mdn

We want to go on our honeymoon in mid-May for around 5 days to a place that's not too expensive. We would like a little bit of the beach/water, great food (local food & esp. seafood prepared with care would be even better than European cuisine), local culture, trails, animal/bird life & so on.
In short: we're not beach bums. We'd rather go snorkeling, fishing, etc. than sitting on a beach for a whole day. We love all kinds of food. Love nature & natural beauty vs. shopping or ultra luxe hotels.

We're from NYC and on a budget - hotel upto $250 or one where I could use Amex/airline miles. Based on the forum, I think Grenada could be 1 place that meets our requirements (nutmeg & spice plantations, chocolate factory, various trails in addition to beaches & local food sound like a good mix of things to do). Belize could be another and perhaps Costa Rica. Mexico is not an option as my fiancee was there recently and has been there several times. A friend recommended Barbados, but I'm not sure it fits our needs.

Would really appreciate any help in choosing between these 3 locations or any other suggestions. Thanks.

mymoosie

Hi mdn,

I'm a big fan of Grenada so I'm probably biased. ;-) There are definitely a lot of things to do in Grenada than just the beach. The great thing about Grenada is the variety of lodging options and food, so you can go budget or splurge and any point in between. Airfare is about the only thing expensive for a trip to GND. You can take a daytrip to Carriacou via the ferry and experience a slower pace. Grenadians are wonderful people. To quote someone who described their trip to the island 'Grenadians are friendly and fiercely proud of their country and culture.' I found it to be very true. Based on your description of what you love to do, Grenada would fit the bill.

If you have specific questions, just holler. There are a few of us here who love the island.

Another option is Nevis, which affords you a daytrip to St. Kitts. Both lovely islands with friendly people, nature activities, and local culture.

Congrats on your upcoming honeymoon.

JeanH

Belize is my favorite place to travel, but I think with your short time frame, another destination would be better. For what you want to do, you would be happier staying a few days inland and then a few days on a beach. With only five days, I'd head to an easy destination to get to.

I loved Grenada, but from the midwest, it's a long time to get there. We missed a connection and had to overnight in San Juan, with a very short trip, that would be really unfortunately.

I'd look for a destination you can fly to nonstop.

ejcrowe

If you choose Grenada, I'd recommend going for longer than 5 days since the travel times going and returning are so crummy, unless you're lucky enough to travel via Air Jamaica, which I understand has severely cut its number of flights to Grenada...

For a beautiful & intimate place well within your budget, take a look at www.lasagesse.com for a small inn with a beautiful beach and restaurant. You'd need to rent a car if you stayed here, though, or at least book ahead for taxi excursions because it it *really* remote.

hlphillips2

We just returned from Grenada... I thought it was an easy place to get to from the midwest (Chicago) - it was easier than getting to Oregon in January at least (8 hours vs 13 hours). We did fly Air Jamaica and I understand that they have flights only on certain days of the week, but I assume you've already checked into airfare & fights based on your post.

There is a lot to do there, though the chocolate factory is closed. There are a few rum distilleries. We stayed on a beach with snorkeling right in front. All non-motorized activities were included with our AI package (worth it even eating only two meals a day there), and if we'd had more time we definitely would have rented a kayak, gone out to a different part of the island to snorkel, and would have taken a day trip to a nearby island. I'm not a beach bum either. In fact I frankly dislike the beach (sand is dirty, it's no fun to just sit around all day getting hot), but I had a great time. I'm not a seafood fan so I can't really speak to that. The only crab cakes I ate weren't spectacular, but my husband had fish that he enjoyed. The people are lovely, we stayed in a resort with two lakes on the property so we could actually do some bird watching, shopping was so so but maybe with a guide we would have found something better (we just ran out of time). I posted a trip report recently if you want more info.

Haven't been to CR but know several folks who spent honeymoons there and enjoyed it, though they are all major hikers. I thoroughly love wildlife viewing so it's high on my list. I've been to Ambergris Caye in Belize, but I wouldn't go there for a honeymoon unless it's changed a lot in seven years. I thought it was a wonderful place (and the house we rented was amazing) but it wasn't a very romantic place. The snorkeling was terrific though with a good guide. Renting a bike is a lot of fun too.