Ethical honeymoon??

My husband and I have discussed this on several occasions. It seems like, in some of these places at least, the resort jobs are actually highly sought after for the pay. What we try to do is just tip heavily when there. We try to be very generous with our tips to everyone throughout the day every day. I know it isn't a perfect solution, but at least I'm putting money directly into that person's pocket. Also, we stayed at an Excellence resort for our honeymoon, and they encourage guests to bring school supplies or new toys which they give to children in the local community. I'm sure that program primarily exists for good PR, but it's actually the only resort I've ever seen that advertises this.

I saw a blog where a couple went to Borneo to volunteer (they have to pay for this) as their honeymoon. They volunteered for the Orangutan conservation and I think that’s cute and special.

You could look into locally owned hotels or resorts.

Never thought of this because like you said, tourism helps their economy. I will say travel local and as a PP said stay in local hotels. You would work with a local travel agency because they typically work with local places and restaurants and tours rather than the American or European owned ones. I know someone mentioned volunteering which is a good idea but I feel for a honeymoon you two should enjoy and see the sights. Maybe do a one day service experience.

In the Caribbean I’ve only been to Mexico and I get what you’re saying. We have done both the fancy all inclusive resort as well as stayed in a local tourist town - I enjoy and feel good about both.
At the resort, the staff are all quite open about poverty in the area if you ask them about it. They consistently told us that they were fortunate to have the job they did, that the pay was good for the area, that they were able to provide for their families, etc. We tipped heavily and frequently. At check out we were also able to give names of staff who went “above and beyond” (so we would try to remember and provide as many names as possible, but generally we would have the same handful of staff waiting on us regularly) and they each got a small bonus and were entered into a weekly drawing for an extra paid day off.
In the town it was a little different. It was a pretty safe tourist town. There would be a mix of people from the US, Mexico, and other (mostly South American) countries. We stayed in a local hotel and tried out as many restaurants as we could, took the public transit to the main grocery store. Had far more encounters with staff who spoke limited English (once it took us 20 minutes to communicate to the girl at the front desk that our AC had stopped working lol). We still spent plenty of time laying on the beach at a beach bar and our daily bill including plenty of food and drinks was about the same as or less than what we would have paid for a night at the resort. And we still tipped heavily.

Support local/small businesses and tip everyone personally in cash.

I recommend you stay in local lodings. Consider usibg an airbnb that's owned by a person who actually lives there

View Quoted Comment That’s awesome! I agree i think tips go a long way to show your appreciation. Thanks!

View Quoted Comment That is adorable and also a great way to combine my interests. I’ll have to look into this... thanks!

View Quoted Comment That’s a good point about the locally owned travel agent, I’m sure they would have a much better idea of “hidden gem” things to do as well. Thanks!

View Quoted Comment Thanks for sharing your experience! Interesting that the cost was about similar in the local areas.