Happy Honeymoons with Kuoni Travel | UKbride

Happy Honeymoons with Kuoni Travel

Happy Honeymoons with Kuoni Travel

Our 2013 Dream Wedding Winners Leah Brown and Matthew Rollinson will enjoy a dream honeymoon worth £4,000 with travel and honeymoon specialists Kuoni. Here, we find out what makes the company such a worthy partner for our annual competition, with some travel tips and heavenly honeymoon ideas...

Maafushivaru - one of Kuoni's Maldives destinations.

Our dream wedding winners Leah and Matthew are, at this very moment, leafing through Kuoni's brand new 2014 Honeymoons & Weddings brochure, dreaming about a deserted beach with white sand and crystal-clear water.

The couple will marry in June next year, and will enjoy a five star honeymoon with our travel partner, Kuoni, which specialises in providing everything from intimate and romantic resorts to thrilling city breaks and adventure safaris. Who better, then, to ask about the latest honeymoon trends and who better to offer tips and advice on how to find the perfect honeymoon?

Honeymoon Trends

"This year's top trend is combining two or three destinations in one trip." says the company's Jemma Purvis. "An example is combining a few days of idyllic beach bliss with an adventure or a few days in a lively city. Examples of this include San Francisco combined with Hawaii, or Sydney and Fuji."

"A luxury 'mini-moon' closer to home is an increasingly popular trend too. The focus for 2014 is a wide choice of destinations less than five hours away - we've new hotels in Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal, with three-night breaks popular."

"Also proving popular is the 'maxi-moon' - some couples take a few weeks off work or ask for a six week sabbatical for volunteer work abroad or to enjoy a round-the-world tour.'

Dream Destinations

One of Kuoni's best-selling destinations is The Maldives and new to the company for January 2014 is a small and intimate hideaway hotel, the five star Kandolhu Island, with 30 beach and water villas. It's set to become a favourite for honeymooners.

Some couples seeking something more adventurous opt for a luxury safari. Again, new to the company for 2014 is a luxury package to the Maasai Mara with game drives and luxury camps.

Marrying Abroad

In addition to providing honeymoons, Kuoni can also offer advice on marrying abroad including the legalities of doing so and suggestions for destinations and information on same-sex blessings & same-sex honeymoons. Sri Lanka, Mauritius and USA were the most popular destinations for those seeking to marry abroad in 2012.

Honeymoon Tips

Kuoni's new 2014 brochure has plenty of tips for planning your honeymoon too. For instance, you should apply for your passport & visas and ensure these are valid for at least six months before you travel. Be aware, too, that some destinations can only be reached on certain days, so be aware that you may need to be flexible with the date you begin your honeymoon.

If you’re going to change your passport into your married name, make sure all documents and booking details are in the same name, or you could be refused entry into the country. Also allow plenty of time to send off all the documents – and for them to be returned.

Also, travel insurance is a must when travelling abroad but make sure your policy also covers your engagement and wedding rings - some don't!

Book your honeymoon with Kuoni and you can also start a honeymoon giftlist which family and friends can contribute to. This is a popular alternative for a wedding gift, with many couples already living together with no need for anything extra for the house.

The Top Ten Destinations

"Topping the list of the top ten honeymoon destinations in 2013 is the Maldives, Thailand, Sri Lanka, the USA and the United Arab Emirates." says Jemma. "Also in the top ten were Mauritius, Malaysia, Barbados, Singapore and St Lucia. We're lucky enough to have secured the best accommodation in each of the top ten destinations and in The Maldives we can offer everything from three to five star properties, to suit all budgets."

Creating your Perfect Honeymoon

We already know where Leah and Matthew will be enjoying their honeymoon but for now we're sworn to secrecy - that doesn't mean you can't have great fun planning your honeymoon, though.

Kuoni has made that simple by allowing you to create a bespoke brochure online. Visit http://www.kuoni.co.uk/brochures and order your customised Honeymoons & Weddings brochure by selecting your chosen destinations.

The company has also included a comprehensive weather map for 2014 including average sunshine, rainfall and temperatures for each month of the year.

Kuoni has 22 exclusive travel stores in major UK cities as well as concession stores in selected branches of John Lewis, or you can access expert advice by calling 0844 488 0288. No matter what your travel aspirations, with Kuoni's help, you'll enjoy a happy honeymoon and will begin your married life in the dream destination of your choice.

Our UKBride Dream Wedding Prize Partners - look what Leah and Matthew have won!

Eternity Bridal will provide Leah's dress, with a choice of beautiful classic 'A' line wedding dresses, Eternity Bridal will ensure she looks amazing on her special day. The collection features full style bridal gown with skirts in tulle, organza, taffeta and satin. Teamed with fully boned tight fitting corsets for that true ‘Gone with the Wind’ feel. Many have lace up backs to ease the need for in house alterations.

Berketex Bride will ensure Leah's attendants looks beautiful too, with beautiful bridesmaids' gowns worth up to £1,000. The company has been making dreams come true for over 50 years and its 2013 collection features beautiful detailing and a choice of gorgeous colours to match the theme of our dream wedding.

Formally Yours Meanwhile, for up to six of Matthew's groomsmen, we've partnered with Formally Yours. The company provides the very best service to grooms across the UK and has over 20 years experience on the high street and online. Choose from Prince Edward jackets, tailcoats and lounge suits and co-ordinate the groomsmen to Matthew's colour scheme with a selection of ties and cravats.

Benji Barnes Capturing your special day forever will be wedding photographer Benji Barnes. With a photography degree and 15 years of experience under his belt, Benji will capture compelling images of Leah and Matthew in a relaxed, natural and unobtrusive way. With experience shooting for magazines like Vogue and big names in the music industry, he really will make the couple the star of the day!

Union Videos are our fantastic videography partners. Ivano Darra's team will film Leah and Matthew's day and edit together a superb DVD created in line with the firm's most popular Pearl Plus package. The company will film their day for eight hours with two cameras. From guests arriving at the ceremony to the ceremony itself, the bride and groom's arrival at the wedding breakfast and speeches, as well as the first dance. The couple's finished video will be edited to 60 minutes and will include live sound as well as the couple's favourite songs as backing music with artwork and graphics.

Kuoni are the experts when it comes to creating luxury bespoke travel packages. Kuoni has been around since 1906 and will provide Leah and Matthew with a dream honeymoon to gorgeous Thailand to the four star retreat on the island of Koh Samui, with pure white beaches and azure seas lined with long-tailed fishing boats! The couple will enjoy a Thai massage, listen to the waves break as they dine under the stars and enjoy the luxury of one of the country's Top 25 Hotels as voted for by TripAdvisor users. The company has been voted the World's Leading Tour Operator for the past 11 years and specialises in intimate and romantic resorts for newlyweds!

Smooch are well-known and well-respected by our UKbrides for their beautiful wedding rings which are completely bespoke, and designed by you following a personal consultation in your home. There are 7,000 styles to choose from and the firm has 75,000 satisfied customers... Leah and Matthew will add their names to that number too with bespoke 'his and hers' wedding rings!

Picture Perfect Events are the creative wedding styling specialists, providing decoration, floristry and wedding accessories. The company's Samantha Martin will provide a wedding styling package for the couple which will create an absolutely amazing looking venue and ensure Leah and Matthew's day looks truly unique.

Sophisticake creates amazing wedding cakes and was the official cake artist for Charles and Camilla. The company's Dawn Blunden has over 25 years experience and tutors other cake artists. She has also appeared on BBC TV to talk about her work. The couple will enjoy a personal wedding consultation before Dawn creates the cake of Leah's dreams!

Dreams to Reality provides classical and modern stationery and hand-crafted wedding invitations to brides all over the UK. The firm's creative director Frances Roxburgh provides save the date and invite stationery, table plans, guest books, albums and keepsakes. Each is completely personalised and with beautiful collections to choose from, the company will ensure Leah and Matthew can create a consistent look for their special day and have some beautiful keepsakes to treasure long after the day itself.

Tic Watches offer the latest watches from high-fashion brands including D&G and Emporio Armani. The company offers the latest styles for men, women & children, and will be providing Armani watches worth £500 each, for Leah and Matthew.