Looking for suggestions on Non Beach Honeymoons in August. Fiancee really does not like warm weather, so we're looking for cooler destinations. Cruises are out as well.

We've thrown around New England and some of the National Parks in the Northern part of the States, but haven't been able to find the perfect place to stay yet.

1/16/2011 1:11:49 PM

^ Alaska, it is pretty awesome in early August.

1/16/2011 1:34:06 PM

Western Europe
Eastern Europe
Southern Europe
Northern Europe

1/16/2011 1:40:54 PM

but stay away from Central Europe

1/16/2011 1:51:15 PM

Do you need to go on a cruise to enjoy an Alaskan honeymoon?

I've heard lack of air conditioning is a problem in Europe, and if that's the case, it's not going to work for us.

1/16/2011 1:56:16 PM

It can be in the 90s in most of the northeast in August. Vancouver has an average high temperature of 75°F in August and it and the area around are pretty spectacular. you might even be able to do summer skiing at whistler in early august.

If you really want to stay on the east coast, Quebec City is really nice. It claims to be the oldest city in North America and it is built on a mountain right beside the Saint Laurence river. The old city is walled and there is a beautiful fairy tale hotel there called the Chateau Frontenac. It is very, very upscale and has amazing rooms and views. There's a lot of historical stuff you can wander around on foot to take in, and the tiny tight streets on steep hills really have a european flavor. The city is not on the ocean but you can take a whale watching trip if you're into that, some of them are pretty cool. The krill proliferate where fjords join the river and the whales are always there.

I think my next cool weather travel spot might be Iceland.

1/16/2011 2:11:14 PM

def fly out west and rent a car (truck/suv) and do a national parks tour. it will be warm but not blazing. i mean, still shorts and t-shirts, but cool at night. and if you do some hikes in the higher altitude places you will see snow and will probably need jeans/sweatshirt.

i did the glacier/grand teton/zion/bryce canyon tour over 2 weeks in july a few years ago and it definitely snowed on the going to the sun road in glacier (sometimes they can't even open the road until july because of snow)

but glacier, zion, grand teton are some of my favorite national parks that i've been to. even if you just did ONE of those for a week (def glacier if you had to pick one) you'd still have a fabulously relaxing time, with lots to do and see, beautiful scenery, great weather, the lodges are awesome, etc.

i mean if i had to pick an alternate honeymoon i think i'd choose national parks! but that is just me.\

if you stay on the east coast, maine and vermont are awesome. again, the weather can get hot...but still cool (like sweatshirt) at night. you can do acadia in maine. in bar harbor. really pretty. you can also go whale watching in bar harbor. i also liked kennebunkport and you can do the whale watching there too!

a B&B in vermont or maine is also a good choice...there are TONS of NE bed and breakfasts.

my aunt owns this: http://www.whitfordhouseinn.com/ in vermont. it is SO beautiful. go horseback riding, hiking, etc, etc while you are there. its in addison, VT...45mins from burlington so you can do a day in burlington and eat ben and jerry's etc. its 20 mins from middlebury which is another GORGEOUS town. lots of country inns, folk art, historic stuff.

if you aren't into outdoorsy activities though i guess i haven't given many helpful suggestions



[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 3:12 PM. Reason : .]

1/16/2011 3:07:41 PM

Quote :

"National Parks in the Northern part of the States"

I went to Grand Tetons, Yellowstone and Glacier NPs for my honeymoon. We were happy camping most of the time (to save $ and we just enjoy it more), but there are some beautiful lodges and cabins there. We spent 2 weeks driving out there and staying there, and it still wasn't long enough. Glacier is much less crowded than Yellowstone (and is more serene and prettier IMO) and was a good environment for a private honeymoon. I'd highly recommend it, especially if you two enjoy the outdoors.


You could also do something like hit up Chicago, NYC, San Francisco, or DC if you'd rather be in a metropolitan area. Find when there is something going on in the city and just explore the city together. You would be able to find a fantastic hotel to stay for a week, and not even need a car (a great thing about the bigger cities).

1/16/2011 3:32:28 PM

We went to Napa Valley and San Francisco for our honeymoon last July - had a fabulous time. Napa was really romantic and we had a great time in SF. Definitely recommended.

1/16/2011 4:10:18 PM

we chilled at a big-ass cabin on a mountain near bryson city, nc. it was awesome.

1/16/2011 4:58:07 PM

1/16/2011 5:01:56 PM

I've heard excellent things about Iceland. Some of my friends have been to over 50 countries and say Reykjavik is hands-down their favorite place.

1/16/2011 5:27:27 PM

go to the beach

1/16/2011 5:31:49 PM

go to ireland. seriously. it's so gorgeous.

1/16/2011 5:49:00 PM

We got a cabin in the mountains of eastern tennessee, pretty close to the gatlinburg area, for about a week. It was perfect for us, because we hate crowds (such as the kind you find at major resorts, cruises, beaches, etc), and really just wanted a nice area to relax together after all the commotion with the family for the wedding weekend. The area was gorgeous - we went in early September - and there is plenty to do if you decide to leave the cabin for a while (if your into hiking, paddling, golf, horses, and other various outdoor activities)

[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 6:03 PM. Reason : Found their site: http://www.elkspringsresort.com/]

1/16/2011 6:02:50 PM

Cruise is not necessary to enjoy AK. Europe is typically pretty tolerable weather wise in August. I'll 2nd Ireland for an awesome place to visit.

1/16/2011 6:25:03 PM

glacier national park!!! and i'm sure ambrosia would vote for the same

it's the most beautiful place in the lower 48. it's where Fumbler & i went on our honeymoon in june 2009. we were a little too early. going to the sun rd wasn't open bc of the snow. in the valley it was around 75 but up in the mountains it was around 45. we're going back this july to go backpacking. ambrosia was supposed to come with us. a week was not long enough to see everything, but it's all we had.

[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 6:26 PM. Reason : ]

1/16/2011 6:25:48 PM

Jackson Hole

1/16/2011 6:27:40 PM

Quote :

"I've heard excellent things about Iceland. Some of my friends have been to over 50 countries and say Reykjavik is hands-down their favorite place."

Reykjavik is awesome, but it's expensive as shit. You'll be appalled at the price of drinks.

1/16/2011 6:34:00 PM

Quebec City

Not nearly as expensive as Europe but with all the charm. You can hit up Montreal and Burlington, VT too since it's only a couple hours down the road.

[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 6:37 PM. Reason : by expensive, I mean cost to get there.]

1/16/2011 6:36:52 PM

Quote :

"Fiancee really does not like warm weather"

Red flag! This is going to cause problems in the future, unless you man up and tell her she's going to have to get used to some warm weather or y'all learn to compromise and take turns at different places you like.

1/16/2011 7:19:53 PM

Or he can just do whatever she wants to do for the rest of his life. Man up, it's your honeymoon too!!!

Quote :

"and if that's the case, it's not going to work for us. "

you mean for her, it's not going to work for her...


[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 7:40 PM. Reason : ...]

1/16/2011 7:39:16 PM

We are going to to start in Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland then go elsewhere, maybe Paris for a bit. She speaks fluent French and has never been.


There is good skiing in the winter if you are into that too.

1/16/2011 7:54:40 PM

Quote :

" a B&B in vermont or maine is also a good choice...there are TONS of NE bed and breakfasts. "

The year I lived in Vermont the summer was hotter than in Raleigh and no one has ac up there. If you want more of a guarantee of cooler weather go to Alaska or Iceland. Hell go to South Africa, Australia, or Argentina it will be winter in those places.

1/16/2011 8:27:38 PM

weird. the seasonal average for addison VT in august is around 68 degrees. that seems nice to me

i mean it is no winter but it seems pretty nice, and gets chilly in the evenings.

and in maine the seasonal averages are even lower. of course there are always oddities. as i learned on my most recent caribbean cruise when i experienced the coldest winter since 1955. not what i was hoping for haha!

but anytime i've traveled to VT and ME in the summer, i've experienced some 75 degree days, but typically in the lower 70s and chilly at night (high 50s maybe?). i guess it isn't Antarctica but seems better than here! and def cheaper than going to another country (or even across the US), if price is a factor.

but yes, i think alaska or south africa would rule. or new zealand!! go snowboarding!!!

[Edited on January 16, 2011 at 8:50 PM. Reason : .]

1/16/2011 8:50:16 PM

All good suggestions. Glacier is leading the pack right now, but definitely going to do some research on Quebec City and Iceland.

Some of these pictures of Iceland are ridiculous.
http://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/seven-things-to-do-in-iceland/

1/16/2011 9:08:23 PM

^you could do half that in Alaska If not all. Won't have the nice cities or other world charm though

1/16/2011 9:36:30 PM

A few options:

Glacier National Park (Road to the Sun) - drive up and see Alberta / BC while you're there

Wyoming: Tetons, Yellowstone, etc. Hit up Brooks Lake Lodge in Dubious, WY

Tour of the Maine coast: there are LOADS of B&Bs along the Maine coast. I highly recommend the Flying Cloud Inn in Newcastle (great home base to explore the peninsulas in the south) and the Greycote Inn in Bar Harbor, where you can use as a home base to explore Acadia National Park. It's also a day-trip away from St. Johns in Canada.

Alaska also feels like an amazing choice, but it's the one state I haven't been to yet so I can't comment personally. Hopefully going next month, though.

Ireland is also a fine choice if you wanna blow some cash, but I'd choose somewhere in America. Simply because I appreciate having non-roaming 3G at my fingertips and being able to drive around these amazing parks knowing all of the road rules.

1/16/2011 10:49:58 PM

^^^ average does not equal always. It's not unheard of toget up into the upper 90s in New England.

1/16/2011 11:38:46 PM

the thing that held us back from alaska was the flight costs & duration.

1/17/2011 8:57:06 AM

Just reserved a house on the outskirts of East Glacier in August through VRBO. Can't wait!

1/17/2011 2:28:56 PM

We did the Alaska honeymoon thing - loved it. No cruise necessary. We flew into Anchorage (we have friends there who couldn't make it to the wedding and D spent a summer interning there). Drove to Talkeetna, Seward & Homer with a couple of stops back in Anchorage to hang out.

Biggest surprise for me was the food. Excellent dinners everywhere we went (this was 10 years ago so imagine there's even more choice now). Take plenty of DEET.

1/17/2011 10:00:23 PM

My wife and I are doing our honeymoon in June (a year after the wedding).
We are taking a cruise to Alaska. We have done quite a few cruises in the past and love them, so that is why we chose the boat. Then we spend a couple days in Seattle after the cruise.

1/18/2011 11:24:50 AM

http://www.reiadventure.com

1/18/2011 12:23:43 PM