Spain Honeymoon: How We Had Our Honeymoon in Spain for Under $2,000

I’m finally getting around to sharing one of the best trips I’ve ever had…our honeymoon!  And one of the best parts about our honeymoon is how much money we saved on it!

As money savvy people, Logan and I discussed all the different, possible destinations we could travel to for our honeymoon that were budget friendly.

We assumed that we’d be having a domestic honeymoon to save money…somewhere in Los Angeles, possibly even stretching it to Orlando since we’re huge Disney fans.

Well, the fairy godmother of all things marriage/weddings blessed us beyond our expectations, and we were able to have the dreamiest international honeymoon ever!

Never did we imagine that we’d be going to Europe on our honeymoon within our budget, but the two of us were able to spend 10 days in Spain for under $2,000!

Here’s how we did it…

Airfare: $755.22

We were truly fortunate to have gotten reliable and cheap flight tickets through cheapOair!

Our Norwegian Air tickets were only $377.61 each, round trip, coming out to $755.22 for both of us.

We had a short layover in Oslo on the way to Spain and a short layover in London on the way back.

Lodging: $337.55

Marriott Marbella Beach Resort (5 nights): $250.00

Our generous friends (check out the wife’s blog: www.domesticinvestor.com) are timeshare owners of Marriott, which allows them to pick and choose a destination based off of available resorts the Marriott has to offer.

Long story short, they were unavailable to use up their vacation reward that was soon expiring, and they had graciously offered the reward for us to use on our honeymoon (we love you guys!).

The deal that Marriott was offering was a 5-night stay at any of their available resorts for a total of $250…NOT $250 per night, but $250 for a whole week!

This allowed us to consider traveling internationally, since our housing accommodations would be well under our budget.

After a few days of researching, we chose Marbella, Spain where warm weather would be offered in the middle of January!

We stayed at a beautiful Marriott beach resort in Marbella, a beautiful Southern town right by the Mediterranean Sea.

This part of Spain is known as the Costa del Sol, and it was a beautiful place to spend our honeymoon!

Our room was designed like a condominium, so it included it’s own kitchen, laundry room, living room, and separate bedroom/bath.

It was quite the luxury! The resort was walking distance from the beach, so Logan and I would take a nice stroll and find restaurants to eat alongside the beach.

Airbnb (2 nights): $87.55

For our 1st and last night that we were in Spain, Logan found really cute, cozy, and affordable rooms through Airbnb.

Our first night was $35.02 and our second night was $52.53.

We loved both of our hosts who were incredibly hospitable and friendly.

We noticed that about all the locals in Spain.

They are very warm and kind people.

In fact, the host of our Airbnb on our last night drove us to the Málaga airport for free!

Rental Car: $249.43

Originally planning to use public transportation to get around, we decided to splurge a little bit by renting a car.

As frightening as it was figuring out foreign road signs, it was definitely an adventure to say the least and made it convenient to commute to places.

Renting a car ended up being great, because we really got to enjoy some scenic drives.

The drives were absolutely breathtaking.

We would frequently make stops just to take pictures of the green hills and ocean background.

We loved how colorful the cluster of homes were on top of hills.

Food and Miscellaneous: $602.87

Logan and I live to eat, so we made sure to try all sorts of Spanish cuisines to our hearts’ content.

We tried many tapas, paellas, pintxos, seafood, cured meats, cheeses, bocadillos, Moroccan tea, churros, coffee, and more.

Since there was a small market at our resort, we saved money by buying ingredients to make our own bocadillos, which are traditional Spanish sandwiches.

Did you know that some wines were cheaper than paying for water at restaurants?

It was a no-brainer for us to order adult grape juice for every meal 😉

Uvedoble Taberna (Málaga)

Our favorite restaurant was Uvedoble Taberna in Málaga.

This restaurant does a modern take on traditional tapas.

Every dish we ordered was a flavor explosion in our mouths.

If you’re ever there, make sure to order the black squid ink pasta!

What We Did in Southern Spain

There is so much history in Southern Spain.

Moorish Influence

We both learned that Southern Spain was conquered by the Moors for a long period of time.

Because of this, a lot of Southern Spain’s architecture and even food is influenced by Morrocan culture.

Even the Turkish bath house we went to had a lot of Moorish influence.

Historical Buildings

We visited many beautiful castles, fortresses, ruined theatres, and cathedrals.

The cities we visited in Spain included Marbella, Málaga, Rhonda, Granada, Cordoba, Fuengirola, and Mijas.

With all the wedding planning we had to do, there wasn’t a lot of time for us to research our day to day itinerary for our honeymoon.

So we decided to be spontaneous for our trip and figure out things to do when we actually got to Spain.

There are so many activities to do in Spain.

Marbella (1 Day)

If you want a more relaxing vacation, Marbella is the place to be.

It’s nice to be able to walk along the beach where the weather was mild in January!

There are many restaurants by the beach to choose from, which gives you dinner with a view.

Ronda (1 day)

Ronda is a small town about an hour’s drive from our resort in Marbella.

It is most well-known for its famous bridge called Puente Nuevo (more on that later).

Ronda’s Main Square: Plaza del Socorro

Ronda has a beautiful main square with cafes, restaurants, and underground parking.

Like most city squares, the focal point is in the center, where you will find a fountain and several monuments.

There were also some tourist traps, so be sure to always, always, always check prices before buying anything!

Bodega El Socorro for Lunch

We began our time there in the main square, getting lunch at Bodega El Socorro.

The food was very good, and we kept ordering plate after plate after plate to the point where the waitress told us (in accented English), “STOP!”

(We still tell each other, “STOP!” to this day in remembrance of her.)

The Puente Nuevo, or “New Bridge”

Ronda’s main attraction is the Puente Nuevo, which, despite its name, was actually constructed between 1759 and 1793.

The breathtaking gorge beneath the Puente Nuevo is called the El Tajo gorge.

Not-so-fun fact: there is a chamber within the bridge that was at one point used as a prison, and prisoners were sometimes executed by being thrown from this chamber into the gorge below.

After taking several pictures of the bridge and the gorge, we hiked all the way down the gorge and got our day’s worth of exercise trekking back up.

Phenomenal Desserts at Confitería Daver!

After hiking back up from the gorge, we sat down at Confitería Daver to enjoy some amazing desserts.

If you have anything of a sweet tooth, we definitely recommend…pretty much everything here!

They serve cookies, pastries, cakes, coffee, hot chocolate, ice cream, and more!

Málaga (3 Days)

Málaga is probably the most touristy of all the cities we visited in Southern Spain, but it was so much fun.

Málaga is great for shopping.

We visited a beautiful cathedral there, walked around a Moorish fortress, saw a recently discovered ruined Roman theatre, relaxed at a bath house, and visited Picasso’s home and museum.

We loved the city so much, we went back two more times!

Granada (1 Day)

Granada is famously known for the Alhambra, an iconic monument that includes a palace, fortress, and King Charles V’s palace.

Mijas (1 Day)

Although Mijas is a small town, there was a lot for us to see.

We bought a lot of souvenirs there, saw a lot of donkeys (where you can go donkey riding), and made our very own chocolate bars at a fun, chocolate factory.

Fuengirola (1 Day)

Fuengirola is a lot like Marbella with it’s beach view, but it also has this beautiful castle you can visit.

Apparently they also hold concerts and special events there.

Cordoba (1 Day)

We happened to visit Cordoba during the week they were having their Medieval Festival.

Along with visiting the beautiful Mosque in Cordoba, we got to walk through the Medieval Festival, filled with festive people dressed in that time selling Medieval food and fun activities/merchandise.

Why a Costa Del Sol Honeymoon is Great

I could go on and on about our trip, but I probably wouldn’t get any sleep if I did.

Southern Spain was perfect for us because it didn’t attract as many tourists as other European locations do.

It had elements of adventure, relaxation, romance, history, etc.

Logan and I periodically discuss how special and memorable our time in Spain was. We are so thankful that our honeymoon was budget friendly

It was an incredible way of making lasting memories.

What would be your dream honeymoon?

What are some ways you have saved money for your trip?