Hi there! I am new to these boards, and I thought it'd be a great way to get a few un-biased opinions (meaning not my family or friends) about destination weddings. It only took me a month after my engagemnt to scratch my 130+ guest list for my hometown wedding, and to start planning a small destination wedding in New Orleans. My fiancee and I are both very outgoing and love being around all of our family and friends, but we are very shy about being the center of attention for so many people. We are planning on flying both of our immediate family members and their spouses to New Orleans (where we got engaged:) for a long weekend. It will be 14 people, including my fiance and myself. I think it soudns like so much fun!! A family vacation and a wedding on the side. We would like to have our wedding in a small church, and then go to a really nice restaurant for a 'reception' dinner. Maybe even find a place with great jazz music so we could sneak in a first dance. I have waited a long time for my fiancee to propose, and when he did, I had that exciting feeling that I had when we first met--I've never been so happy! Once I started looking at all the wedding clutter (bridesmaid dresses, colors, favors, centerpeices... blah blah) I lost that excitement and it quickly turned to stress. When I think about spending an incredible weekend with my close family and my soon-to-be husband, my stress goes away and I feel excited again! My mom is a little unsure about all of this, but I just want confirmation from anyone who has done something similar to this that it's a great choice. Were there any regrets?