Cash no object? Here’s how to honeymoon with nothing but luxury in mind

Admittedly, the nuptials of Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank in Windsor this week haven’t attracted as much attention as the recent wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex or Pippa Middleton’s 2017 marriage to James Matthews, but one thing everyone can get behind is a curiosity about where and how newly married couples honeymoon.

While British weddings tend to be prescriptive irrespective of budget – white dress, big cake, bad dancing – honeymoons are personal.

One of the most extravagant expressions of taste and aspiration a couple is ever likely to make, this is their chance to spend on whatever constitutes their own trip of a lifetime.

For the lucky few untroubled by financial constraints, the sky’s the limit.

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Co-founder of tour operator Black Tomato, Tom Marchant is increasingly tasked with creating complex itineraries for newlyweds who “are looking for demanding adventure, seclusion and personalisation rather than cliched rose petals sprinkled on the beds”.

Their parents may have been content with a two-week fly-and-flop at a beach resort, but that won’t suffice for high-net-worth couples who have likely cohabited for some time and already enjoy those holidays as a matter of course. 

It was that emerging desire for intrepid, bespoke itineraries that precipitated the launch of Blink.

From deserts to mountaintops, pristine and isolated terrains provide the settings for elaborate temporary camps that are developed to clients’ specifications.

Honeymooners have lapped up the concept, and after they’ve checked out, the same experience is never replicated for another customer – blink and you’ll miss it. A three-night retreat in the Moroccan desert, with helicopter rides and special experiences, costs about NZ$32,000 for two.

The founder and CEO of tour operator Red Savannah, George Morgan-Grenville, has also seen honeymoons change markedly over his 27 years in the luxury-travel industry.

As with so many things, it seems the inexorable rise in the use of social media has a lot to answer for.

With peers having shared pictures of their own extravagant honeymoons, today’s newly married couples feel under pressure to ensure theirs appear just as adventurous and amorous.

That means a week in Portofino, alongside whoever’s been disgorged from the cruise ship, just won’t cut it. Instead, says Morgan-Grenville, “it has to be somewhere far more remote, interacting with the indigenous people or doing something adrenalin-fuelled but with a luxury touch.”

For previous clients, that has meant honeymoons dog-sledding to the ghost town of Pyramiden in Svalbard and cattle-mustering in the American West. If that sounds exhausting, spare a thought for those planning their honeymoons in the years to come: “[On these trips] up goes the drone and before you know it the experience has been shared with hundreds of friends, setting the bar even higher.”

Perhaps that’s why two clients of tour operator Blue Marble Private went to exceptional effort to ensure pictures from their honeymoon to South Africa and Zimbabwe were up to scratch: they hired an award-winning photographer to accompany them.

The 18-night trip included stays in Delaire Graff resort near Cape Town and Singita Pamushana safari lodge and cost upwards of NZ$70,000. 

Others even more compelled to impress their peers simply take them along for the journey on so-called “buddymoons”.

The term was coined in 2015 after Hollywood stars Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux invited some pals to tag along on their honeymoon to the Four Seasons Bora Bora.

Given they announced their split earlier this year, it may be inadvisable to follow their example, but Helen Tabois, of the Inspiring Travel Company, claims there are some advantages: “Most marrying couples find their wedding day passes in a whirlwind and this is a way of extending the celebration and spending quality time with their closest friends.”

While buddymooning is a trend that is unlikely to gain currency with honeymooners generally (particularly given the happy couple typically foot the bill for the entire group), its rise might make exclusive-use occupancy of remote private islands or vast villas attractive to a broader spread of customers.

Spectacular though these destinations undoubtedly are, when you’re the only two people staying in a resort renowned for its watchful staff, the attention can be overwhelming.

Billed as “the ultimate Indian honeymoon”, Ampersand Travel’s King of the Castle package may omit reference to the bride but it does include plenty of space for her. Over six nights, the couple can take over in their entirety three of India’s grandest hotels: Jodhpur’s Umaid Bhawan Palace; Jaipur’s Rambagh Palace and Udaipur’s Taj Lake Palace. The cost: NZ$ 2,160,000. 

The above package might seem more a marketing strategy than an offer couples would take seriously, but there is a contingent of travellers for whom such holiday expenditure is a reality. 

When it comes to creating spectacular, unprecedented honeymoon experiences, there is perhaps no tour operator that tops the efforts of Based on a True Story.

Though the company organises just 10 or so a year, each honeymoon is a meticulously constructed, multifaceted affair that might incorporate synchronised private performances with scores or perhaps even hundreds of participants. Itineraries span continents and commercial flights or shared transfers are anathema – it’s private jets and superyachts all the way. T

he minimum rate for a Based on a True Story honeymoon is $1million, but prices can tip 10 million. 

They are astronomical sums but, for CEO Niel Fox, such high prices are an inevitability given his clients will already have stayed in hotels’ best suites and are blase about Michelin-starred meals and butler service.

He needs to let his imagination run riot, which is an expensive business.

Says Fox: “We’re adding a layer of magic to honeymoons, and that is more important to me than the obvious blueprint of luxury – the jets, the yachts, it’s all arbitrary. We provide a level of creativity above all of that – one that is often a complete surprise. That’s where we stand alone in this industry.”

Invariably veteran globetrotters already, his honeymooners often don’t even stipulate where they want to go and instead indicate the types of experiences they value.

On one typically elaborate recent round-the-world honeymoon, the couple were taken to a Roman palace by horse-drawn carriage on Valentine’s Day, where a cast of more than 100 actors, actresses, magicians and jesters were on hand to amuse the duo.

Thereafter came a meeting with a (presumably benign) pirate aboard their superyacht in the British Virgin Islands, the discovery of Snow White and her seven dwarfs in Colorado and a return to the decadent days of Louis XIV in a French chateau, with couple and cast in period costume. 

Given the pomp of her upbringing and the prestige of a Windsor Castle wedding, Princess Eugenie is perhaps one of the few for whom such an orchestration might fall short of previous family gatherings, but for anyone else with sufficient money to spend, there is no lack of tour operators on standby to turn their wildest dreams into reality. 

Five ultra-luxury honeymoons to book now

It’s so moorish

Owned by the king of Morocco and, in my opinion, one of the world’s most beautiful hotels, the Royal Mansour in Marrakesh is a showcase for exemplary local craftsmanship – stained glass, flawless marquetry and intricate mosaics are just a few of the many visual treasures endlessly on show.

The resort comprises just 53 immense private riads (each with plunge pool) and features an exceptional spa, while the team can arrange all manner of romantic excursions, from a private dinner in a Bedouin tent to a jaunt in the Atlas mountains in a vintage side car.

The hotel’s three-night honeymoon package includes breakfast, one dinner and two spa treatments per person; it costs from $5,599 (royalmansour.com).

Oceans of choice

Deliberating over honeymooning in the Seychelles and Maldives?

While the latter offers better sea life, snorkelling and diving, I favour the former for its more distinctive islands and the more credible environmental credentials of its top resorts.

Two of the world’s best eco-minded private-island retreats, North Island and Fregate Island Private each offer exceptional service and empty, golden beaches. Split a stay between both properties to benefit from North’s superior aesthetics and culinary offering, and Fregate’s dramatic cliff-top private pools and immersive nature activities.

Scott Dunn offers a three-night stay at North Island, followed by four nights at Fregate Island Private, from $84,895 including board, helicopter transfers and international flights (sottdunn.com).

White wonderland

Unblemished and beautiful, Antarctica has an otherworldly romance that is unforgettable. Wealthy honeymooners keen on solitude can charter the Hanse Explorer superyacht.

A crew of 14 take care of the logistics while couples kayak, dive, tour and sail through remote straits and seas.

Week-long charters start at $225,173 through Abercrombie  Kent (abercrombiekent.co.uk).

Italian classic

One of the most beautiful homes in Italy, Lake Como’s 16th-century Villa Sola Cabiati is part frescoed mansion, part living museum.

Despite its grandeur, it is homely and inviting, and the discreet staff appreciates the value of simplicity. Lunch might be just the perfect pasta pomodoro and fluffy homemade tiramisu served in a martini glass.

Full-board stays (for up to 12 people, should you wish to buddymoon) cost from $12,859 per night. Book via Grand Hotel Tremezzo (grandhoteltremezzo.com).

Game on

Hopefully brimming with optimism about their shared future, newlyweds are invited to make the world a better place at exclusive-use Singita Serengeti House in Tanzania. Set on a 350,000-acre private concession, the property serves as a hub for all manner of tailored safari experiences, but Singita’s conservation work is just as much part of the story.

Couples can meet anti-poaching task forces and support conservation efforts that have seen wildlife numbers increase fourfold since Singita took over the reserve in 2003.

Rates at Singita Serengeti House start at $9,546 per night, including board, safari drives and transfers (singita.com).

– The Daily Telegraph