A Pre-Honeymoon?

This week has been full of wedding bliss--or something slightly less cheesy. Pictures from the wedding I attended last month were posted, as well as their honeymoon photos from Hawaii. I just found out today that two of my good friends got engaged over the weekend (Congrats to them!!), and they'll be tying the knot in the next year or so. Then, Daily Candy sent me a newsletter about a contest from Brides.com that lets couples enter to win the Ultimate Romantic Getaway: an all-expenses-paid, five-night stay at Palace Resort & Spa of your choice.

Now, obviously that could be used for a honeymoon, but what about taking a nice trip together before the wedding, a pre-honeymoon if you will. It's becoming more and more popular for couples to take pre-wedding vacations together, either before the planning actually starts or just a few weeks before the ceremony. It's a way for the bride and groom-to-be to relax and take time away from their daily stresses (tastings, fittings, invitations, seating arrangements, etc). Some might argue that a pre-wedding trip ruins the post-nuptial tradition of a honeymoon, and there is definitely a point to be made there. But just think about all the trips people have taken as couples before they got engaged and got married, weren't all those vacations romantic in some form? I would say so.

Traveling together not only gives you a buddy to go sightseeing with, but it is also a good way to test your compatibility. A couple that can travel together can stay together. And I'm not talking about big group trips where you can steal away with another person if your significant other is getting on your nerves. I mean the one-on-one adventures where it is just the two of you, spending every minute together, sharing everything from food to beds to train seats. Those are the moments when you truly know this is forever.

I strongly suggest every couple take a vacation together, especially if one day you two will be walking down the aisle sometime in the future.