is Honeymoon Spending Out of Control?

Hold back on wedding spending, bring on the honeymoon.

A recent Millionaire Corner survey found that while the majority thinks spending on weddings has gotten out of control, they are pretty much split on whether couples spend too much on the honeymoon.

Honeymoons comprise a $12 billion a year industry, according to some estimates, with couples spending an average of $4,466 on their getaway. This is reportedly about three times as much as the average U.S. adult spends on a vacation. Luxury honeymoons comprise 15 percent of the market, with couples spending an average of $9,954 for an 11-day excursion. Sixty-two percent of couples pay for most of their honeymoon without assistance from others.

The majority of honeymooners (63 percent) travel to foreign lands, with Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Italy, St. Lucia, and France among the most popular destinations. The most popular domestic honeymoon locales are Hawaii, Florida, California, and Nevada.

Fifty-one percent feel couples do not spend too much on their honeymoon compared with 48 percent who do. The virtual split is seen across all wealth levels. Perhaps surprisingly, women appear to be more cost-conscious than men with 50 percent saying couples spend too much on the honeymoon vs. 48 percent of men. They are also less likely to feel that couples do not spend enough on the post-wedding getaway.

Again, not surprisingly, respondents under 40 were most vehement in their belief that couples do not spend too much on a honeymoon. Sixty-one percent share this belief vs. 39 percent who believe they do. Only seniors over the age of 60 are more likely to think that couples spend too much on the honeymoon, and here again it’s a virtual split, 50.1 percent vs. 49.9 percent.

When it comes to weddings, however, respondents were much more adamant in their belief that spending for a lavish wedding has gotten out of hand. Eighty-nine percent hold this view. Women respondents, again, were slightly more likely than men to say spending on a lavish wedding is out of control, 91 percent vs. 89 percent.

Just as they want their dream honeymoon, so is the under-40 crowd a believer in lavish fairytale weddings. They were the much less likely than their older counterparts to say that couples put too much emphasis on having a grand wedding, 78 percent compared to around 90 percent of those 41 and up.