Joel and I really weren’t sure whether we would end up having a honeymoon, with the epic-ness that was our DIY wedding and a budget that was already way out of control. For two students an extravagant overseas holiday was definitely not going to be on the cards however hard we might wish… so when we won 2 nights free accommodation through the Holidays For Couples website we jumped for joy!

It still wasn’t going to be an island paradise holiday or a wonderful trip overseas but we would be able to spend a few days away together and bask in the happiness of our first days as newlyweds. We contemplated the different hotels we might be able to stay at and their proximity to Valery (where our wedding was held) and decided on the Gold Coast.

Yep a little corny and cheap but there was one place we were dead set on visiting. Dreamworld.

It was an awesome day all round, though we got there early the crowds got pretty big pretty quick so we went and grabbed a Q4U buzzer. Best investment ever! The Buzz Saw had just opened up so the lines were massive. We went on some of the other less popular rides while we were waiting and then hopped on when they were ready for us. Unfortunately the flash wasn’t working properly so we didn’t get a very good picture but as you can see the others were great.

For our free accommodation we stayed at the Crowne Plaza Gold Tower, the room was lovely and we had a great view from the balcony. We had tons of wedding food leftover so we lived on cheese, bread, ham/turkey and chutney while we were away, a welcome change from my pre-wedding dieting.

Unfortunately the nice weather didn’t hold out and the rest of the holiday had us looking for indoor pursuits to stay out of the rain. Luckily we both LOVE shopping so we headed out to Harbour Town for the day and some epic shopping. After bagging some bargains we were both well and truly ready to head home and back to reality albeit without the wedding planning shenanigans.

Photography from Joel and Emma’s collection.

Ms Gingham says: I love seeing our couples so relaxed and happy after their weddings. Be sure to check out Joel and Emma’s wedding here for some beautiful DIY inspiration. Thanks so much for sharing your honeymoon with us Emma!

Emma says: “I’m a little bit of a planner, it started out with small things like planning my birthdays a year in advance then progressing to planning my wedding, now I relish the opportunity to plan more things be it small gatherings of friends to holidays and big birthdays.”