really enjoy shuffling through Madison Square Garden type crowds just to get to dinner in the summer months.

Looking forward to hearing your Greece report Weadles.

Maybe we should go to Greece since it will be relaxing! Do you recommend staying overnight in Oia or Crete? Any hotel recommendations there?

I was wondering last night about the possibility of doing Eze Village (Chateau de la Chevre D'OR)along with Lake Como (ville d'este). Is this a possibility? What do you think about this?

So many options.. Thanks for the help!!!

Why not both?

In Oia we recently enjoyed a week at Karini. Our first choice was Katikies but it was fully booked. We really had a wonderful stay at Karini though. They took very good care of us. You can have a room with a private plunge pool there. It is an understated but beautiful hotel with a very romantic dining area at night.

Sorry I can't help with Crete...

I vote for Greece for a honeymoon. And you can certainly see lots of interesting things in Greece - do a search here on Fodors. Plus the fried feta cheese - yum! and all those other great Greek foods.

gruezi

Flowr,
Its a 154 miles from Nice to Milan so your looking at least a 3 hour drive. Lake Como and Ez sounds like another good plan.

flowr,

I'd highly recommend staying in Oia. It's a quintessentially Greek village with white "cave" houses and blue shutters perched on the edge of the caldera. There's lots of really good restaurants in town ( along with the amazing ones down at Amoudi Bay), a wonderful bakery (!), and lots of boutiques selling everything from locally made jewelry to honey and wines. We just loved it there. It was probably one of the most spectacular places we've ever visited. Because it's your honeymoon, you might want to linger there, but you could probably see much of the island in a few days, then go on to a different destination. By the way, there's cheap bus service available on the island, so you wouldn't necessarily need a car.

If you need more ideas on where to stay other than the excellent ones you've already gotten from gruezi and others, pull up posts written by one of the resident Greek experts here- Brotherleelove2004.

From Santorini, Crete or Mykonos are each about two or so hours away by fast boat.

About your Villa d'Este to French Riveria question: Villa d'Este is about an hour plus to Milan aiport. From there, you could fly to Nice. From Nice, Eze is about a 20 minute cab ride, or a little longer on one of the public buses. The only problem w/ staying in Eze, is that you will be dependent on taxis/buses unless you're planning on renting a car. That's one reason why we usually stay in Nice when we're in the area, since we prefer being able to walk to the beach, restaurants, museums, and shopping.

Well, that's enough from me... for now! Good luck deciding. You have plenty of great choices!!

One last thing! Of course you can take the train from Milan-Nice. It's about four hours. Then catch a cab at the train station in Nice to Eze, if that's where you plan on staying.

hm... 4+ hours seems like a lot. i thought the Chevre D'OR looked like a great place, but is it worth the trip? i spent time in Nice and didn't love it, so i don't want to do that. if the trip is 4+ hours, i'd prob not do that option... i am still considering lake como and rome. they are pretty close, right?

flowr,

Actually, no, Lake Como and Rome are not close. It would take about an hour to get from the lake to the train station in Milan. From there, service between Milan and Rome typically takes 4-7 hours, depending on the type of train you're on. However, I've heard about a new faster service between the two cities. I don't know the details. Maybe somebody else here does? Also, you could consider flying. Flight time between Milan and Rome is about an hour.

I am reading "No-Man's Land: One Man's Odyssey through 'The Odyssey'", which should be must reading for a traveller to Greece and/or Turkey.

I didn't mean Lake Como and Rome. I meant either doing 1) Amalfi and Rome or 2) Lake Como and Eze Village (or somewhere else in france)

Okay, so the 2 places i love in Lake Como area are Hotel Villa Aminta and Villa d'Este. Any advice on which is a better honeymoon choice?? Also, we want to do a week in this area and then another week in an additional place. Any suggestions?? Right now i am thinking about southern Spain, the french riviera (maybe Eze village), or Tuscany. I am open to ideas and/or suggestions!!!

http://www.villa-aminta.it/inglese/home.html

http://www.villadeste.it/cgi/index.asp

I think that the Hotel Raphael in Rome near the Piazza Navona is THE honeymoon hotel especially with the fabulous rooftop restaurant and views. Its not as stuffy as the Hassler or as expensive although it is a few coins.The location,amenities and atmosphere is definitely romantic-unfortunately, I have only had drinks and dinner there...........

See my report titled "Santorini, Mykonos, Athens report. May '08"

Be well.

I think julievikmanis has it right -
coming from the UK we usually think of Europe as being the poor mans option - bit like you yanks regard the Carribean.

However, it doesn't get much better than Il Pelicano - a 1960s legend re-born.

Could also try

http://www.italytraveller.com/en/c/hotel-la-coluccia

if you really think that you can keep up with the glitter goys and girls.

Be careful with Sardinia - it is possible to pay out 750 euros plus per night and get utter dross. It has stunning coasts, is perfect for a quite honeymoon but some hotels presume everyone is a billionaire with no taste.

For service and location could also try the Elounda Resorts on Crete.

Il Pelicano looks really terrific! Is is stupid to do a few days there and a few days in Como? Is Il Pelicano easy to get to? And, is there stuff to do? We would like to rent a car and go to 3 places.. each place for 4 nights, and each place a little different.
Maybe we can rent a car and do Como, Il Pelicano, and maybe the south of france.. is this do-able?

the hotel in rome looks great, but i don't want the trip to be all about sightseeing, etc since i've been there a couple times and my fiance has not. I'd prefer to do sightseeing trips another time!

I just read a lot of negative reviews on Trip Advisor for Il Pellicano! I'm suprised bc it looks georgous in the pictures...

It looks like our wedding will be april 11th of next year. Is it too chilly for the greek islands?

Any ideas of another spot that is just as beautiful and a little warmer? (preferably in Europe)

I haven't been to Greece in mid-April, but I have been to Corsica at that time - definitely not warm.

Crete is further south and might be warmer. Another option might be resorts on the coast in Turkey, toward the south.

Do you have any flexibility regarding the start date of your honeymoon? For a couple of reasons (including your wish to have a resort holiday in Europe), you might consider postponing the honeymoon for 2 weeks. Mr frogoutofwater and I did this a few years ago and it worked out really well. It meant that in the last couple of weeks before the wedding, when everything is really hectic with last minute tasks, all we had to focus on was getting organized for the wedding. We were exhausted afterward, but got over that exhaustion "on company time" - i.e. while being paid to work normal days. We both went back to work almost immediately (I think I took the Monday morning off after the Saturday night wedding.)

During the ten days between our wedding and honeymoon, we caught up on our sleep and got organized for our honeymoon (which took some last-minute organizing, since we were going to be away for a month, go hiking and diving, and change hotels and cities every couple of days). We also enjoyed the opportunity to see a little more of family members who had flown out for the wedding and stayed until early in the week following the wedding. When we left for our honeymoon, we were refreshed and ready to travel and had got a lot taken care of at home.

If you delayed your honeymoon for 2 weeks, you'd be two weeks closer to warmer weather in Europe - and that could make a significant difference.

I totally agree with the advice above. We just returned last week from Santorini, where the beach was chilly in the late afternoon and the water was too cold to swim in.

Note that the TA reviews of Il Pelicano are 3 years old.

If you do not care about swimming in the sea, the weather should be excellent anywhere on the Italian coast.

Did you look at the Splendido in Portofino? They have some pretty good price breaks before June 5..

http://www.hotelsplendido.com/web/ospl/ospl_a2a_home.jsp

You could combine with either Como or Rome..

It looks like we will have to move the wedding date to March 28th because April 11th is Easter weekend...

I would love to do Como, but will it be nice if it's chilly? I will look into Turkey.

I realize that a beach vacation is probably out. Are there any places you all recommend that would be fun and romantic to go to? I'd like to go somewhere new... How about Vienna? Should we forget the Greek Islands since it will be chilly? Any other fun/romantic ideas? I'd prefer not to do Italy or France, since i've been already.

I'm confused. In your first post, you ask about hotels in France, Spain or Italy. You get tons of responses. And now you decide to eliminate Italy and France because you have "been there?"

For truly the best in a Luxury experience in Italy, Hotel Romazzino, Costa Smeralda (Emerald Coast) Sardinia.You will be treated like a sophisticated, knowledgable, traveller who knows what quality and service are all about. Food is excellent. The hotel is frequented by many of Milan's fashion elite, and they expect a first rate stay every time they are there.

You have enough expertise offered on this thread by many knowledgeable travelers; Aaaaand, if all of the above info. fails you....There is always Branson Missouri!!!!