Ideas for making ''two days off'' feel like a honeymoon?

[Gypsy]

We're delaying our honeymoon till 2009, but I asked for two days off after the wedding, so I thought I'd ask for suggestions for making those two days special.

I don't want to spend a lot of money (would rather save it to make longer honeymoon more amazing), but some would be okay. Our wedding ends at 8:30 PM on a Sunday. We could drive somewhere (from Livermore) for one night, and I *could* ask for a third day off, but so far, I'm not inclined to as our company is doing shutdowns every quarter and if there is one in the third quarter I don't know if it's going to be a flexible one (take any day you want off, but you must take X number off this quarter) like this quarter's or like the one last August that was a mandatory full shut down for a week.

I can have a cat sitter for a couple of days no problem, but wouldn't like to be TOO far away. But I also want this to be special.

Not asking for much am I!

 

[zoebartlett]

How far away is Livermore from the coast? I''m not familair with the area at all...

What about staying in a B&B somewhere, either on the coast or elsewhere?

A couples massage at a nice resort (maybe where you''re spending your wedding night)?

 

[Gypsy]

I don''t think we''re staying anywhere particularly nice for our wedding nice. Livermore doesn''t have very fancy hotels, although about 10 miles away I think Pleasanton might have something better... I haven''t done the room blocks yet, so I''m not certain. As for the coast, you know? That''s a great idea! There''s a Ritz in Halfmoon Bay, it would be great to indulge for a night. And it''s only 40 minutes away from the house. Or I guess we could go up to the SF and stay at the Ritz or the W there... wonder which would have better weekday rates?

I also love the spa idea. The Hotel Valencia in San Jose''s Santana Row has a great Spa, is close to home (20 minutes) , and I''ve heard it''s a nice hotel. That''s a really strong possibility. I love it.

 

[gtn]

You could go to Monterey. The drive from Livermore is not far at all. You could stay in a B&B there and go horseback riding. Walk along the beach. Take pictures, etc.

 

[Gypsy]

Date: 2/8/2008 11:48:31 PM
Author: gtn
You could go to Monterey. The drive from Livermore is not far at all. You could stay in a B&B there and go horseback riding. Walk along the beach. Take pictures, etc.

Monteray or Carmel are a great idea too! I don''t know why it didn''t occur to me. John wanted to be married by the water, and we''re not doing that, but we can go to the water afterward! I like that.

 

[monarch64]

Gypsy, I vote for Monterey or Carmel for sure!! Didn't Mara go to Carmel with Greg in 2007...I think they did and there's a thread about it somewhere with pics of course. Anywho, I did want to tell you we are date twins--September 21st anyway--but my wedding was back in 2003!

I nosily looked up your wedding venue online the other night after you posted it, and it is going to be fabulous! We did an outdoor wedding too, with the white chairs on grass...it was really wonderful. I can't say enough good things about our experience and neither could our guests or parents.

Oh, and I saw your "fall brides" thread as well...don't worry, you're doing fine with the timeline/planning thing. We planned ours in less than 9 months and we didn't have the major things taken care of until maybe May/June, with everything else coming together around the July/August point. DH was much more worried about everything than I was, I have to say. I was one of those carefree brides who worked well under pressure, I guess. He was having a heart attack over whether I was wearing a veil or not, whereas I was just worried about feeding PCB contaminated salmon to our guests. LOL!

Looking forward to hearing all about your wedding plans/details!

 

[Gypsy]

Hey lady!!! How are you? I forgot to ask John whether he'd prefer Half Moon Bay or Carmel. Must do that. Carmel is what I'm leaning toward though.

I got such a smile on my face when I read we were date twins! That's great. I'm so glad you like the venue. I'm feeling very comfortable with the decision now that it's made.

Graceful bride under pressure? I don't think I qualify, lol. I'm going to be posting on here every five seconds. Crazy!

Poison salmon versus wedding veils. Hmm... I gotta say, the veil would be my lower priority! I love hearing your wedding stories, it just reassures me that everything is on course.

I think we'll be generally fine with the timing, but stress focus' me and I've feeling quite lazy and sanguine about the wedding since the venue selection. Don't know why.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 2/9/2008 4:50:10 AM
Author: Gypsy


Hey lady!!! How are you? I forgot to ask John whether he''d prefer Half Moon Bay or Carmel. Must do that. Carmel is what I''m leaning toward though.

I got such a smile on my face when I read we were date twins! That''s great. I''m so glad you like the venue. I''m feeling very comfortable with the decision now that it''s made.

Graceful bride under pressure? I don''t think I qualify, lol. I''m going to be posting on here every five seconds. Crazy!

Poison salmon versus wedding veils. Hmm... I gotta say, the veil would be my lower priority! I love hearing your wedding stories, it just reassures me that everything is on course.

I think we''ll be generally fine with the timing, but stress focus'' me and I''ve feeling quite lazy and sanguine about the wedding since the venue selection. Don''t know why.

I think if I''d have had PS to use as my pseudo wedding planner I would have been a little more, er, involved I guess. As it happened, I was working 55-60 hr. weeks and DH was using every minute of his plentiful leisure time (he''s in sales and had a very flexible schedule at the time) to worry over every detail. Every time I see a bride here stressing out over minute details I question myself on why I wasn''t more worried or freaked out...and then I thank my lucky stars that I just didn''t have time.

We got married at the Oakbrook Bath & Tennis Club in Oakbrook, IL...I don''t have a link to post for you but I think if you google it you might find some pics of the venue and they''re the same ones they had on their site 5 years ago, in case you want to see the similarities!

How''s your mom doing? I always think about her every time I see you post...I hope things are going well.

I''m good...DH and I both got laid off from our jobs at the beginning of this year and are currently job searching our little hearts out, and obviously we''re trying to stay positive and see the glass as half full (of what I don''t know, lol)! I did get to take some time to go and see my parents and my brother and SIL who is pregnant last month, everyone is doing well and we are all looking forward to the baby making her appearance soon, my SIL is due on Feb. 19...I still haven''t bought any amythests! My dad is ok, when I saw him he was full of stories of times past which was kind of strange...he is 67 now and his health issues have turned him into the man who wants to reminisce, I guess, but that''s ok, I enjoy hearing family history and stories I was too young to hear when he felt like telling them when I was little!

As my mother would say: be a good egg...and as I would say: try not to stress out over the wedding! Everything is going to be wonderful!

 

[Pandora II]

We''re not taking our honeymoon till the late autumn, so after the wedding we are driving to a little place called Lyme Regis on the Dorset coast, which is a tiny fishing village with nice B&B''s, great walks and views, and a couple of good fish restaurants.

FI and I went there for a weekend a few years ago and it was one of the most perfect two days of my life and I can''t wait to go back.

It is also very famous for its fossils, so we are taking our hammers and chisels and going dinosaur hunting!

 

[goldenstar]

I''m dying to stay at Ventana Inn and Spa in Big Sur. It looks goregeous and the restaurant has gotten great reveiws. Its pricey though, basic rooms are $475 a night. This is more than the Ritz in HMB (which is so FAB!).

Here is the link: Ventana

Big Sur is stunning! And very secluded...

 

[anchor31]

We''re in a very similar situation to yours. I''ll be lucky if I can get 2 days off around our August 2 wedding, but we really wanted to have a mini-moon right away. We booked two nights and two days (Sunday and Monday) at a local spa for 750$, all included. We''re looking into 10-14 days in Mexico at Christmas.

Good luck!