It seems every time I visit a new beach the local chamber of commerce claims their beach was ranked a top 10 beach in the United States or even the World. After some phone calls and emails, I think the list below will make it easier for honeymooners to learn the real rankings from legitimate resources. I hope they help you find the perfect beach for your honeymoon.

National Geographic Traveler: The 10 Best Beaches in the U.S.

Dr. Beach: America's Foremost Beach Expert

Travel Channel: Beach Guide

Brides.com: The Best 25 Beaches in the World

Everyone likes special treatment on their honeymoon. I've put together five strategies for scoring that upgrade.

1) Coach to Business Class or First Class: If you have elite status on an airline, try to use that airline for your honeymoon flights. Wait in a line to personally see an airline agent when you check-in. Mention you'd like to know if there are any upgrades available and that you are on your honeymoon. If they say yes, ask them if they can help you celebrate your marriage in style with a complimentary upgrade. Most importantly, be nice, smile, and look super cute.



2) Upgraded Room: When you first contact the hotel, don't mention it is your honeymoon until after you've received a price quote. Pick the room you are willing to pay for and ask the reservation specialist if there is a complimentary honeymoon room upgrade. Hotels want honeymooners to return and celebrate their anniversaries with them so are usually willing to role out the upgrades if space is available.

3) Room Extras: When you are checking into the hotel, remind the hotel check in staff that you are on your honeymoon. This almost guarantees some complimentary chocolate, champagne, possibly a second room upgrade and other goodies delivered to your room.

4) Dining: Always mention you're on your honeymoon to the maître d' at each restaurant and when you book your reservation. The best table in the restaurant will likely be reserved for you and you may receive some chef special treatment or complimentary dessert.

5) Chauffeur Service: Most hotels have a fleet of really nice cars used to transport VIP guests. Inquire at the front desk if this service is included in your stay and if not, could they make an exception since you are on your honeymoon.

Have you tried something that worked? If so, please share your recommendations.

Soon after I posted "Consider a Private Rental on your Honeymoon", I came across the article below on the New York Times Travel section that covers other non-hotel accommodation options in Europe and how to find them. The article mentions the following websites:

AirBnB- Find a place to stay. Rent nightly from real people in 5960 cities in 150 countries.
iStopOver - The source for short term rentals.

Of course this is your honeymoon so you don't want to be staying in an house occupied by the owner. These sites let you customize your search so you only find properties where you'll have the place to yourselves!

Learn more from the New York Times Travel article: Europe without Hotels

We've heard from a lot of couples that have planned their honeymoon to include accommodation at a short term rental in furnished homes or apartments.  If you don't need the hotel amenities, definitely consider this option when planning your honeymoon. Not only does it save you money, but it can also make your honeymoon experience more personal to the city you are visiting.

Recently, a Traveler's Joy couple spent their 3 week May honeymoon at a furnished apartment in Barcelona, Paris, and Vienna. In each city, they couldn't believe how beautiful their apartment was and its fabulous location.  Jill and Trevor also commented that they felt like true locals!

Most important, be sure to use a reputable site and read the reviews before reserving.  Two sites to consider using:

Friendly Rentals "Friendly Rentals was born in 2003 to provide quality accommodation in Barcelona and from the beginning we carefully selected the best Barcelona apartments for our portfolio. We rapidly expanded our holiday apartments from apartments in Barcelona, to Madrid, Valencia, San Sebastian. We now offer vacation apartments in some of the hottest destinations around the world, such as Lisbon and Rome."

RentVillas.com The owner of RentVillas.com comments, "Over twenty years ago, a month in an 18th century Tuscan villa changed my life. I returned home with the conviction that renting a villa was the way to travel in Europe; more than a vacation, it was a complete cultural experience. So in 1984 I founded Rentvillas to share my experience with others. Today, Rentvillas.com is an experience in itself, allowing you to 'know before you go'."

Finally, read the article below from the New York Times Travel section and written by Michelle Higgins, the Practical Traveler columnist. In it she provides a list of questions to ask before finalizing any reservation and other sites to consider using to find that perfect honeymoon accommodation.

Skirting the Pitfalls of Private Rentals

Here's to an amazing honeymoon!

A green honeymoon doesn't necessarily mean you'll have to walk to your destination, hunt your own food, sleep in a tent, and drink from local streams. What it does mean is taking into consideration how far you travel and the philosophy and reputation of the places you choose to spend your time and money during your honeymoon. Here are some suggestions on what to consider if you would like to keep your honeymoon environmentally friendly.

1) What is important to you? 
Wherever you travel it is possible to experience culture, beautiful sights, and wildlife with varying degrees of impact. Ask your travel agent and use hotel green rating companies to help guide your decision on where to stay.

2) Is community service a part of your life?
If so, consider volunteering in the local community. After all, 7 straight days at a pool can get boring.

3) Is luxury and style important?
If so, you can still be sustainable. For example, at the Hoopoe Yurt Hotel in Andalucia, Spain, guests can stay in handmade boutique yurts (all with eco-friendly private bathrooms). The entire camp runs on solar power, including the pool and the electric sockets in the yurts for charging cellphones and laptops.

4) Stay close to home.
If you are trying to minimize your carbon footprint, the easiest way is to stay local. Flying half way across the world for 5 days just doesn't make sense otherwise.

5) Register for carbon offsets.
Help reduce your impact (especially if you fly half way across the world) by registering and/or purchasing carbon offsets specifically for your honeymoon. A great place to do this is Native Energy's Travel Offset Calculator Tool.

Congratulations to Matt and Bindy of New York City as the winners of the Traveler's Joy and Jungle Bay Honeymoon giveaway.  Matt and Bindy are currently planning a honeymoon later this year to Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand but will use this giveaway for their first anniversary or second honeymoon in 2011!

If you haven't considered Dominica (not to be confused with the Dominican Republic) and Jungle Bay for your honeymoon or romantic getaway, I encourage you to learn more about this amazing destination.  Shannon and I have explored over 20 Caribbean destinations but consider Dominica to be the Caribbean's best kept secret. It is a lush rainforest island that is becoming known to romantic adventure seekers and those who wish to escape the typical sun and sand destination crowd.

Learn more about our trip to the island of Dominica and Jungle Bay here.

The beach is a favorite destination for Shannon and I but after a couple of days, I start to get restless. We have some friends that can spend two weeks on a beach and others no more than a day! So if you fall somewhere in between, what else should you be thinking about on your honeymoon? How about learning something new that both of you can bring home.

Over the last six years, I've spoken with dozens of Traveler's Joy Members that rave about a new skill or hobby they learned together while on their honeymoon.  When they returned home, they continued to practice this new skill or hobby and then celebrated their wedding anniversary by traveling somewhere new to 'practice' their new activity. This new skill or hobby became a theme for each of their wedding anniversary trips!

The following are some examples of classes, private instruction, or certification programs that Traveler's Joy Members have participated in (and registered for!): cooking in Rome, fly-fishing in Alaska, wine tasting in France, gelato making at the Italian Culinary Institute, pastry making in Brussels, horseback riding in Colorado, surfing in Costa Rica, skydiving in Switzerland, kayaking in Washington, hang gliding in North Carolina, and scuba diving in St. Thomas. This list is by no means exhaustive so think about where you are honeymooning and something you've always wanted to do together - then make it happen! 

For many brides and grooms, honeymoons are the one trip planned well in advance. However, after speaking with a couple last week, this isn't always the case. 

Rob and Joan decided to delay their honeymoon because the groom had lost his job about 6 months before the wedding.  Despite having a honeymoon registry, they didn't feel comfortable taking a honeymoon immediatley because they were now struggling to save enough money for the wedding.  The good news? With 1 month to go until the wedding, the groom found a new job with a better salary and a flexible manager.  Rob's manager was willing to grant one week of vacation after the wedding despite only being on the job 4 weeks. So with only 4 weeks to book a honeymoon - what were Rob's options?

There are several last minute travel websites that can be a life saver, especially in terms of cost.

1) Travelzoo - Travelzoo's website states that more than 2,000 travel companies from around the world list their very best offers with them. Their weekly Top 20 is a list of the week’s best travel deals after evaluating airfare, hotel, vacation package, cruise and rental car deals.

2) Jetsetter.com - While this website is 'Member Only', it only took a day to receive an invitation to join after providing my email address. This site provides deals on 5 star properties throughout the world. If $2-400 a night is in your budget, you might come across some amazing properties that are typically $5-900 a night. After becoming a member, you'll receive an email each week with the latest discounts.

3) Kayak - A new addition to the popular search engine is their Private Sale service. Accessible to anyone, the Private Sale experiences are exclusive deals on hotel packages. They're outstanding properties at unbelievable values, sometime up to 50% off retail rates.

With any of these three sites or others like TabletHotels.com and Ruelala.com, keep in mind there is limited time to book.  Be sure to discuss your plans with your partner before booking or you may not have a honeymoon at all :)

Members often ask us about the top honeymoon destinations they should consider for their honeymoon. This is a hard question to answer because so much depends on the personality of the couple, budget, and their travel history. I came across a story from Forbes Traveler last week that reviewed a number of sources to come up with the top 2009 honeymoon destinations. The great part about this list is that it came up with national and international destinations.

I've listed them out below or you can click here to see a slide show and commentary for each destination.

Europe: Italy, France
North America & US: Mexico, Hawaii, Napa Valley, New Orleans, Walt Disney World, Niagra Falls, Las Vegas
Caribbean: Bahama, St. Lucia, Jamaica
Central America: Costa Rica

Do you have a honeymoon recommendation? Did you honeymoon in Niagra Falls or Walt Disney World? If so, we'd love to hear about your honeymoon.

Where are you planning to honeymoon in 2010 and why?

Congratulations to Caitrin and David, our 2009 Honeymoon Story contest winners of a 1st Anniversary trip!  We will be posting their Italy honeymoon story and photos this summer within the Real Member Stories section of Traveler's Joy. Our outside editors had a hard time narrowing down the winner from over 500 submissions. Thank you to everyone that contributed!