With the wedding creeping up (eight months away), it’s time to start organising the honeymoon! We’ve spent a good six months umm-ing and ahh-ing about it, and we’ve decided: We’re going to Italy! Flying in to Milan, flying out of Milan, hiring a car, driving around the north of Italy in winter (yes, we know, we’re crazy). And NYE in Hong Kong. A brilliant 3-week trip, just 3 weeks after our wedding. Fantastic.

It’s actually pretty difficult to plan a honeymoon, because it’s not just your usual run-of-the-mill holiday. It’s a big deal. It’s the first time you’ll be absolutely alone after the wedding. Strangers around you for a good amount of time. No one to really talk to except each other. So it’s important to follow these sorts of tips when planning a honeymoon:

1. Decide what sort of honeymoon you want

Are you a beach person? Or into clubbing? Or are you more likely to want a skiing holiday? Remember, this is the perfect excuse to choose a holiday destination, so don’t choose the first place that someone else suggests. Just because someone else prefers Fiji over Zurich, doesn’t mean you have to go to the places others always seem to flock to for honeymoons. So, whether you’re basking on the beach in Bangkok or enjoying a winter wonderland in Würzburg (in Germany), it has to be a climate that you enjoy, with things you enjoy (such as the beach or ski slopes).

2. Get out a map

Without a map, you’d be lost. Use Google Maps to look at the country or city you would like to visit, just to understand what is around it. You might be staying in one city, but venturing out on day trips to other parts of the country. Check out how to get from one place to another. Zoom in, zoom out, look up the towns and villages nearby, and figure out where you want to go.

3. Research, research, research

I mean, there’s no point going somewhere if you don’t know what there is to do. Figure out what you want to do, what you want to see, and (most importantly) what you want to eat. Plus, if you research the smaller towns around where you’re staying, you’ll be able to discover some amazing hidden treasures that others may have overlooked. So, for example, we are going to some major cities (Milan, Florence, Bologna), but there are so many little towns and villages along the way, it would be a shame to miss it!

4. Think about transport

Do you want to fly between cities? Or use a Busabout sort of system (hop on, hop off)? Or will you rent a car? Deciding this changes so much. If you fly, you’ll halve your travel time, but you’ll miss out on the small towns and villages. If you do hop on, hop off, you’ll meet loads of people and may want to meet up with them later on, but that could change your itinerary. If you drive, you may end up seeing a lot more than you thought you would, but parking could be a nightmare. Decide what’s most important to you. Do you want to save time? Fly. Do you want to meet people? Bus. Do you want to see more of the country? Drive.

5. Book!

Luckily for us, our friend’s mum is a travel agent. This means that she finds us the best prices, and books everything for us. She also is able to give us advice on where we should spend the most time or the least time. Check out sites like SkyScanner or Expedia to book your flight, or find your nearest travel agent. It costs you nothing to book through them, and makes life a lot easier. Try to make sure that you mention to the travel agent that it’s your honeymoon. That way, they can pull some strings for you (sometimes you’ll get an upgrade at a hotel, or a glass of champagne on the flight!).

So, what are you waiting for?