Katie and Robert loved Ti Kaye Village Resort in St. Lucia, where they stayed on their May honeymoon. Katie found the resort through her online research and loved the remote location of the accommodations.

She says it was “kind of a hike to get there” though not literally on foot. The resort’s van picked them up at the airport and they traveled along some very bumpy, rustic roads to arrive at the destination. But Katie and Robert where thrilled with their choice and were welcomed with complimentary cocktails upon arrival.

Katie describes the resort as “pretty small” which means they avoided hustle and bustle and go to focus on relaxation. The highlight of the whole stay was their room. The private porch had spectacular views and a private pool. She says, “It was great to hang out on our own hammock and have privacy in our very own pool.”

There was even a private outdoor shower. Another highlight was the couple’s massage they had on the balcony one afternoon.

The bed was strewn with flowers when they first arrived… a small touch that the honeymooners loved.
The resort has a larger shared pool which Katie and Robert also used. Access down to the beach was just steps away as well. She says, “Every day we had to decide do we wanna go to the pool or the beach today”

For meals, they ate most dinners at the resort’s waterfront restaurant (above) which features seafood and other fresh selections and a “sundress casual” dress code. There is an option for a meal package, though Katie and Robert opted to keep things simple. Most mornings they ordered in a room-service fruit plate for breakfast, grabbed a sandwich at the pool or lunch or had some snacks they’d brought from home, and then splurged on an a la carte dinner.

Katie says the resort was so “amazing” that they’d love to go back someday. And their first stop would be to grab a tropical cocktail under the paper lanterns at Ti Kaye’s on-site bar.

Bucuti Beach Resort in Aruba isn’t a huge place, which helps make the stay more intimate. Their 140 rooms range from basic-but-nice to the more extravagant penthouse suites, which have balconies like the one above. The outdoors space give great views of the beach, ocean and the Pirate’s Nest restaurant with the masts of the ship visible on the right. A full breakfast buffet at the restaurant is included for all rooms.

The penthouse suites also have amazing bathrooms with beautiful soaking tubs, perfect for a romantic honeymoon evening.

Even the most basic rooms at Bucuti are welcoming and comforatble. Most rooms feature a king bed and a private balcony.

Guest are often welcomed with a bottle of wine or bubbly in the room. Honeymooners each get a glass of champagne during check-in (talk about starting the trip off right!) and are encouraged to sit down and relax right away. Nashette usually greets the couples and welcomes them personally. The hotel staff escorts them to their rooms and they’re greeted with treats like chocolate or cheese and crackers.

All of the balconies at Bucuti face either the beach and Caribbean Sea or the peaceful and quiet landscaped garden.

The Hyatt Regency Aruba is a great option for honeymooners looking to travel to the Caribbean. In addition to the great pool and dining options, I just loved the laid-back vibe of this place. And especially the look of understated elegance the hotel has. Oh, and the birds.

From African grey parrots to their more brightly colored cousins, this hotel is a place for bird lovers. These guys are permanent residents of the hotel’s garden. They’ve even got a pair of black swans swimming in their lagoon.

If you keep your eyes open, you may spot an iguana sunning itself… I caught this one near the pool.

Thanks so much to our friends at the Hyatt for giving us the grand tour. Have you honeymooned here? If so, send us the story of your trip!

Yesterday I talked about how great the Hyatt Regency Aruba’s pool is for relaxing, but there’s also a ton more to do for honeymooners hoping to get up and go.

You can easily book excursions for diving, sailing and snorkeling trip with Red Sail Sports at their right off the main lobby of the Hyatt. Their boats pick up guest at the end of the pier which means not having to rent a car or spend time in a taxi getting to a marina.

The Hyatt has a bunch of on-site dining options. Palms Restaurant offers Latin-style cuisine, an open view of the kitchen and happy hour most days.

With probably the most impressive setting, the Ruinas del Mar restaurant is a limestone building with open-air seating. It’s surrounded by the hotel’s man-made lagoon which means you can dine on the Spanish-influenced meals and watch chubby Koi fish swim by. They serve breakfast, dinner and Sunday brunch.

And because everyone wants to be South Beach, the Hyatt has the outdoor Alfresco Bar, complete with beds draped in white and candles galore. Honeymooners will love the romantic vibe this place has at night.

Non-drinker or anyone looking for an afternoon pick-me-up can head to Kadushi Juice Bar, a short stroll from both the pool and the beachfront.

And after a day of sailing and snorkeling, eating and drinking, couples will want to relax in the hotel’s Still Water Spa. A 50 minute couples massage with run you $100 per person.

Located along a gorgeous stretch of Palm Beach in Aruba, the Hyatt Regency Aruba is a large resort complex with 360 room and offers guest a ton of on- and off-site activities to keep their vacations and honeymoons full of fun.

One of the things that stood out to me immediately was the seriously well manicured gardens all around the resort. Above is the entrance to the pool area from the lobby.

With a huge three-tierd, 8,000 sq. foot pool complex, there’s lots of deck chairs available for guests. Their pool features everyone’s favorite amenity, the swim up bar. You can grab a drink or even lunch while sitting in the pool. In the background is the hotel’s water slide, open to young and old.

They Hyatt has an affiliation with Aruba’s Red Sail Sports, a water sports company that teaches scuba classes on site in the hotel pool.

They morning I visited in late March, was breezy and overcast. But as is very common in Aruba, the sun was out by lunchtime. A few clouds didn’t seem to stop anyone from coming down to claim beach chairs in the sand and settle in for some serious relaxation.

On my recent trip to Aruba, I had the pleasure of touring the Hyatt Regency Aruba with Avery Shipley who gave me the rundown on destination weddings at the hotel. He also provided some gorgeous images of past weddings the hotel has hosted.

Our first stop on the wedding tour was this gigantic outside deck that many couples use for their ceremony, cocktail hour or reception. The hotel does have a traditional ballroom, but obviously if you come all the way to the Caribbean, you want to be outside enjoying the tropical weather and beautiful views.

Lots of couples choose to have their receptions under the hotel’s two connected palapas, which are huge thatch-roofed huts.

As Avery said, the palapas are like blank canvases. The hotel staff works with brides and grooms to dress up the huts to match a couple’s wedding theme. A casual lunch with beach chairs for a small party, a large dinner for all your guests, a sleek and modern lounge with couches in the sand… you dream it up and the Hyatt can make it happen.

Couples interested in a destination wedding at the Hyatt Regency Aruba can contact “Romance Planner” Tita Iglesias at tiglesia@arubapo.hyatt.com.

Newlyweds Jaime and David consider their December honeymoon trip to Spain and Morocco a “whirlwind dream trip.” Not only did they see some great sights and indulge in Jaime’s love of food, but they also had a few great hotel stays. She gives us a rundown on some of the best experiences.

Hesperia, Madrid
Loved this hotel! Beautiful, very cosmopolitan, excellent service, close proximity to everything yet not in a terribly touristy area.

Hesperia, Granada
Lovely, quiet hotel in the heart of Granada. Staff was friendly and very helpful.

Riad Altair, Marrakesh
(See more about their stay here) Very beautiful, excellent breakfasts, fabulous roof deck, affordable, knowledgeable and friendly staff. We would definitely stay here again.

Peacock Pavillions (coming soon!)
We had the unbelievable good fortune of meeting Maryam from My Marrakesh and touring her family’s soon-to-open guest houses at Peacock Pavillions. Nestled in an olive grove just outside of the walls of Marrakesh, Maryam and her family have constructed an unbelievably beautiful setting for couples or families traveling to Marrakesh. We can’t wait to go back and stay there!

While on the Moroccan leg of their honeymoon (Spain was on the list too!) newlyweds Jaime and David traveled to Marrakesh. Their hotel stay at Riad Altair was a stand-out of the trip.

Jamie says, “We loved this hotel and can’t say enough wonderful things about the location, décor and staff!” They thought the accommodations and common areas were beautiful and loved the excellent breakfasts and fabulous roof deck. They especially appreciated the “knowledgeable and friendly staff.”

She adds, “Yassin at Riad Altair was phenomenal. From recommendations for dinner to sights to see to teaching us Arabic and Moroccan card games, Yassin went above and beyond to extend Moroccan hospitality to us.”

Migration Camp was British luxury dropped in the middle of wilderness. It’s a permanent tent camp, but the “tents” have double sinks, solar-powered hot water, nice beds, wood floors, cushy leather chairs. The service and staff were top notch. We had our best meal of the trip there with wines matched to our food.

For romantic moments, sitting on a rooftop deck with cocktails watching the sunset before dinner was hard to beat. And it was kind of cool that after dark, management insisted guests be accompanied by staff in case of encounters with hippos, who come from the nearby Grumeti River to graze on grass near the tents. We were serenaded to sleep by the sound of those hippos grunting and awoken by mischievous gopher-like hyraxes jumping on the tent roof.

Going to Africa for our honeymoon was one of the smartest things my wife and I have done so far as a married couple. Well, that and buying matching pink Snuggies. (Stop judging us.) 

I had better luck with “we’re on our honeymoon” at one of the lodges where we stayed after our first room had a bug issue. (I even brought the remains of a large but squished creature to the front desk to help plea my case.) The next night, they upgraded us to a magnificent, two-floor suite with sweeping views of the Serengeti.