Our Cabo San Lucas honeymoon was without a doubt a memory I’ll cherish forever!

I’d never been before our trip and getting to hear my brand new husband speak Spanish everywhere was enough to make me swoon. But like any magical trip, there were a few things that brought me back to reality, some of which were fine, and others I’d opt out of next time. Here is my list of the awesome, the alright, and all the things I wouldn’t do again:

The Awesome:

Making time for a vacation.

This seems to go without saying, but it is worth carving out time in your calendar to get away from your everyday ordinary place. I worked really hard beforehand to make sure that I had nothing to worry about while we were in Mexico. There’s nothing worse than being in relaxation mode and realizing you dropped the ball on a project. So I edited faster than I ever have and made sure all my clients knew that I was going to be out of the country.

All Inclusive Resorts.

If you’ve never been to an all-inclusive, allow me to try and convince you: YOU. HAVE. TO. DO. IT. There is something so relaxing about knowing that you don’t have to worry about paying for meals or drinks once you arrive. Now, there is a bit of a caveat to this which I’ll explain further below, but just know that everything from the stocked mini fridge to the food at the restaurant is free (well, not free, you paid for it, but it feels free). We stayed at the Royal Solaris in Cabo San Lucas, B.C.S.

Mexico for a destination.

I think Mexico seems scary to many Americans like me because we didn’t grow up hanging out over there, we don’t speak the language, and all the stories we ever hear are about how horrible things are there. While there are places in Mexico I wouldn’t recommend and certainly I would always tell you to be cautious and smart no matter where you’re traveling, Mexico is a beautiful country and the people are kind there too. For the most part, we stayed on the resort, but when we did leave, downtown Cabo was a beautiful lush place filled with tourists like us, and nice vendors just trying to make a living.

The Alright:

All-inclusive food.

It seems like no matter where you stay, all-inclusive food is just sort of meh. It’s not great, but it’s not terrible so if you’re a foodie, just keep that in mind before you book. It’s freaking AWESOME to eat all the things you could ever possibly want to eat as many times as you want and almost whenever you want, but the quality of the food is not always magical.

Off-Resort Excursions.

Izzy and I wanted to see a little bit of the city and we were both in favor of visiting El Arco which was beautiful and totally lived up to all the expectations. But when we signed up for the shuttle, we didn’t realized that there were other people from other hotels going on other excursions and our shuttle was picking up and dropping those people off. Needless to say, I was SO carsick by the time we reached our destination and I was about to get on a small boat. I’m not sure how we would have done it any other way but our whole off-resort excursion experience was sort of like everyone was doing the bare minimum and charging top dollar. I didn’t regret it, but I’d probably try to think of a way to do it differently next time.

Sunset Horseback Riding.

I only put this on the “alright” list because I didn’t realize that I’m sort of afraid of horses until I was on the horse. It was SO cool and such a beautiful experience but I am very anxiety-prone and Izzy’s horse kept running into mine and I was bracing myself to get thrown off the whole time. It wasn’t very relaxing for me, but it was special and probably the best way Izzy’s settled a fight to date (he literally just came up to me on a horse it was amazing).

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The “Never Doin’ It Again”:

Kid-Friendly All-Inclusive

Unless I’m taking children with me, this one is a never again for me. I like to think I’m pretty good with the kiddos (helloooo I’m a family photographer!), but getting your chill on is much easier to do without kids running, screaming, and splashing pool water in your drink, you know? Not to mention when you have a big ass California King size bed and you’re trynna love on your mans and you’ve got an army of children slamming cupboard doors in the next room and fighting bath time routines, it isn’t exactly ideal if you know what I mean. Plus, the floor was tile and the adjoining door had about a 1 inch gap from the end of it to the floor so it was like we were living in the room with them. We will definitely be opting for an adults-only resort next time.

Flying Out of Mexico

So, this wasn’t as bad as being on the “Never Again” list makes it sound. The flight was totally safe, the airline workers were nice, and going through CBX down at the border was a breeze. Seriously, I couldn’t believe how organized, clean, and easy it all was. The Tijuana airport was nice, and spacious, and much more state-of-the-art than I was anticipating but I probably won’t leave from Mexico for the same reason that I don’t fly Spirit Airlines. Because unless you only need to take the clothes on your back, the “cheaper flight” ends up costing about the same, minus the convenience of flying out of San Diego. The tickets were cheap, but you had to pay for everything else: luggage, extra carry-on, all the things and for that reason, I’d rather just fly out of my hometown.

Waiting so long to go on a honeymoon!

I guess I only get one shot at this anyway, but if I were going to do it over again, I would have made the time for a vacation sooner. Even if it was something small, just a little bit of time to be newlyweds and go through some sort of a honeymoon phase would have been nice. COVID-19 changed a lot of people’s wedding and honeymoon plans, but I think if Izzy and I were to go back in time, I would have fought our schedules for a getaway instead of jumping right into real life. After all the excitement of our wedding and all the flurry of emotions surrounding the state of the world, I think we could have used some time to revel in the fact that despite everything that happened in the months prior, we were married, and that was worth celebrating.

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What about you, friend?

Where did you go on your honeymoon or where was your first trip with your partner? Have you stayed at an all-inclusive? Do you know a secret to relaxation at a kid-friendly resort? Me, myself and I want to hear about it! Leave a comment below and tell me: what did you love about your trip, what was okay, and what would you never do again?

Talk soon,

xo,

Jess