You already know that proper planning will make your honeymoon less stressful, but don't forget to plan for the things you need to do right before you head to the airport. When you're just a few days out from your honeymoon, make sure you cross these ten things off your to-do list.
You already know that proper planning will make your honeymoon less stressful, but don't forget to plan for the things you need to do right before you head to the airport. When you're just a few days out from your honeymoon, make sure you cross these ten things off your to-do list.
10 Things to Do Before You Leave for Your Honeymoon
1. Eat the Perishables
It would be unpleasant to arrive home from your honeymoon to a kitchen smelling of rank, moldy leftovers. A week prior to your honeymoon, focus on using up the perishable food in the fridge and pantry. If you can't eat all the perishable items before you leave, throw them away or give them to the neighbors before you drive to the airport.
2. Get a Pet Sitter/Plant Sitter/House Sitter
Do this several weeks in advance so your sitter has plenty of notice. If you have pets, find a place to board them, a family member to keep them, or someone to stay with them at your home. If you have house plants that will need watered or just don't want to leave your home unoccupied for a week or two, consider asking a neighbor or friend to stop by every couple of days to water plants and pick up mail, or hire a full-time house sitter.
3. Clean the House
Don't spend the last days of your honeymoon thinking about what a disaster your house will be when you get home. You'll be more able to relax and unwind from the plane ride home if you do a thorough cleaning before you leave. Take out the trash. Pick up messes. Have most of the laundry finished, and clean the kitchen and bathrooms. It will make your homecoming much more welcoming and pleasant.
4. Install Automatic Light Timers
One way to keep your home safe is to get automatic light timers that will turn your lights on for a while each evening. It takes a bit of energy, but it makes it look like you're home, keeping potential burglars well away.
5. Stop Your Mail
Unless a trustworthy neighbor can pick up your mail, have the post office stop it while you're gone. It's very easy to do this online, and you can either pick it up when you get back or just have it all delivered the day you get home. Also stop delivery of newspapers and other items that might just sit on your doorstep, possibly getting rained on or letting potential thieves know you're not at home.
6. Unplug Electronics
There's no sense in having computers and other electronics sapping energy when you aren't even home. Unplugging appliances and electronics can save you money while you're away, and it's the environmentally friendly thing to do.
7. Copy Passports and Credit Cards
Have a copy of your passport in every piece of luggage you carry, in case you lose the original. Copies of credit cards can also be helpful if you lose your wallet. Be sure to write down information for the US Embassy nearest to where you'll be staying, and write down the international contact numbers for your credit card companies and banks before you leave. These documents can also be scanned and emailed to yourself for safe keeping. In an emergency, you’ll be able to access your information from a computer anywhere in the world.
8. Check for Travel Warnings
Look at the US Department of State website for travel warnings, and register your trip before you go. This will ensure that if a natural disaster or other problem occurs during your trip, the local Embassy will know where to find you.
9. Figure Out the Airport
If you have a layover, especially one that doesn't give you much time to get onto your next plane, before leaving home look up a map of the airport and find the best route to your next terminal. If you're printing your boarding passes at the airport, check online to find out where all your flights depart and land so you know where to go.
10. Leave Contact Information and Itinerary at Home
Before you go, make sure someone you trust has all the contact information for places you'll be staying. Also, give someone your itinerary, including flight numbers. Just in case there's an emergency while you're on your honeymoon, someone will be able to contact you.
About the Author:
Andrew Marino is the CEO of HoneymoonPixie.com, an industry leader in providing honeymoon gift registries for engaged couples. Couples create their free honeymoon registry website and receive honeymoon planning advice and travel tips. Andrew also serves as a contributing Senior Travel Editor.
James Griffith says
Great post I love the airport shot!