Interesting (yet easy) honeymoon destination?

Hi, Thorn Tree!

I'm new to this forum, although I've been using Lonely Planet for years. My fiancé and I will be marrying in late July 2010. We're looking for a honeymoon destination that is both easy and interesting. Yes, I know that's often an oxymoron. However, I enjoy vacations that include challenges with rewards: e.g.: must travel on this rickety bus to get to the lovely beach or have to spend a night at an icky hotel in order to take the boat to the island the next day, community unaccustomed to U.S. tourists doesn't speak English, Spanish or Portuguese (the three languages I speak) but welcomes visitors. (I took two years of French in high school...)

My fiancé describes himself as less adventurous. He has traveled to many more countries than I have, but often stays on the well-beaten touristy path. That's likely because new languages and foods aren't his strong suit. (The farthest East I have ever been is Hawai'i, but I used to live in Latin America.)

I'm writing to you because we had sort of settled by default on Hawaii as our honeymoon spot but are now considering alternatives that are new to us. We will have about 7-10 days off from work. We're looking for a warm, relaxing beach location, that isn't 100% touristy. (Maybe we can walk or take a cab to the local produce market, for example.) Ideally, most of the community members we interact with would speak functional English. I enjoy a range of accommodations from hostels to 4-star hotels, but want something clean, quiet, and hassle-free for the honeymoon. Neither of us wants a package that includes a night of staged native dances and obligatory local feast. Neither of us is interested in the party scene. We can probably afford to spend about $3,000 per person, including all expenses. (Although I also may have enough miles on a non-airline credit card to buy at least part of our flight.)

By the way, we live near San Francisco, CA, US.

Am I fooling myself to think that an easy, interesting, lovely location exists for our honeymoon? I've looked at French Polynesia, but it looks out of our price range. Yes, I'll be posting to 1 or 2 other location forums, because we are still exploring. Thanks in advance to anyone with ideas to share.

How about the Cook Islands?

You don't need to rule out Tahiti if you are willing to forgo the over-the-water accommodations. We opted for The Bora Bora Hotel(Novotel) for our 40th anniversary back in '06. We booked very early and got a really good rate. We loved the place -just across the street from the beach with nice amenities. Or you could check out the Bali Hai in Moorea. English is widely used but you could also try out your French.

You could also have a look at Fiji. There are some nice resorts in the Yasawas that would be great for you. I would suggest selecting a couple of islands to explore. You will not have the same access to markets, etc. but will have the opportunity to visit local villages without the attending tourist hype. I can recommend Octopus Resort on Waya Island as a starting point.

Looking a little farther afield you could consider New Caledonia, although it is farther south and may not be as warm as you are looking at their winter months. A combination of Baie de Citrons (just outside Noumea) and Ile de Pins would give you a chance to see some of the culture and experience a bit of European ambience in the SP. You would definitely need your French on Ile de Pins but English is fine in the Noumea area.

If you have a look at tripadvisor you can get a lot of information as to places to stay in these areas, some with approximate costs. Have fun with your planning and best wishes for a great honeymoon.

Hew newfie- we just celebrated our 43 too- we may qualify as the oldest couples on TT!

Hey 5Waldos - we just might be! Congratulations on staying together 43 years - we passed the milestone on Aug 20th. One of the things that have kept my hubby and I going strong is our love of travel. I remember our 5th(our first big trip from Newfoundland) - we took our VW campervan on a two month trek circling Canada and the US - with a 6 month old daughter! We knew after that we could survive anything together! We're thinking about spending our 44th in Indonesia(never been) with a side trip to Palau again.

We were Sept 3. You win. Congrats to you both also! We were childless footloose and fancy free for more than 25 years. I remember the VW days- a mattress and small bureau in the back and we were ready for anything. We are thinking about 50- considering a wonderful trip and a bottle of really really good wine the likes of which we have never imagined. It is hard to imagine 50 years- and if the past is any indication, it will be here very quickly!

Palau- stay at the Palau Pacific Resort- 6 nights about $12-1500. Airfare for both about $2400. Diving, snorkeling, english, beautiful beyond belief, the water is spectacular, not a difficult place to be at all.

The Isle of Pines (Isles des Pins)in New Caledonia.
This is a French speaking island with loads of character, gorgeous beaches and lots of other stunning scenery, no American tourists,reached by ferry from Noumea in the South Pacific

No American Tourists. hmmmmm
Overrun by the Australians? Or Japanese? or Tiawanese?
Should I be somewhat insulted here?

W el l Walo, the op did say that she wanted "community unaccustomed to U.S. tourists doesn't speak English, Spanish or Portuguese (the three languages I speak) "

The most tourists on IDP are actually French, though there are tourists from Aus and Japan.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! And it's great to read about happy traveling couples who stand the test of time.

To clarify, I don't mind (and sometimes enjoy) traveling where I am not fluent in the local language. My fiance only speaks English and doesn't learn new phrases in another language easily. I'd like to travel somewhere where both of us could get by with the languages we already speak so I am not his only communication bridge to our honeymoon community. That being said, I'd be happy to dust off my French!

Palau Pacific Resort sounds fabulous! It looks like it may be beyond our budget (which we haven't even clearly set yet). We'd likely stay clear of Waya Island's Octopus Resort and its ilk. I forgot to mention that we'd prefer to avoid knowingly sharing our room with 4-, 6-, and 8-legged creatures during our honeymoon. I think mosquitoes may be the exception, as strong repellant + mosquito netting tend to do the trick. I've lived in a house with bats and mice in Nicaragua, but I'd like to try to avoid that on the honeymoon, if possible.

Even though I had previously fantasized about over-the-water bures, some TripAdvisor posts helped me wake up and smell the lack of privacy due to no soundproofing. Glad I realized that now!

It looks like the Bora Bora Novotel is somewhere (amenity-wise) between Palau Pacific Resort and Octopus Resort. That might just do the trick.

This is so exciting! Thanks so much for the help!

Just remember that it is the marriage that is the true thing here- although the honeymoon sure is fun!