How to combine your honeymoon with volunteering

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Honeyteering – Putting the heart back into your honeymoon

Oct 17th, 2012 by Tara

It has a certain ring to it doesn’t it? Honeyteering. Not quite as saccharine sweet as ‘honeymooning’, but with a touch more allure than ‘volunteering’…

A traditional honeymoon may have lost its currency for many newlyweds hoping to experience something unforgettable in their precious time alone after the marriage ceremony.

It’s common for people to be already cohabiting when they tie the knot, and gone are the days when a honeymoon was intended as a time for a couple to get to know one another in the bedroom. Most have enjoyed the heady excitement of their first romantic holiday together, and possibly many more since.

Last month we explored charity weddings. For many couples, honeyteering is the icing on the altruistic cake. But for those who choose it, the experience can give you much more than a worthy sense of doing good. You get to experience each other on a different level and see a side to your new husband or wife beyond your normal life back home.

The process of being involved in challenging and rewarding work while submerged in the lifestyle of another culture provides a life changing experience that helps to deepen and affirm your relationship.

Luxury or grassroots?

In our previous article we mentioned Voluntourism and Hands Up Holidays who operate packaged and/or luxury ethical bespoke experiences where travel and volunteering are combined.

But if you’re after a more grassroots adventure, then you can take out the middle man and source voluntary not-for-profit organisations where your money goes direct to the cause. Some would argue this is the more ethical route, but it can also be the cheapest.

Just a taster or the full monty?

Many projects offer to pay, at most, the cost of your travel, food and accommodation, and at least your board and lodging. It depends on where you go, what you do and how much time you are willing to commit. VSO offer training and preparation as well as ongoing professional support, and they cover the cost of your flights, insurance and living expenses.

But volunteers must be willing to devote at least one year to a project, which is too much for many newlyweds with jobs to return to. And, although a large number of programmes require a minimum commitment of three months, there are others where even a week of your help can make a difference.

It’s good to talk…

The important thing to consider is that this is a two way, mutually beneficial activity, and so it’s worth taking some time to sit down with your partner and think about where your professional skills and personal interests lie, and how much time you are prepared to give. This way, your volunteering will be of maximum benefit both to yourselves and to the organisation that you decide to help.

In our next honeyteering instalment later this week, we will bring you our top 6 suggestions for activities, schemes and organisations that will give you the post-wedding experience of a lifetime!

Tara Gould

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