Honeymoon in Thailand
When Scott and I got engaged in the fall of 2017, we had our mind set on planning the wedding ceremony, but we were just as excited to plan the big trip we would take after. Scott and I love traveling — we always say that we’re happiest as a couple when we’re exploring a new place together. That means that we’re always saving up and planning for our next adventure!
Why Thailand?
The first decision we had to make when planning our honeymoon was the destination. Our wedding date was set for mid-October, and because of Scott’s work (he’s a political reporter), we knew it would be tricky taking a honeymoon directly following our wedding. The midterm elections couldn’t exactly get rescheduled! This put us closer to December before we could get time off to travel. We knew that after a hectic election cycle and a lot of time spent executing a destination wedding, we wanted to go somewhere warm and relaxing — hopefully with beautiful beaches. This knocked out a bunch of potential European destinations and the Caribbean, which turned our attention to Asia.
Finding a destination with pristine beaches and a culture of luxury hospitality was a top priority, but we also wanted to have a little time to be explorers. Some of our favorite adventures have included getting lost in the hip neighborhoods of Rome, or discovering colorful alleys in Nice, so a destination that offered more than just pretty beaches and drinks with umbrellas would be ideal.
Our last determining factor was, where would it be safe to travel as gay newlyweds? We understand that not all cultures have developed in the same way as America, and it’s not fair to expect a country to be as tolerant as our own. But when it came to planning a honeymoon, it was really important that we could feel comfortable checking into a hotel or reaching for one another’s hand on the beach. We talked to some friends and followed some gay travel-themed Instagram accounts (namely @thegaypassport) and Thailand kept coming up as a possible destination. Not only did it have the right mix of beach and city, but it was affordable and very accommodating to LGBT travelers. After reading countless blog posts, watching hours of travel videos and chatting with representatives at The Gay Passport, we decided that Thailand checked off every box on our honeymoon wish list — and then some.
We just returned from our two-week honeymoon in paradise and have put together some travel guides for anyone planning a trip to Thailand — especially if you are looking to honeymoon there or are an LGBT traveler yourself. We’ll be posting one a day for each city we visited, so make sure you’re following this blog. Enjoy!