Well after reading these replies I can see that some people are off their rocker. Susan had stated that she was seeking a luxury honeymoon without it costing her $1,000. per nt. I have stayed at luxurious oceanfront suites at Hiltons in Asia, Europe & the USA. The same with the Hyatt Resorts. I can see that Cari is of limited means and should not be giving advice on a subject she knows nothing of. The Hilton Resorts are fine establishments. Perhaps Cari should limit her advice to the Caribbean. And, I can see why Susan is having such a hard time trying to find anything, anywhere. Who in their right mind would wait until May to book a honeymoon for December of the same year??? She seems to be very dizzy.

Check out Isabel Goldsmith's place ==Las Alamandas, about an hour south of Puerto Vallarta/West Coast Mexico for luxe romance -- a honeymoon during the holidays

Susan don't be such a spaz! You've been given great choices, but you complain about every suggestion. You sound too looney and childish to be getting married. Grow up and choose a destination before you end up with no honeymoon.

Sue, I spent Thanksgiving vacation in Greece and the weather was great. And, I live in southern California where we have very mild winters with gorgeous days. I think you do not know what you are talking about. You complain about Bora Bora, Hawaii, California, Greece, etc. You are such a negative person that nothing is ever going to satisfy you. I feel sorry for your boyfriend having to put up with such a flake.

Hi Susan - <BR>I will be on my honeymoon over Christmas too! After hearing about your troubles I guess I didn't jump the gun booking our trip already! I don't know when you're starting your honeymoon but what we did was complete our "luxury accomodation" stay before the 10 or 14 night minimum starts and then will complete the rest of our honeymoon somewhere else. Most of the luxury hotels seem to have decent prices until December 15 or 19th. That's usually around the time the long minimum stays begin.<BR>

Well, as stated above you have choesen a very busy time and expensive time. Also keep in mind that people book LONG in advance of Holiday travel time to ensure space. Another problem may be that you are calling on your own and will most likely do better working through a good travel agent as sometimes space is set aside for agents.

We just got back from wedding/honeymoon<BR>in St. John, USVI. What a fabulous<BR>island. Gorgeous gorgeous. We rented<BR>a villa. No major resorts but 2 on<BR>the whole island. Caneel Bay which<BR>has 7 beaches. pricey. or the Westin.<BR>You can't go wrong with St. John.<BR><BR>My personal opinion. Rent a villa,<BR>hire Chef Shay Mulcare to cook dinner<BR>for you one night. The most romantic<BR>place. If you want more about this,<BR>let me know and I'll email you.<BR><BR>Another suggestion, if you want Europe<BR>go to Taormina in Sicily but I believe<BR>the weather would be cool. Another<BR>island in Mexico would be Cabo San<BR>Lucas. Gorgeous resorts. Still<BR>St John, USVI can not be beat for<BR>the best beaches, clean and safe.<BR><BR>Nancy

I find it hard to believe that you and your travel agent are having such a difficult time. And why is she telling you that all the places you mention are too cold or the islands are completely booked? I think you need to find yourself another travel agent with more experience and connections. Many of the suggestions mentioned are feasible if you try hard enough and aren't so whiney.

You might want to consider The Buccaneer on St. Croix http://www.thebuccaneer.com/<BR><BR>The room rates start at $295/night for your time frame (up to $800) and there is only a 7 night minimum. This is a lovely resort on a spectacular bluff overlooking the sea with golf course, tennis, watersports, three beaches on premises. It's been run by the same family for generations. Many celebrities have stayed there over the years. St. Croix is a beautiful but underpublicized island with many things to do (or not!). Weather will be great and it's also Carnival time on St. Croix.

I disagree about St. Croix. We just<BR>returned from St. John. All the<BR>cruise lines are pulling out of <BR>St. Croix because of crime there and<BR>everyone says it can't compare to<BR>St. John. <BR><BR>St. Thomas is not that pretty. We<BR>went around the island. Out of all<BR>the island, St. John is the most<BR>gorgeous and cleanest of all.<BR><BR>I searched for the perfect island<BR>for the wedding/honeymoon and went<BR>on all the forums. St. John was<BR>always the most recommended.<BR><BR>It well exceeded our expectations.<BR>We are already planning to spend<BR>our first anniversary there next<BR>year. First time on a trip that<BR>we said. This is the place, this is<BR>it, this is the island we have been<BR>looking for. The most romantic of<BR>all, especially if you rent a villa.<BR><BR>Nancy

Just to elaborate on the information Nancy provided, only Carnival is pulling out of St. Croix although that is the major cruise line to the island. They did cite crime as the reason, but in truth the crime rate is much higher on St. Thomas (three murders over this past weekend but the cruise lines would never pull out of that island because of the high demand). Carnival is pulling out largely because the USVI government reneged on a tentative agreement to let them build their own pier and mall on St. Thomas. The cruise line needed to make a statement to the USVI government that it would "cost them" so they pulled out of the island with lesser demand. Crime was just an added poke in the eye. Not to say there is no crime, just that where it affected the cruise line it was almost exclusively on crew who went to known unsafe areas (looking for women and drugs). Not trying to blame the victim, but it's not likely to affect any tourist who uses an ounce of common sense.<BR><BR>Admittedly St. John is incomparable - it all depends on what a person is looking for. I'm a huge fan of St. Croix - it suits me perfectly (as you might have guessed) with the wide variety of things to do (or not!) and superb restaurants. I suggested the Buccaneer because it fit the bill for Susan in terms of luxury, availability and cost, not to mention relatively easy travel arrangements.

There are areas of Hawaii that get 10 inches of rain A YEAR. Try Makena Beach in Maui. I believe the Grand Wailea on Maui is in this area of very little rain. If you have never been to Hawaii and that is what you want to do than JUST GO. I have been to Hawaii twice in December and neither time had a problem. December is a pretty busy time in Hawaii though. But, if you stay at the Grand Wailea you will probably be isolated from a lot of the crowds.

I was just poking around in Tortolla, and there were gorgeous villas for rent at Long Bay Estates. (They have a website.) They had some less expensive smaller villas, they have private pools and maid service, and Tortola has lots of good restaurants, so you probably wouldn't want to eat at a resort every night anyway. Good luck.

There is nothing in the Caribbean that compares to Hawaii --the incredible beauty and lush scenery, friendliness of the people, luxury resorts and diversity. Traveled to Hawaii in December and the weather was fine. The only place I cannot recommend is Waikiki on Oahu. Poipu area in Kauai is the sunny side of the island--Kohala area on the Big Island is quiet and luxurious--Maui has the most things to do. Better yet fly between islands--30 mins--and see at least two islands. Good luck.

If you are thinking about honeymooning in Hawaii, I recommend the Hotel Hana Maui. You get your own huge bungalow on a gorgeous bluff with your own pool in a spectacular setting.

I, also agree that Hawaii is very<BR>beautiful. A lot of people we met<BR>on St. John that have been to Hawaii<BR>said they wouldn't return only because<BR>if you live on the East coast, the <BR>plane ride is so long. I agree. That's<BR>one of the reasons people love St. John<BR>so much.<BR><BR>We all agreed you get the same beauty<BR>and lushness of Hawaii and the beaches<BR>of St. John just can't be beat.<BR><BR>That's what this forum is for, everyone<BR>has different opinions.<BR><BR>One suggestion go to: onlinevacations.com...scroll down to<BR>Vacation Homes and under the category<BR>of 2 Persons/honeymoon look for Villa<BR>Stoneridge. Someone suggested that<BR>to me for our next visit to St. John.<BR>It looks gorgeous, and I believe it's<BR>around $3,000+ for a week.<BR>This is just a suggestion for you.<BR>There are numerous homes to peruse. <BR><BR>Only advice. We didn't like the area<BR>of Coral Bay only because it's way at the end of the island and a long drive from the pristine northshore beaches and to town. Others, like Coral bay for<BR>the remoteness. All depends on<BR>what your looking for.<BR><BR>Good luck,<BR>Nancy

But I'm so silly and confused that I still don't know what you are trying to say. Are you saying that it won't rain in December and January? Is that true??? Maybe I should go to Dominican Republic.

I always tell my Christmas Honeymooners, to wait until the second week in January. There is usually a travel lull then and rates are Much lower.<BR>Some Wholesalers do not have rates yet for Dec 15 and Beyond, they will have them in no later than August or September and will often have discounts for Jan-about Feb 10

How about flying to Rio, spending 3 days at the Copacabana Palace Hotel (nicest and most traditional in Latin America) then the rest of the time in a great Brazilian resort, like Txai in Bahia, where for about US$200 a night there are just 12 individual ocean front bungalows on a gorgeous beach, hot hot hot, with the devaluated dollar you can get all you want well within your budget. Another terrific resort but will be busy with kids at this time is Transamerica on Ilha da Comandatuba (Island), or Praia do Forte. All 3 resorts are in the state of Bahia, about 1.5 hours by plane from Rio. Brazil is just an hour ahead of NYC right now and 2 or 3 hours in December, so no jet lag. You can fly non-stop from JFK, ORD, MIA, Atlanta, D.C., Dallas, Newark or Los Angeles. You could even do New Year's Eve in Rio if you book fast. December is summer in Brazil. You would love this, feel free to write me with any questions, I am married to a Brazilian and live in Sao Paulo, would be happy to help. <BR>

P.S. The itinerary I suggested is one that is done by many celebrities who have been everywhere, done everything, like Harrison Ford, Sting, etc. Top quality, nicest people, gorgeous ocean, AFFORDABLE although this obviously wasn't a criterion those folks took into consideration!