Wedding Blog
In an email I got from Mr. Martini recently, he added:
“Btw the dollar is still rising… vs the Euro, it has gone from $1.67/ 1Euro to $1.28 / 1euro. That’s like a 25% discount for us… let’s hope it keeps going.”
Why has he been keeping an eye out for the dollar fluctuations in Europe? Because we’re desperate to go to Europe for our honeymoon! France, to be exact. The only time I’ve ever really left the country as an adult were a few trips to Niagara Falls (the Canadian side is soooo much better than the USA side), and Jamaica last year with Mr. Martini.
When we were thinking about where we could go on our honeymoon, everyone advised that we go the Caribbean. “You’ll want to take it easy,” they told us. We considered going to a beachy location, but neither of us are beach people and dangit, we don’t want to relax! Jamaica was great fun, but we didn’t relax one bit, and actually felt as if we needed a vacation from our vacation by the time we got home. I think we spent an hour max just sitting on the beach the entire duration of our stay. It didn’t take long for us to get restless, so we signed up for just about every activity we could get our hands on. We literally came back to the hotel just to eat and sleep. Sometimes I think it was a bit of a waste because we didn’t take advantage of the gorgeous resort, the Gran Bahia Principe, which at the time was the newest and largest resort in Jamaica.
Cliff diving! I am scared of heights so I was terrified of jumping, but I knew I would regret it if I didn’t try, so I actually jumped. Mr. Martini had a ball and actually jumped twice.
We are also going to Puerto Rico with a bunch of friends in December, so we weren’t too excited about going to another beach for our honeymoon three months later.
Mr. Martini has been to Europe before, and loved it. There were so many places I wanted to go so I didn’t really care where, as long as it was someplace FAR, in another country, and something new. The south of France is supposed to be one of the most beautiful places to visit and very romantic. It could be our first stop to spend a few days to relax from the craziness of our wedding, and then head to Paris. Mr. Martini has a cousin that lives there and it would be the perfect opportunity to meet them. If we have time, we’d love to take a day trip to London or another country or a city that isn’t too far away. I would have loved to visit Rome, Venice, Greece… ahhhh the list goes on. But the thought of spending the first two weeks of our married life in France is just so appealing to us.
It would also be the perfect excuse to have purple “French” martinis as one of our signature drinks for our wedding! 
And so we watch the euro, as we cross our fingers and all of our toes. Go dollar, go!
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Share this post: Our Honeymoon Depends On the Dollar
I would suggest the South of Italy for a March wedding; it will be much warmer. I live in Paris and the city (as well as the South of France) can still be quite chilly this time of year. I just spent my honeymoon in Sorrento, Italia and it was amazing! The Italian coastline is really something to see. The food is to die for and the people are so friendly…something that you won’t find as often in France.
Actualy, you want the dollar to rise and the Euro to fall. I’m hoping for the same…good luck!
We had an awesome honeymoon in Paris and Munich. We went a month ago and we ended up saving a few hundred $$ from what we originally budgeted because of the strengthening dollar (or is it weakening Euro? I have no idea.). You can check out my pseudo Knot bio for a complete recap:
http://sites.google.com/site/geekchicbride/honeymoon-in-europe
We stayed at the Hotel du Petit Moulin in Le Marais (3rd Arr.) — it was AMAZING. It was designed by Christian Lacroix and it’s the quintessential boutique hotel. I’d highly recommend it.
Slicey19 is right.
Fall Euro, fall! Climb, dollar, climb!
We were intially thinking Thailand, but… I haven’t been to Europe since 2002, and FI hasn’t been since before that, so… fall Euro fall! I’d love to go to Spain.
Paris is ultra romantic, especially when you’re in a romantic mood. If you’re thinking strolls down narrow streets in the drizzling rain, and baguettes and coffee in a sidewalk cafe, it will be all you hope for…and more! Flying into Nice is a great idea. The old town is very quaint and the ocean is popsicle-blue! The south of France will be sunny and warmer than Paris…I like your idea of taking a few lazy days there, perhaps in Cannes, St. Tropez, St. Paul-de-Vence. Monaco is interesting too! Good luck!
I definitely understand what you mean about getting restless on a beach. Plus I burn easily, so I knew I had to find something else for my honeymoon. We picked New Orleans, and I’m recommending it to you, JUST IN CASE. I’ve been there before and just fell in love.
While nothing could compare to a European vacation, if the foreign currency rate is an issue and you have to stay in the states, NOLA might be a good substitute for you if you are looking for a sightseeing destination. You will always be busy, I promise! So much to see, do, and EAT (oooh the food).
Anyway, hope you can get to Europe (and if you do I’ll be super jealous!), but here’s a backup plan just in case.
Have you considered doing a house/apt-swap? I haven’t done it myself (YET!) but I’ve read some really positive articles about it. It could save you tons, especially in Paris!
Do it anyway! We just got back from Greece and we had a blast. The rates just kept getting better as we got out money. As soon as it is in range, don’t wait - just go ahead and get the hotels. You can even exchange some pocket money at that rate, and gamble for the rest. Also, check your credit card rates - you want one with a 1% fee for international transactions. Usually it is 3% or more. You can also be charged international ATM fees, so check that as well.
I am Canadian and have spent much of the last couple of weeks watching in horror as our currency falls because of the ripples of a financial crisis not of our own making.
The boy and I were hoping to be married in Mexico (or possibly the United States). Should our dollar stay below par this will likely no longer be an option. Vendors, such as photographers which are paid in US$, are already expensive enough without having to add 20% to their prices.
I am truly heartbroken. Given how I’ve been feeling this week I couldn’t ignore this post.
The Nest had a cool article in their Fall 2008 Issue - Europe without the Euro. Good advice on inexpensive places in Europe that don’t use the Euro and they sound pretty adventurous! Good luck honeymoon planning!
Here’s a copy of the article - http://www.thelondonpaper.com/cs/Satellite/london/activity%20breaks/article/1157152024974?packedargs=suffix%3DArticleController
My best friend just got back from a European cruise for her honeymoon. They loved and and said it was a great way to get to see a lot of cities/countries but you also got to relax by the pool. I think it’s a perfect combo for a honeymoon. It was really affordable too!
@rebecca: I hope you dont mind that i bookmarked your site! thanks so much for the tip on the hotels!
@wanderus: I’ve actually never heard of this, but now you’ve got me interested and i’ll definitely be looking into something like this. thanks!
@Karen: oh man, I hope I didn’t offend you with my post on the dollar. I never meant to imply that others should suffer from the exchange rates just so that we could take a vacation in another country. I’m sorry that things aren’t looking so good right now for your choice of wedding location - everyone should be able to get married where they want to get married. I really do hope that things work out for you and that you have the absolute perfect wedding, whether it takes place in the states or not. i’ll be crossing my fingers and wishing some good luck your way.
@ImHungry247: This is the best link, EVER! thanks so much!
Miss Martini - many thanks! Your good wishes are greatly appreciated! :o)
I wasn’t offended by your post but I did want to share a bit of the flip-side. I am sure wherever we get married it will turn out to be beautiful!
Good luck on planning a European honeymoon! I’m a firm believer that one can visit Europe on a reasonable budget (it just takes great planning). I’ve lived and studied in Paris twice and believe me when I say that I saw a great deal of Europe on a relatively small budget.
When I was planning I found http://www.guideforeurope.com to be super helpful! The message boards are full of people with a lot of European experience that can help you plan a great trip!
Once you decide to go and if you’re planning on traveling by rail you should use: http://www.railsaver.com You can plug in your itinerary and it will let you know the most affordable combination of rail passes/individual tickets.
I would also recommend that you check out Rick Steve’s books. His Europe through the backdoor approach is fantastic for finding off the beaten track kind of places that are just treasures!!! You can check out his website at: http://www.ricksteves.com
Happy planning! And say hi to Paris to for me!
Just one quick comment on the Europe without the Euro article………….I read that it recommends both Sweden and Denmark and while I agree that Scandinavia is beautiful I do not recommend it for those on a budget!!!
I have lived in Paris and visited expensive European locales (such as Switzerland) and NEVER did I feel the pain as much as I did in Scandinavia. They may not use the Euro but everything costs a whole load more! Perhaps things have shifted with the current exchange rate but just be careful that you don’t get trapped into a pricey situation!
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Mrs. Martini, New Jersey
Age and Occupation: 30, Telecom by day, Superhero by night
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Investments & Finance by day, Hip hop dancer by night
Engagement Date: May 24, 2008
Wedding Date: March, 2009
Blogging Since: August 18, 2008
Venue: The Venetian
About Me: Things that make me happy: Haribo Happy Cola gummies, TV shows on DVD, buying books although I never read them, 80’s rock ballads, ramen, and of course Mr. Martini! He is the calm, logical and number crunching finance guy. I can’t even multiply double digit numbers in my head and I am so indecisive that trying to choose between light green or slightly lighter green paper stresses me out (Wedding planning is going to be soooo much fun). We both find great joy in nabbing great seats at the movie theater for a blockbuster movie on opening weekend, and we are both absolutely crazy about snowboarding. And he loves to cook, I love to eat!
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