How to Plan the Perfect Honeymoon Cruise
Honeymoon cruises are the soothing antidote to the rush and swirl of activity that accompanies wedding planning and festivities. Ensuring that it lives up to its intended purpose of letting you exhale, relax, reconnect, and enjoy your first shared experience as a married couple takes a bit of planning.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to planning the perfect honeymoon cruise. Discover how to choose the perfect itinerary and make your experience as romantic as possible on board.
Pick the Perfect Destination
Longing for a romantic Caribbean cruise where you can unwind on a pristine beach along turquoise waters? Always wanted to see the Eiffel Tower, the Tower of London, or the towering cliffs of the Rock of Gibraltar? Looking for an exciting adventure to a far-flung locale that you’ll tell your grandkids about?
Beach bliss can be yours on honeymoon cruises to the Caribbean that include opportunities to sunbathe or stroll on pristine white-sand beaches, snorkel coral reefs amid colorful tropical fish, sail on a catamaran at sunset, zip line above a rainforest, or parasail over the sea.
Channel your inner foodie on a romantic getaway to the Mediterranean that combines explorations of food and wine with local culture, art, and history.
Taste local wine in the Italian countryside, sample tapas in Spain, and get your fill of fresh seafood along Europe’s coastline. Marvel at masterpieces created by the world’s most renowned artists and explore ancient sites and landmarks. The Mediterranean has some of the best cultural cruises you’ll ever experience.
Read: European Honeymoon Destinations
If you both love exotic locations, consider Asia cruises to Japan, with its serene beauty, or Vietnam and Thailand, teeming with people and activity. On these itineraries, you’ll have multiple days at sea to enjoy your ship’s luxurious amenities. Think couples massages, adults-only pools and hot tubs, and romantic dinners at onboard specialty restaurants savoring world-class cuisine.
It’s your time to discover the world together, so whatever itinerary you choose to sail will be magical.
Select Your Stateroom
There’s nothing more romantic on honeymoon cruises than sinking into plush bedding after an exciting day in port, toasting to your new life together on your private veranda, and waking up to stunning ocean views.
Once you choose your cruise itinerary, the next decision you’ll need to make is choosing your stateroom or suite.
A veranda stateroom, which allows for breathtaking sea and sky views, will certainly make for a memorable honeymoon cruise, but why not treat each other to an upgrade that will make your cruise even more spectacular?
Spa enthusiasts will love our AquaClass staterooms, which come with spa-inspired in-room amenities, unlimited access to the SEA Thermal Suite or the Persian Gardens (depending on which ship you sail on), and complimentary dining at Blu.
For a vacation experience unlike any other, book The Retreat, which comes with a stunningly designed suite, the services of a dedicated team of attendants, concierges, and butlers, priority embarkation and disembarkation, exclusive access to Luminae, and access to a private lounge exclusive to guests of The Retreat.
Make Reservations
Remember those exciting shore excursions you found while researching your cruise destination? Perhaps it was a waterfall adventure on the big island of Hawaii, a horseback ride and swim in the Caribbean, or a pasta-making class at a villa in Tuscany.
Read: Best Honeymoon Destinations in the Caribbean
Then there are the romantic experiences available on the ship, like couples massages and dinner at one of the onboard specialty restaurants.
As soon as you book your stateroom, you’ll create an account from which you can reserve shore excursions, make specialty restaurant dining reservations, and book spa treatments. After you book your cruise, make those special reservations now, instead of waiting until you’re aboard the ship.
The most popular shore excursions can fill up well in advance of the cruise embarkation day, as can specialty restaurants and spa appointments. If you book early, you’ll be free to relax and enjoy your time on the ship (and each other) without the hassle of scrambling for last-minute reservations.
Enhance the Romance
Wine, roses, and chocolate-dipped strawberries are hallmarks of romantic celebrations. Continue the romance and celebration of your wedding as you begin your honeymoon cruise with a Celebrity Cruises Celebration Package that will surprise and please your true love. A bottle of La Crema Pinot Noir, a beautifully arranged bouquet of flowers, and a dozen plump and delectable chocolate-dipped strawberries are included in the Classic Celebration Package.
Dom Perignon Champagne and mimosas for a cozy romantic breakfast, along with a bouquet of fresh flowers, and those decadent chocolate-covered strawberries will be delivered to your stateroom at a time you designate when you choose a Deluxe Celebration Package. A personalized cake, a special treat for enjoying later in the day, is also included.
Read: Thoughtful Cruise Gifts
Special stateroom deliveries aren’t the only romantic extras you can plan for your honeymoon cruise. Celebrity’s Private Journeys are special shore excursions that let you plan the exact day in port you are dreaming of. You’ll have access to a Destination Insider team member who will help you arrange your special day right down to your own car and driver, helicopter rides, and private tours – or whatever you have in mind.
Get the Perfect Picture
Capture your best honeymoon cruise moments with photos taken by our professional onboard photographers. They know just the right time and place to snap great shots, and you’ll be able to see them at the ship’s viewing station, where you can select some for great memories of your special cruise.
There’s also a fully equipped photo studio on board if you’d like to make an appointment for studio portraits.
Explore the Ship
On every Celebrity cruise ship, there’s so much to do every evening that you can treat every night like date night. After an extraordinary dinner at one of our specialty restaurants, take in a Broadway-worthy show in the theater, then head to one of the lounges to dance to DJ spins or listen to live music and sip a hand-crafted cruise cocktail.
Try something offbeat and fun that you’ve never done together, like karaoke, bingo, or trivia games.
Combine A Honeymoon Cruise with a Wedding at Sea
For couples who love to travel, the best honeymoon cruises may just start with getting married at sea. There’s nothing easier or more romantic than getting married on the ship, then sailing into your honeymoon.
Celebrity Cruises offers every imaginable wedding planning service, including a pre-inspection package for couples and their family members to preview the ship’s wedding and reception venues, discuss wedding plans, and enjoy a buffet lunch.
Cruise wedding packages are offered for exchanging vows at sea while the ship is in international waters; for shipboard weddings where vows can be exchanged in port before sailing away on a honeymoon; for shoreside ceremonies in over 200 destinations around the world; and for onboard reception-only celebrations.
You’ll have the support and assistance of a dedicated event manager who will handle all the shipboard wedding details to ensure everything from flowers to food and music to make-up for the bridal party is absolutely perfect. You’ll also have an event coordinator who can arrange for in-port details such as canopies, chairs, and canapės.
Your ship’s captain is licensed to perform your wedding ceremony on the ship, and your wedding coordinator can arrange for an officiant if you are being married in port.
Read: Best Places to Elope in the World
Book Your Honeymoon Cruise Today
Start browsing cruise itineraries today and plan your perfect honeymoon cruise, or call one of our vacation specialists at 1-800-852-8086, who can help you reserve your stateroom, flights, shore excursions, and even spa appointments.
