iMag Slide Show

by Mr. and Mrs. Smith, The Boutique Travel Experts

After all of the planning, preparation and stress leading up to your big day, you deserve a fantastic honeymoon. iMag took it one step further and asked Juliet Kinsman, editor-in-chief of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, to search all over the world for the seven sexiest honeymoon locations. Kick back, relax and enjoy!

When the owner is a former Prada consultant and the interior designer's back catalogue features Armani's own villa, you know that Laluna in Grenada is poised to be something special. But there's a more relaxed vibe to the decor than perhaps that label name dropping conjures. Add to this paradise culinary flavors from Southern Italy and spa treatments care of Balinese therapists and be assured that you will have a truly exotic escapism.

Room rates: Low season, $415–$664; high season, $775–$1,240, excluding tax and service at 18 per cent. American breakfast, $25. 

Best room for honeymooners: Laluna’s beach front cottage is just 40 feet from the water's edge: start each day by sauntering from your sea-view four-poster bed for a splash in the Caribbean Sea, then step from the white sand to the yoga pavilion, for a full mind, body and soul pick me up.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Head for the Grand Etang National Park and trek through a rainforest to the Seven Sister Waterfalls.

- Prise yourselves from Morne Rouge's peaceful beaches to go snorkeling or kayaking.

- Help charity REACH Grenada to do good for the local community by buying cacao. Or even better, volunteer as a cacao farmer for a day.

For more details click here. 

This beautifully designed resort in the Maldives exemplifies understated elegance and laid-back romance. Resembling a collection of Keralan boathouses, these individual over-water villas have sleek white-on-white interiors and teak flooring, but you might find it's the flying fish and dolphins on your doorstep that grab your attention. Revel in reef-watching one minute, thanks to fantastic scuba diving, then enjoy some powerful pampering the next, in the world-class Como Shambhala spa.

Room rates: In low season, $680–$2,760; in high season, $880–$3,450, including breakfast but excluding 10 per cent service and government tax at $8 a person a night. 

Best room for honeymooners: The Dhoni Loft Suites all face onto the house reef; for maximum privacy at the end of the boardwalk, pick the higher numbers from 830.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Head to the yoga pavilion in the afternoon, where they hold a free class daily.

- Borrow snorkeling or windsurfing gear, kayaks or catamarans, or learn to dive.

- Book an island-hopping excursion and try a barbecue picnic on a sandbar made for two.

For more details click here. 

A swoon-inducing cluster of thatched-palapa huts overlooking a dramatic vista of jungle and ocean. Close to Puerto Vallarta, but far enough from beaten path that you need to access this Pacific-side boutique hotel by boat and mule. Helping ensure it's the last word in hide-away luxe are in-water massage pools in the spa, cotton-canopied day beds, and a mouth-watering menu of fresh Mex cuisine.

Room rates: Low season, $270–$380; high season, $370–$550, including tax and transport between the hotel and Boca de Tomatlan and Yelapa. Service is an additional 10 per cent and the compulsory meal plan is $80 a person a day, excluding drinks. 

Best room for honeymooners: Mayan is one of the hotel's most theatrical suites; as well as opening out onto a wide private terrace with staggering sea views it has an outdoor bathroom in which to flaunt any exhibitionist tendencies.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Get a shot of the tequila route with a drive through the towns of El Arenal, Amatitlán, Tequila and Magdelena.

- Seek out the charming fish restaurants in the Barra de Navidad, an undeveloped lagoon-hugging swathe of sand, south of Manazilla.

- Take the footpath upriver from the pretty village of Yelapa on the Costa Alegre and stroll through the jungle – in an hour you'll reach cascades, a cathedral, waterfalls and a canyon with secluded swimming holes.

For more details click here. 

The only boutique hotel in the historic main square of Trancoso, Uxua Casa Hotel is the stylish stay of choice in this seaside village. Its owners – one half of whom is the ex-creative director of Diesel – have struck the perfect balance between luxury and laid-back. Drawn by the stunning beachside location, a dedication to sustainable tourism and interiors that wouldn't look out of place in Elle Decor, the Brazilian elite, not to mention chic-savvy visitors from the US and Europe, flock to its private casas year round.

Room rates: BRL790–BRL2,150, including a buffet breakfast. There is an additional service charge of 10 per cent. 

Best room for honeymooners: Each of the nine casas feature hand-carved showerheads made from eucalyptus wood, sinks hewn from giant tree roots and reclaimed wood and fittings, but the treetop Casa do Avores is the nest for newlyweds.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Climb to the peak of the 3,675ft Morro do Pai Inácio for honeymoon-album-worthy views of the lush valleys and flat-topped mountains of the Chapada Diamantina National Park.

- The fashionable Pelourinho district of Salvador dazzles with boutiques that sell everything from local art and instruments to up-and-coming homegrown designer labels.

- Sail from Salvador to the tiny Ilha de Tinharé for utter tranquility on one of Brazil's prettiest stretches of coastline.

For more details click here. 

Owned by a champion ballroom dancer and animal lover (look out for cockatoos, dogs, monkeys and porcupines outside the master villa), one of the twin resorts at Puri Mas chills in the jungle, the other basks on the beach. Both are a boutique array of traditional thatched suites and villas in meticulously manicured gardens which have interiors resplendent in ornate features, Lombok antiques and intricate carvings.

Room rates: US$85–US$450, including full American breakfast; excludes tax and service charge at 21 per cent. NB American Express is not accepted. 

Best room for honeymooners: The two-floor Lumbung Sasak house in the village, which has a ground-floor bathroom and sitting room and a cute bedroom upstairs – it was originally used for drying rice.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Visit a Sasak village, such as Sade, north of Kuta, to experience life and traditions of Lombok’s indigenous people, local architecture and the Lingsar Temple complex which combines Hindu and Muslim places of worship.

- Head north to the spectacular Sendang Gile waterfalls, stopping by the Monkey Forest (aka Pusuk Pass) on the way.

- Earmark Lombok's handicrafts as mementos of a special trip. Ikat weaving and pottery are the mainstays, visit Banyumulek, Masbajik and Penujak villages for the best ceramics.

For more details click here. 

Surrounded by ancient angophoras and with views through silver-green eucalypts to Brisbane Waters, Pretty Beach House is a super-sophisticated private guesthouse in a magical setting, just 100 kilometres north of Sydney. Throw in all-inclusive hospitality, food from the nearby kitchen of Stefano Manfredi, and walks on the Central Coast's Bouddi Peninsula and you'll never want to leave.

Room rates: AU $1,700–$2,750 including meals, afternoon tea, snacks, wines and champagnes, and guided bushwalks. 

Best room for honeymooners: It's hard to have favorites with just three pavilions of such knockout quality. But if you insist, head over to Hideaway for even more pampered privacy. All pavilions feature separate dressing rooms, combustion log fireplaces and king-size beds; decor is a soothing mix of natural and patterned fabrics, recycled timbers, super-luxe furnishings, and local art and artefacts.

Worth getting out of bed for:

- Included in your room rate is a guided walk through the Bouddi Peninsula. Or if you want a low-key amble à deux, have a snoop at the old sandstone rock at the back of the property and see the Aboriginal carvings.

- Take a tour of the Lower Hunter Valley and be regaled by excellent regional food and the fruits of some of the 140 wineries in the area.

- Picnic at Towoon Bay: it’s bagged awards for being the country’s cleanest beach. Swimming here couldn’t be safer as it is protected by an offshore reef.

For more details click here. 

This ultra-romantic hotel in Nîmes is hidden away amid a spectacular foliage-filled, songbird-soundtracked walled garden. Every detail of Jardins Secrets has been carefully considered from the objets d’arts carefully placed in the sumptuous sitting rooms to the individual styling of the seductive more-is-more bedrooms. Added aphrodisiac comes from a hammam spa, small enough for a couple to commandeer for a splash in the plunge pool.

Room rates: €195–€380, not including breakfast, €25. 

Best room for honeymooners: All of the flamboyant suites are suited to courtship, but we love the bold decor of Alick with its striking green-and-purple color scheme, stained-glass window by the bath and theatrical chandeliers.

Worth getting out of bed for

- Visit the 20,000-seat Roman amphitheatre, which doubles as a bullring and theatre venue.

- Go flamingo-watching in the Camargue, where gypsies and cowboys congregate at Sainte-Marie-de-la-Mer; and ramparts make for great photos at the walled town of Aigues-Mortes.

- Pick up tasty local produce on market days in Nîmes, or on a Saturday head to Uzès for home-made goodies from honey to linen quilts.

For more details click here. 

All the hotels featured can be booked on www.mrandmrssmith.com. You don't have to be a member to book, and best rates are guaranteed on the site.

Click here to explore the travel section of iMag. For wedding day survival tips click over to our love section.