Originally Posted by Thunderroad

I'll get to specific destinations in a minute, but first I'll suggest that you and your bride consider signing up for hotel-affiliated credit cards as ways of staying at some very nice places on your honeymoon. A few options to consider, none of them mutually exclusive:

Hyatt has a Chase credit card offer that gives you two free nights at any Hyatt in the world after some minimal initial spending. So if you and your bride-to-be each get one, that's four free nights at a great property, including the Park Hyatt Tokyo (which my wife and I loved), the Park Hyatt Maldives (which we haven't been to, and at which you'd have to pay extra for an over-the-water-bungalow) or some other nice properties in SE Asia or elsewhere (though the ones we've stayed at that I'd put the free nights into would be the PH Tokyo or, for other future trips, PH Paris or PH Sydney). CAVEAT: You must use the free nights within a year of accruing them via your spending - I believe the same caveat may apply to the Fairmont and Hilton cards described below - and there is no guarantee that that free rooms will be available for a given night (though in my experience, certainly for Hyatt and also for other hotel chains, free rooms usually are available if booked many months in advance). As you may know, your Chase UR points can be converted into Hyatt points, though it sounds like you're already planning on using UR for flights.

Fairmont has a similar Chase cc offer. In terms of where you'd be visiting, I've stayed at and really liked the Fairmont Makati both for its great quality and great location, though perhaps you have relatives to stay with in Manila. (Also a Fairmont in Singapore, though I haven't stayed there.)

Hilton has a Citi card offer (Mastercard?) that gets you two free weekend nights at just about any hotel, plus Gold status (which gets you free breakfasts) after a certain amount of spending. The one I'd consider using this for (combined with Hilton points via other credit cards, if you want to stay longer than three nights) would be the Conrad Hilton on Koh Samui. No beach to speak of there, but each "room" is a private cottage with its own pool and lots of privacy, set on a hillside with spectacular views. Though you're pretty much confined to the hotel in terms of places to walk (with the exception of one modestly priced hotel a 30 minute walk away), there are some very good restaurants a cheap taxi ride away.

I believe that Starwood Amex is now running a 30K per card bonus for initial spending of (I believe) $3000 for tis personal card and $5000 for its business card. If neither of you have the card and both of you each get the personal and business cards (and the business card really is not hard to get, even if you don't have much of a business), that's 120K points between you. The points can be used at any number of great Starwood properties in SE Asia or elsewhere, or can be used to convert to some airlines' miles at a ratio of 20K points = 25K miles.

As for SE Asia destinations, all of which I'd encourage you to check out further in the relevant threads here or at the reviews at Tripadvisor.com:

As noted, the Conrad Bali on Koh Samui is a very special place for the cottages with private pools, the views, the privacy, etc., if you don't need much of a beach.

The Andaman, a Starwood property on Langkawi, Malaysia, has a unique location on the edge of a jungle and on a beautiful, crescent-shaped beach. (The hotel is not as small or as swank as the Conrad Koh Samui, but still a very nice property.) Lots of wildlife to be seen right there at the hotel, including flying squirrels, monkeys, colorful birds, etc. The beach is nice to walk and lounge on, and when the tide is in it's great for swimming as well. Lots of free and inexpensive nature walks and other excursions (some inexpensive, some not) can be booked at the hotel. A great nature documentary film shown on the beach once a week. A very special place. You'd want to get one of the refurbished rooms that has a beach-facing balcony to sit on.

I believe there is a very nice Le Meridien at Siem Reap. I'd highly recommend going there for the temples (if you're interested in that kind of stuff), though you'd need to get a card and driver and go to the temples early and late in the day to avoid the hoards of tourist buses. And you can fly to Siem Reap from Bangkok without having to pass through Phnom Penh (which is kind of interesting in its own right, but not a priority for a honeymoon). On the other hand, Siem Reap might be out of your way if you're planning just one major beach stop in SE Asia.

Back to Bali: As I previously mentioned, I'd scratch it off your list simply because, unlike these other SE Asian spots, it will be rainy season there in January/February, and that can be pretty dismal. It will still be there a year or two or five or ten down the line if you want to get there eventually.

As for cities...I'd agree that a 22-hour stay in Singapore would be sufficient, even though I do like the city and food. (Though if you're simply transiting through it, the airport itself is a great experience, and you'll eat just as well in other parts of SE Asia anyway.) And if you have to cut it out entirely, don't worry about it. I'd rather spend time in Hong Kong (for the views, ferries, food, islands), Tokyo (for the sheer uniqueness of the everyday culture) and/or Bangkok (for the food and culture), in that order...though if price is an priority, Bangkok is cheapest for all sorts of stuff (including points for hotel stays).

Wherever you go, very politely write ahead to the hotel to let them know that it's your honeymoon and that you'd welcome an upgrade and any other perks if available. Of course, don't demand or expect special treatment - just appreciate it if something comes through.