Whether you are after a peaceful Polynesian paradise or prefer the bustling, samba-filled streets of Rio, the world is your oyster when it comes to 2024's hottest honeymoon destinations.
Rio de Janeiro
During the day, "avoid the queues and see the sights of Rio de Janeiro on a private helicopter tour of the city," said Harper's Bazaar. Board your chopper from the peak of Sugarloaf Mountain, which you can reach via a short cable-car ride. Fly over the sandy expanses of Copacabana and Ipanema beaches and enjoy jaw-dropping views of Christ the Redeemer.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Check in at Copacabana Palace, the "undisputed grand dame of Rio de Janeiro", which has hosted the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Princess Diana. During Carnival in February, its "white-stone walls pulsate with energy" and "live samba music drifts across the open-air restaurant Pérgula as guests sway, sipping potent caipirinhas". Indulge at its Michelin-starred Italian outpost Cipriani, before heading out to "join 90,000 others for a night watching the parades at the Sambadrome".
Cartagena, Colombia
Colombia was once "a less obvious honeymoon destination", said CN Traveller. But tourism in Cartagena, on the Caribbean side of the country, has grown more than 300% in the past 12 years.
The city's "deep-rooted romance" comes from an "old, walled town" that "woos with sun-yellow colonial villas and cathedrals, balconies with billowing bougainvillea, and slow ambles through cobbled streets to arcaded squares". But modern life is breaking through with "freshly experimental kitchens" to rival Lima's and a "savvy fashion crowd".
Former president Juan Manuel Santos is "a fan" of Restaurante Donjuán in the upmarket beach resort of Bocagrande. Things get "steamier" in the area's late-night salsa bars, or an hour’s boat ride away at the "protected Rosario Islands – ideal for a castaway canoodle".
Tokyo, Japan
The "capital of good taste", Tokyo has more Michelin stars than any other city, making this the perfect destination for enamoured foodies, said CN Traveller. After dinner, head to one of the city's tucked-away drinking dens, where "mixologists blend craft cocktails with laser precision at intimate 10-seater bars" or if the bean is more your thing, the capital's "narrow back streets bristle with slow-drip coffee bars". For post-dinner entertainment, "sumo wrestlers scuffle in stadiums" and "kabuki performers peacock around theatres".
And once you've had your fill of the high life, "neon-soaked thoroughfares thrum with restaurants staffed by robots and cafés filled with goats". Time your honeymoon for October and November when sunny days and "autumn colours lend a certain romance".
Tahiti
The largest island in French Polynesia has "soaring peaks, tranquil lagoons and crystalline waters", which have together drawn honeymooners to the island's South Pacific shores for years, said CN Traveller. Tahiti's "black-sand beaches and two extinct volcanoes" characterise its "rugged scenery", giving the remote island an "off-grid appeal". The Papenoo Valley is a favourite of British tourists, who come for the "luxuriant jungles" and "string of waterfalls". Book in at the InterContinental Tahiti Resort, which has its own "natural aquarium" and views "across the volcanic peaks of Moorea Island" and an "overwater gourmet restaurant".
Kenya
"Nights spent under swoon-worthy skies that twinkle with stars, accompanied by candlelit bush dinners," give Kenya the wild factor for adventurous couples, said The Independent. The East African savannah’s exclusive glamping sites are "purpose-built to escape the crowds" with awe-inspiring wildlife views and sophisticated lodges that provide the perfect viewing spot from which to see lions, leopards, rhinos and elephants "mere metres away".
The Angama Mara's "elegant tented suites" even have freestanding bath tubs to wash away the dust of the day. Hold hands with your loved one on a 4x4 game drive that will give you the chance to witness the "dramatic Great Migration", the journey of around two million wildebeest across the Maasai Mara.
-
Why it’s important to shop around for a mortgage and what to look forThe Explainer You can save big by comparing different mortgage offers
-
4 ways to save on rising health care costsThe Explainer Health care expenses are part of an overall increase in the cost of living for Americans
-
How to financially prepare for divorceThe Explainer Facing ‘irreconcilable differences’ does not have to be financially devastating
-
The 8 best comedy movies of 2025the week recommends Filmmakers find laughs in both familiar set-ups and hopeless places
-
The best drama TV series of 2025the week recommends From the horrors of death to the hive-mind apocalypse, TV is far from out of great ideas
-
The most notable video games of 2025The Week Recommends Download some of the year’s most highly acclaimed games
-
8 restaurants that are exactly what you need this winterThe Week Recommends Old standards and exciting newcomers alike
-
7 bars with comforting cocktails and great hospitalitythe week recommends Winter is a fine time for going out and drinking up
-
7 recipes that meet you wherever you are during winterthe week recommends Low-key January and decadent holiday eating are all accounted for
-
7 hot cocktails to warm you across all of winterthe week recommends Toddies, yes. But also booze-free atole and spiked hot chocolate.
-
Video games to tackle this winter, including Marvel Cosmic Invasion and Metroid Prime 4: BeyondThe Week Recommends A new entry for the Metroid Prime series makes it out of development hell, plus a sequel that brings back the chaotic comedic timing of ‘High on Life’
