Need advice on where to go for our 25th

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

We are lost and can not agree on a place to go to for our 25th wedding anniversary. I wanted to go to Cabo since we were never there but my wife said we have been to Mexico a dozen times. Europe , Italy was my next choice but we were just there, Hawaii we were there 4 or 5 years ago for 4 weeks. We are now thinking about Spain but I am not sure if I can get FF seats. I have enough miles to book us in first class to pretty much any where in the us and Mexico but I am not sure if I have enough for Europe. We might just end up gong back to Hawaii as this might be the easy way out. Is there any other areas we should be looking at? My wife hinted Tahiti but I heard there are no nice Timeshares there, I was thinking of Australia maybe or a Castle somewhere. I am also about to forget about the timeshares and just go and book a cruise somewhere. What ever I do I need to book it so I can get FF seats now. The trip would be s coming July.

[emidsouth Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close emidsouth]

I'm not sure if your a big fan of flying for a long period...If so then Thailand is an amazing place to go if you can. My husband and I went to Phuket, Thailand a couple years after the Tsunami (it was all cleaned up) and it was Amazing. I would recommend to anyone. Dinners are great and very inexpensive.

[Jya-Ning Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close Jya-Ning]

No suggestion. I heard Wife is always right, and if not, remember that rule.

Congratulation.

Jya-Ning

[jericap Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close jericap]

Frank,
Did you ever think about the Canadian Rockies? I've never been but it's on my wish list just because the pictures look so beautiful!! Another suggestion is Greece.

[rikkis_playpen Diamond Club Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close rikkis_playpen]

Your wife must be more understanding than mine!

We are lost and can not agree on a place to go to for our 25th wedding anniversary.... My wife hinted Tahiti but I heard there are no nice Timeshares there, I was thinking of Australia maybe or a Castle somewhere.

After 25 years- I'd just take the hint and be thankful it didn't come by way of a note wrapped around a rock!

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Frank,
Did you ever think about the Canadian Rockies? I've never been but it's on my wish list just because the pictures look so beautiful!! Another suggestion is Greece.

We did 3 weeks of greece last year. I always wanted to go to British Coulmbia but that is my thing not my wifes.
I think she might lie Thailand I might look into that one.

[ArtsieAng Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close ArtsieAng]

I think Thailand is a great idea. Only problem is July is not the best time to visit. I think that may be rainy season. Marriott has two timeshares in Thailand, and they look beautiful.

How about Marbella? I loved Marbella, Puerto Banus, and the Costa del Sol area of Spain. I think that would make for a nice 25th anniversary celebration.

[emidsouth Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close emidsouth]

Thailand is a 22 hour flight but well worth it. We stopped in Germany then went to Singapore then Bangkok. I would suggest flying into Japan or somewhere closer and staying for a night then flying to Thailand. Anything to break up the long flight is better. There are some really nice Timeshare resorts you can stay at as well.

[x3skier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close x3skier]

A trip around Spain and Portugal would be very nice. We have been to both Madrid and Barcelona and enjoyed both immensely.

Somewhat easier to get Biz class seats to either city than others in Europe, especially in the "off" season. A short delay in the celebration to get where you really want to go was acceptable to Mrs. X3skier for our many anniversaries.

One way to handle it is to take whatever location you can get for arrival / departure and use a LCC to / from your final destination. I have flown to/from AMS, FRA, MAN and others to get where we were really going. Most LCC flights were under $50 US each. As an example, we flew from London to Venice on BMI for around $50 this past August.

Cheers

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Pacific Northwest ie Vancouver, Victoria, Alaska.

or you could always go to my number one wish list... The Crane in barbados.

The Pacific NW I can see in points no such luck on the Crane.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

If you are up for the long flight, Thailand would be my choice as well. Most airlines will allow you a stopover of a day or more if you are heading to the Far East. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore would all be good choices. I'd spend a week in Phuket and then a week in Chang Mai. We were in Phuket in July (a few years ago), and the weather was great. We also spent some time in Bangkok which was interesting (Emperor's Palace, the various temples, etc.), but I would skip that and go to Chang Mai instead if I had to do it over again.

The absolute best part of Thailand is the people, IMO. "Land of a Thousand Smiles" is so true there. If you don't act like an "Ugly American", you will find the Thai people so friendly and helpful -- even if you can't communicate in the same language.

And the food is fantastic! Our most memorable dinner was an outdoor restaurant on the beach in Phuket. Our table was literally 15 ft. from the water, under a palm tree. One of the dishes we had was deep-fried cashews and lime leaves -- can't say that I've ever seen that here in the States.

Good luck on whatever you decide, and congrats on the 25 years! (coming up on 20 myself)

Kurt

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

I have heard nothing but wondrous reports about Thailand. Everyone I know who has gone goes again when they can manage it.

I like the idea of a cruise, personally, for celebrating an anniversary....a timeshare means work for me, a cruise allows me to fully relax...spa...tours..great service and a romatic time....

[mas Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mas]

Of all the places mentioned, Thailand would be the #1 for me. The Marriott's, from everything I've heard and read, are fantastic. For a 25th anniversary, I would definitely want to book FF 1st class air. That makes the trip over and back part of the vacation and not a travel hassle.

Speaking of Marriott, you mentioned that you might be short of FF miles for Europe, if so, you would definitely be short for Asia, however, you can purchase 50k Marriott rewards points per account every year for $625. So if you have a MR account and your wife has an account you could purchase as much as 200k points before you had to travel and use those points for a travel pkg. That pkg could add as much as 120K airline points into the airline account of your choice. You could then use the hotel portion of the travel pkg to book in Phuket or elsewhere in Asia. Just a thought.

[Laurie Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Laurie]

Have you been to France? You could string together a few TS weeks in some different but worthwhile areas: Paris, the Riviera and my favorite area so far, Dordogne - and/or they have many river cruises, how 'bout a cruise down the Loire? Chateaux, wine, bakery goods, chocolat, the Mediterranean, etc etc.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

I am on the phone with Delta, I have just over 100K miles in both mine and my wifes account, a couch FF ticket to Thailand is 175K never mind first class. She says she can get me couch tickets to Dubai for 100K but there are no timeshares there that I know of.