Help me plan a special trip

[SearchMaster]

My incredible wife and I celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary next spring. We have 3 young children, so let's say our "alone time" has been limited for quite some time. So we are going to take a trip next year to celebrate the occasion, SANS KIDS.

Here are some details:

1. 1. Budget: in the neighborhood of $5K total; might be willing to bump that up a bit for the right trip.

1. 2. I need variety - I'm not going to go sit on a beach for a week. I like active vacations.

1. 3. Cruises are a possibility - we've been on several...she enjoys them more than me but I'm open to the possibility.

1. 4. Length - no less than a week, probably up to 10 days.

1. 5. Time of year - the anniversary is in April, but we might look at May (after school's out).

I'm leaning toward an out-of-country (we're in the US) experience. So post your ideas and give as many details as you can to support your suggestion.

 

[Al Neri]

ill be the first :camera:?

 

[Brackis]

FW Travel section might be a good place to check out.

But before I make my suggestions...

- Want to be warm, cold, don't care?
- Is "alone time" implying you want to do it multiple times a day and sleep in, or just be romantic and do stuff together on a trip?
- 7-10 days including travel time?
- Are you planning on going during a school vacation week?
-Level of activity interest and energy? (Sports/Adventure activities, sightseeing, shopping?)
-Urban or exotic?

 

[hypn0tik]

Plan a trip to Europe. I hear ladies <3 Paris.

 

[mugs]

I imagine you could do a trip to somewhere in Europe for about $5000. I'd do that. Florence is very nice.

 

[SearchMaster]

Originally posted by: Brackis
FW Travel section might be a good place to check out.

But before I make my suggestions...

- Want to be warm, cold, don't care?Don't care - slight preference toward warm
- Is "alone time" implying you want to do it multiple times a day and sleep in, or just be romantic and do stuff together on a trip?more the latter - with 3 kids we are experts in slipping the sex in when possible, it's the romantic together time that's lacking
- 7-10 days including travel time?yes
- Are you planning on going during a school vacation week?We're flexible here, but it would be easier on everybody if school was out
-Level of activity interest and energy? (Sports/Adventure activities, sightseeing, shopping?) Anything but shopping For example, our honeymoon was skiing in Vail.
-Urban or exotic?either/both. Good questions, BTW.

 

[Lola]

Originally posted by: SearchMaster

Originally posted by: Brackis
FW Travel section might be a good place to check out.

But before I make my suggestions...

- Want to be warm, cold, don't care?Don't care - slight preference toward warm
- Is "alone time" implying you want to do it multiple times a day and sleep in, or just be romantic and do stuff together on a trip?more the latter - with 3 kids we are experts in slipping the sex in when possible, it's the romantic together time that's lacking
- 7-10 days including travel time?yes
- Are you planning on going during a school vacation week?We're flexible here, but it would be easier on everybody if school was out
-Level of activity interest and energy? (Sports/Adventure activities, sightseeing, shopping?) Anything but shopping For example, our honeymoon was skiing in Vail.
-Urban or exotic?either/both. Good questions, BTW.

I would say europe, or even a few islands of hawaii. Oahu has the urban-ness, Maui/Kauai has the exotic. You would not be sitting at the beach all day there unless you wanted to!

 

[AT]

How about going to Mediterranean coast France/Italy/Monaco maybe even some Spain. You can spend a few days on the beach, there are shopping opportunities, nice scenery roads along the sea to drive around, good food, museums, arts, cities in variable sizes(Nice, Monaco etc.), Alps are near by to enjoy mountain views, all sorts of things. You can even take a short cruise to Corsica or Sardinia. In April/May the weather is pleasant not too hot.

 

[SearchMaster]

Originally posted by: AT
How about going to Mediterranean coast France/Italy/Monaco maybe even some Spain. You can spend a few days on the beach, there are shopping opportunities, nice scenery roads along the sea to drive around, good food, museums, arts, cities in variable sizes(Nice, Monaco etc.), Alps are near by to enjoy mountain views, all sorts of things. You can even take a short cruise to Corsica or Sardinia. In April/May the weather is pleasant not too hot.

Definite possibilities there...

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: SearchMaster

Originally posted by: AT
How about going to Mediterranean coast France/Italy/Monaco maybe even some Spain. You can spend a few days on the beach, there are shopping opportunities, nice scenery roads along the sea to drive around, good food, museums, arts, cities in variable sizes(Nice, Monaco etc.), Alps are near by to enjoy mountain views, all sorts of things. You can even take a short cruise to Corsica or Sardinia. In April/May the weather is pleasant not too hot.

Definite possibilities there...

That's pretty much the exact trip I took in high school, started in Rome and worked our way around to Madrid. Nice was alright, but not as nice as Italy. The beach is not much like an American beach, it's more rocky than sandy.

 

[Brackis]

Originally posted by: SearchMaster

Originally posted by: Brackis
FW Travel section might be a good place to check out.

But before I make my suggestions...

- Want to be warm, cold, don't care?Don't care - slight preference toward warm
- Is "alone time" implying you want to do it multiple times a day and sleep in, or just be romantic and do stuff together on a trip?more the latter - with 3 kids we are experts in slipping the sex in when possible, it's the romantic together time that's lacking
- 7-10 days including travel time?yes
- Are you planning on going during a school vacation week?We're flexible here, but it would be easier on everybody if school was out
-Level of activity interest and energy? (Sports/Adventure activities, sightseeing, shopping?) Anything but shopping For example, our honeymoon was skiing in Vail.
-Urban or exotic?either/both. Good questions, BTW.

Time for my suggestion:

Europe
-Skiing in the Alps. When I researched a trip to Vail 4 years ago the price total for everything made it cost around the same as heading to Colorado for a 7 day trip at Christmas. I never actually went because I ended up finding a place to stay with family friend in Vail. With the dollar's woes this may have changed, but worth investigating if you like the idea.
-Italy. Visited in 2000 and went down the Amalfi coast to Naples, Sorrento, Pompeii, and back to Rome on a 12 day trip. In 10 days you could squeeze in a week of Rome and a few days seeing the more southern coast. In March I was wearing pants but no jacket, and at night a light jacket or warm shirt.

Caribbean and Central America
-Belize. Went in 2001 and had an amazing time while renting a house with extended family on the beach on a Caye off the coast. Snorkeling is the best I have ever done, also went inland to the rainforest where there was an underground river which I tubed down. I have also heard good things about Bonaire and Dominica from my parents who took "alone time" trips there when I was young.
-Cruise. Had a blast on Celebrity's Galaxy stopping in St. Thomas, St. Croix, Antigua, and a few other spots. It felt very relaxed in that I didn't have to worry about things once I was on the boat, which removes stress and leaves more time for romance and a new island everyday.

Hawaii
Maui is an absolute gem year round. Beaches, wildlife, golf, biking, waterfalls, marine life.


One final question, have you asked the missus yet?

 

[SearchMaster]

Yes, I have definitely talked to my wife about it She's pretty open to whatever as well - I think that's what will make it harder to plan, no real vision on what "the perfect trip" would be since we like so many different things.

Europe - Europe is definitely high on the list. She has spent a week in London, but that's the extent of our combined non-North American experience. We love to ski, so the Alps would be great, but only if it comprises 3 days or less of the total trip. Italy is great too; her sister spent a couple of weeks there and loved it.

Caribbean - A Caribbean cruise is definitely out...we've done that a half dozen times or so. But renting a house is a possibility, we will be scuba-certified by then. If we do a cruise, it will be Mediterranean or Australian.

Hawaii - very high on the list.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone - keep 'em coming!

 

[iamwiz82]

Keep in mind that northern Europe is still going to be cool around that time frame.

 

[Brackis]

Originally posted by: SearchMaster
Yes, I have definitely talked to my wife about it She's pretty open to whatever as well - I think that's what will make it harder to plan, no real vision on what "the perfect trip" would be since we like so many different things.

Europe - Europe is definitely high on the list. She has spent a week in London, but that's the extent of our combined non-North American experience. We love to ski, so the Alps would be great, but only if it comprises 3 days or less of the total trip. Italy is great too; her sister spent a couple of weeks there and loved it.

Caribbean - A Caribbean cruise is definitely out...we've done that a half dozen times or so. But renting a house is a possibility, we will be scuba-certified by then. If we do a cruise, it will be Mediterranean or Australian.

Hawaii - very high on the list.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone - keep 'em coming!

If you do want to Scuba, I highly suggest Belize. On our trip there was a young family friend couple who were both Scuba enthusiasts and came almost entirely for the Scuba.

For the Alps you could certainly fly from major cities with lots of non skiing activities and then make the trek up to the mountains for 3-4 days. Perhaps Milan for a taste of northern Italy?