mgc

My husband and I are planning a belated honeymoon. Our original idea was the Greenbrier or Homestead, but I'm wondering if there's something else out there. Our criteria are pretty restrictive:

1. Not a hot/dusty/dry location (Hubby is overseas in a location like that now and wants a change!)

2. Not a beach (I'm pale and burn easily... and I don't like sand.)

3. Must be domestic (our passports need updating and honeymoon will be in late May)

4. It must be a destination we can discover together - no where either of us has been before. (That eliminates Hawaii, Seattle, Denver, Phoenix, Austin, anywhere in Florida, DC, New Orleans, Las Vegas...)

5. We live in eastern NC so no 'close' destinations - we want to save those for long weekend trips

6. We'd like a place with activities, cultural events, and good shopping - but want to avoid large metro areas and lots of traffic and crowds

7. There need to be a very good spa close by!

8. Our budget is $5K for 4 nights/5 days; (We'd prefer to drive ourselves and reallocate the potential airfare/rental car savings to room/food/shopping/activities. But if we must fly to a great destination, we will!)

9. Finally, no cruises.

Is there anywhere out there that meets these criteria?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Dreamer2

Hi MQC:
Congratulations on your wedding! Your request:
"6. We'd like a place with activities, cultural events, and good shopping - but want to avoid large metro areas and lots of traffic and crowds"
Makes me think of Newport, RI! Especially in May, it will be quite calm, but very beautiful. Ocean views and cliff walks, mansions to tour, small local winery, great restaurants, and cute shops. And in May everything should be blooming.
Also, further north, anywhere between Portland and Ogunquit Maine would fit most of your requirements - but the weather would be "iffy."
Enjoy!

benj

Hmmm... I was going to suggest San Francisco but then it would involve flying & possibly be too crowded for you. We did a sort of 2nd honeymoon there & rented a car & drove along the coast.

We are from flat Louisiana so it was great to see the Pacific Ocean & the different scenery. It is different from the FL coast too. I loved driving to see the redwoods. Their height is amazing!

Do you have any flyer miles? That's how we did our flight.

Have fun wherever you wind up.

wantsomesun

I'd suggest Macinack (spelling?) Island in Michigan. Beautiful setting, no cars, just horse drawn buggies allowed on the island. Beautiful homes, lots of B&Bs and several nice hotels. May could still be on the coolish side, but it's really beautiful there. Get a map of Michigan so you can see where it is located and do a search on the web for more info, and while i'm at it, I'll go get the correct spelling. lol.

Congratulations and have a wonderful time.

johncharles

For the combination of temperate climate, cultural sophistication, yet being outside an actual major metropolitan area which you seek, I think it's just very hard to beat either the Napa/Sonoma Wine Country or the Monterey Peninsula/Carmel/Big Sur areas of Northern California.

I understand from your other thread that you considered Napa but rejected it because of airline/car rental costs. But I think perhaps you should reconsider, since it meets the rest of your criteria so well. (The spas in Calistoga, in northern Napa County, are easily reachable not only from the Napa Valley, but from the northern Sonoma County wine areas around Healdsburg.)

But my top honeymoon recommendation for anyone, especially with your liberal budget, would be Carmel and Big Sur, one of the most beautiful and romantic areas anywhere in the world. Here are links to my two top combination lodging/dining recommendations there. Both sites feature beautiful slideshows (on the first one, you need to click on the thumbnails at the bottom to see the slides.) The first one is the hotel at which Sean Penn and Madonna honeymooned--but despite that precedent, I don't really think staying there would jinx your marriage. The second is the hotel which the readers of Conde Nast Traveler magazine last year voted to be the best hotel in North America, and tied for the best in the world.

http://www.highlandsinn.hyatt.com/pr...ow/index.jhtml

http://www.postranchinn.com

These places, and the acclaimed restaurants on site at each one, are very expensive but...if you were considering the Greenbrier and Homestead...you will probably spend less choosing either of these even with air and car.

itsv

try Inn at Blackberry Farm. Incredible food, service, setting and spa.

ALW

Hi mgc!

My suggestion came to me instantly and is one of my favorite places to be in the world: Santa Fe.

It has everything! It's a little dry, admittedly, but it's not so much dusty. It has wonderful shops, restaurants, and spas. It's got opera and museums, pueblo culture, and more.

Plus, the city is gorgeous!

Wherever you decide, enjoy!

mei

I have to agree with the person that suggested Sante Fe. I don't think you'll find it too hot dry or crowded at that time of the year. There are great restaurants, museums, scenery and one of the best spas anywhere (Ten Thousand Waves. Within a short drive you can visit Taos, Bandalier, Ghost Ranch, etc.

Regarding the other suggestions, Newport is great, but NE can b cold in May. Carmel...beatiful area, but you have to do a lot of driving to see a lot of sights. Sonoma is nicer, quieter and less expensive and you can still drive over to Napa. Healdsburg (Sonoma) is a great little town with a beautiful hotel. As far a the Homestead...been there about 5 times. We keep meaning to go to the Greenbrier, but like the Homestead so much, we never go.

Good Luck

xpi6tiva

My husband and I honeymooned in upstate NY. We stayed at Mirbeau inn and spa (mirbeau.com). There are amazing small towns you can explore together, great wineries, fantastic restaurants...but above all... the spa at Mirbeau is amazing!!! Romantic beyond words.

congrats!

mgc

I've checked out all suggested links and did google-searches on the other destinations. I had no idea there were so many great destinations out there! Thanks to benj - I DO have frequent flyer miles that I totally forgot about; 55.5K with Delta Skymiles.

I've e-mailed my hubby with all these suggestions. Santa Fe may be a hard sell on him. I guess I could make the point that it's over 110 degrees where he is so 85 or 90 would be cool in compairison... still not sure it'll fly though. I'll let you know what he says!

QC

Vermont!

1. Lush and green with gentle mountains.

2. Landlocked, except for Lake Champlain- no beaches at all!

3. Domestic since 1789.

4. Not on your been-there-already list

5. Far from NC, but not super far. You won't burn a whole day on travel if you fly. Driving is very easy from your location.

6. Lots of activities, shopping, and culture- and NO big cities whatsoever! The largest town, Burlington, has about 40k people. You go as rural as you can stand- it's the most rural state in the U.S. But the towns tend to be sophisticated and charming.

7. Spas too numerous to mention.

8. Your budget seems about right, and JetBlue flies there!

9. Landlocked- no cruise ships. There may be a Lake Champlain boat ride or ferry, but that's about it.

RedPanda

What about Maine? I haven't been, but it's my mother's absolute favorite vacation destination, and she's traveled quite a bit. The coastline is quite beautiful, judging by the photographs (which there are always plenty of), but not really "beachy." I believe my parents usually stay in/near Bar Harbor when they visit. The drive from NC (where I live, too! Raleigh area) would be long, but probably not unpleasant if you enjoy car trips.

karenc8898

I would suggest Vermont. It's nice and cool most of the time, plenty to do, lots of culture, pleny of history, great B&Bs or larger hotels, amazing restaurants, great shopping. My husband I spent our first (and second) anniversaries there. It was incredibly romantic! We stayed in Manchester both times, but travelled around quite a bit, too.

ALW

Hi Mqc:

Actually, Santa Fe is in the mountains -- I could be wrong, but I believe that the average temps. in May would be 40/68 (low/high).

Hope that helps!

mei

ALW is right...Santa Fe is in the mountains. You will have cool evenings and 70-75 in the day. And as much as I love Vermont and Maine, they are a better bet in the summer and early fall. May can be sunny and warm in NE and it can also be muddy, cold and rainy (we have a house in RI so I've experienced it first hand). Plus, if you were originally planning on an all inclusive place, you probably weren't planning on a lot of driving....you may be driving more in Vermont and Maine to see the sights. I'm sticking with the Sante Fe suggestion....you will not be disappointed.

mgc

We've finally decided and sealed our fate with deposits on our trip!

There were so many great suggestions but we finally chose Blackberry Farm with a one night stop-over at Biltmore Inn on the way home.

We figured Blackberry Farm was small and intimate, a place we wouldn't take the kids (if/when we have kids), and would be a nice mix of activities and relaxation.

Plus I've been dying to visit Biltmore and this was a great opportunity to break up the drive home with an overnight stop.

I'm keeping everyone's suggestions on my list of places to visit, though! Next vacation I'll break out the list and we'll go from there.

Thanks to everyone who replied and helped us! We're going at the end of May and I'll let you all know how our trip goes.