After a lot of initial planning and expecting to be in Iceland for 2 weeks, we’ve decided to jet off to Europe for a “honeymoon,” rather than staying in Iceland for an additional week. We had a lot of back-and-forth with this decision, because we generally expect that every trip we take will be a once-in-a-lifetime visit, and so want to get the most that we can out of any adventure.
Staying in Iceland an additional week meant that we would have been able to visit the north, and spend some more time in farther-off destinations where there was a lower chance of seeing other tourists (or anyone at all). But we felt that a warmer, more indulgent destination might be a better fit to make it really feel like a honeymoon.
Deciding on a destination
Some places we toyed with were the Canary Islands, Corsica, Menorca, and Madeira. I was pretty set that I wanted a beachier, warm destination with either a fair amount of hiking available, or a lot of history and ancient sites. The trouble with all of these destinations, however, is the difficulty of travel from Keflavik airport. There were no direct flights, and for the most part any one of these island destinations would ensure 24+ hours of travel before we ever set foot in our final destinations.
Having already slept in the Barcelona airport once in my life (missed my flight–opps!), I was not eager to repeat, and tried to find an easier path. For the longest while, we were seriously considering Corsica despite the travel difficulties (fly to London, then to Corsica; fly to Italy, take a 4 hour ferry; fly to the south of France, a different 4 hour ferry), because it seemed to offer the best of everything–world class hiking, a ton of history, and some decent “civilization” to shop and eat.
Ultimately, our destination wound up being somewhere that wasn’t a quick flight, nor a direct flight, but it seemed to have everything we were looking for: easy to walk, plenty of public transport, plenty of good food, and a LOT of history. …We’re going to ROME!
A rough plan
Once we had the destination selected, we each picked a “main” activity that we wanted to do. Mine was to visit Pompeii, and Peter’s was to the Vatican. We opted for an Airbnb within walking distance of the Vatican and nearby to a train stop. Our flat is straight out of a 17th century design guide: there’s plenty of cherubs, a load of old books, and lush wall-to-wall traditional decor. I can’t wait to post pictures for you!
We’ll spend 5 nights in Rome, in the same Airbnb. On top of our two tourist attractions, I hope to visit the colosseum, as well as a local beach that we can access by train. As of now, the only things we have booked are the flight and lodging, but I’m sure we’ll be booking tours and tickets as the trip gets closer.
Love,
Danielle and Peter
making life an adventure 