Who knew there were so many awesome beaches to get married on??

Ausome13 · November 2013

Hello Brides

I am currently researching the amazing options out there and my head is spinning. I'm comparing islands, resorts, wedding packages, and on and on. I have recently contacted two destination wedding planners who have given me some good pointers and put together a few packages but I still haven't found anything that feels perfect yet. Is anyone else still in the research stage? My wedding isn't until Spring of 2015 so I have plenty of time but would love to hear about your process and maybe swap notes.

Julyet06 · November 2013

This stage was REALLY tough for me as well. You seem to be in good shape so far! I narrowed down my choices to places Hubby and I never visited. Then I narrowed further by comparing flight pricing (which I know can vary at times, but it helped in process of elimination) and finally further narrowed down the list by making a list of what I wanted from the location ie: historical aspect, adventure, more laid back culture/feel (for us it was all about the beach and relaxation).

Hope this helps! Good Luck!

amorg334 · November 2013

We kind of just decided on family advice. My mom had raved about Sandals Montego Bay and so we looked into it and then also asked my aunt who is a travel agent and loved it. So that is kind of how we came to decision.

samleanne33 · November 2013

I agree that it definitely helps to decide what you want out of the place, that was what made it easy for us to choose Hawaii. My fiancé hates just sitting on a beach and he can't handle super hot, Hawaii is not as hot as Caribbean places and there's a lot of cool things you can do other than just sit around in the sand haha. We are going on a volcano tour, going swimming with wild dolphins, whale watching, surf lessons...

So if you decide on what kind of things you are looking to do while you're there it will be a lot easier to choose!

Ausome13 · November 2013

We're both parents so we aren't wanting to spend more than we have to but also not really willing to skimp on things so budget is a huge factor for me. I think Jamaica has the most options but several of people in the wedding party have been there so we are avoiding it but not ruling it out. There are so many options and they all look amazing!!

NolaBeachBride · November 2013

We decided on the Bahamas because it doesn't take all day to get there and flights are typically around $400 from New Orleans. We decided to stay at Atlantis because they have some great specials. It also has the aquariums and shops for those that don't love the beach. We are getting married off the resort because their wedding packages are overpriced. Good luck!!

Ausome13 · November 2013

@Nolabeachbride How did you go about researching off site wedding arrangements, did you hire someone?

NolaBeachBride · November 2013

Yes, I hired someone. I e-mailed 3 different people to get prices, etc. I kind of had an idea of what I was looking for. Also, my photographer has been amazing!!! She lets me e-mail her to ask questions about locations vendors have suggested and she has also suggested places and vendors for me. If you want you can e-mail me and I don't mind helping. We have traveled the Caribbean a good bit so may be able to answer some questions. I sent you a PM with my e-mail address.

danielledoolin · January 2014

@nolabeachbride @ausome13

Hi Ladies,

I'm so excited to see other couples trying to plan a Bahamian wedding!! Our planner is suggesting Atlantis for our wedding reception but I feel the cost is astronomical. All that we've done so far is contact their local catholic church to save a date. Any other suggestions would be so greatly appreciated, vendors, receptions, etc!! I'm feeling very overwhelmed!

Thanks!

shelikespink · January 2014

I agree it's so tough to pick a place!

For us we knew we had to make the trip affordable for our guests, somewhere not too far, somewhere with accessible health care (for the grandparents, etc), somewhere that has kids club (we are inviting approx 20 children), somewhere that has a lot of charter flights going to/from (so guests can come for just a few days if necessary) and somewhere where people aren't going to get sick!

We settled on Mexico! So now that we have decided on a location we are speaking to a wedding planner/travel agent to help figure out which resort in particular, since they are the experts and have done this sort of thing before.

tasha682 · January 2014

I am in the same stage! I found a travel agent so I am researching her suggestions on sites like Tripadvisor (my go to site to read reviews on resorts). I am glad to know I am not the only one finding this part very stressful.

I am also consulting with other travel agents because mine seems very biased and I don't want to eliminate other destinations so quickly. Has anyone else had that issue with their travel agent?

shelikespink · January 2014

Yes! I think some travel agents are biased because they get kick-backs/commissions from certain resorts or certain packages.

Jells2dot0 · January 2014

tasha682 said:
I am in the same stage! I found a travel agent so I am researching her suggestions on sites like Tripadvisor (my go to site to read reviews on resorts). I am glad to know I am not the only one finding this part very stressful.

I am also consulting with other travel agents because mine seems very biased and I don't want to eliminate other destinations so quickly. Has anyone else had that issue with their travel agent?

If your agent is only recommending one particular resort chain, then I think have initial discussions with another agent or two is fine. Some agents will push certain resort chains because of increased commissions, but they may also be pushing one resort chain because YOU get more extras. So, by talking to another agent, you'll be able to see if one certain thing is being pushed because it's best for them or if the agent is really looking out for you. If the agent is pushing one destination over others, then i'd say it's either because that is all he/she knows or it's what works best with your budget or needs. Again, talking to others will help, but agents earn commissions from hotels NOT from destinations.

Ausome13 · January 2014

We have narrowed down our options substantially. Once I realized on this particular trip I'm not going to be exploring the country like I usually do when I travel, I have decided the stamp in my passport isn't as important as the resort and options there. So, we narrowed down the options by travel expense for our guest (namely the flight cost to different locations) and the marriage requirements at each place. So we are now focusing just on resorts in Mexico and Jamaica!! Still lots of all inclusive resorts to choose from but at least we have it down to two beaches

shelikespink · January 2014

That's great! One step at a time. There's great resorts in both places and I think the cost for guests is pretty comparable.

Ausome13 · January 2014

Thanks @Shelikespink where is your location?

shelikespink · January 2014

Toronto, how about you?

krstn2006h · January 2014

Can you elaborate on the Hawaii wedding? How much would something like that cost and how do you get started? Thanks!

Ausome13 · January 2014

@Shelikespink I think we are going to Jamaica but we haven't decided for sure.

@krstn2006h We ruled out Hawaii because of the cost of airfare for us and they don't have all inclusive.

Ausome13 · January 2014

@samleanne33 sounds awesome! I was really excited about Hawaii so guests wouldn't need passports but it got ruled out pretty quick. To stay in budget I would have had to sacrifice a lot. Congrats!!

shelikespink · January 2014

@Ausome13 whoops did you mean for the wedding? We are pretty set on Riviera Maya Mexico! In fact I made email Save the Dates for Riviera Maya so I think I'm pretty set in my head on that! There are lots of things to do both on and off the resort, it's easy to get to for most of my guests, affordable for one week, and cancun has access to good health care (have to think about the grandparents!). I'm a tiny bit concerned about safety issues.. but I've been there twice before any never had any issues..

Ausome13 · January 2014

@shelikespink we were pretty sold on that area too and found some really nice resorts very reasonable but I'm a little scared of the blood test required. What resort are you going with?

shelikespink · January 2014

I'm looking at 6 resorts - Gran Bahia Principe Coba, Barcelo Maya Caribe, Grand Palladium White Sand, Iberostar Paraiso Beach, RIU Tequila, RIU Playacar.

I'm still in the process of looking at resorts but those are what I've picked based on three factors, price (I looked up prices for the same weekend in 2014 on bookit.com and expedia), TripAdvisor reviews (I was looking for 80% or higher), and reviews on bestdestinationweddings.com.

I've also been to two of those resorts before (Iberostar and Barcelo) but it's been a long time. I went to the Iberostar in 2005 and Barcelo in 2001. I went to a wedding at the RIU Palace Guanacaste in Costa Rica last year and it was amazing, I really like the RIU resorts so I imagine they will be great in Mexico as well.

I'm going to do a little more research and then hand things over to my travel agent/planner.

Ausome13 · January 2014

The only thing I've ever heard bad about RIU is that they usually have very hard mattresses. My FI is really looking for something that doesn't feel hotelish so that has changed our course of research quite a bit!

shelikespink · January 2014

I've heard of some people renting villas, not sure if that would be an option for you!

Which resorts are you looking at @Ausome13?

I like hard mattresses! haha that's probably why I slept so well at the RIU!

Ausome13 · January 2014

In Jamaica we're considering Couples Swept Away and Sandals Negril. In the Rivera Maya we like El Dorado Seaside Suites and Silver Sands. Prices in Mexico are so reasonable it really is temping I just can't wrap my head around a blood test. We're both parents so having something nice and not spending more than needed is a huge point for us. It's my first wedding and I want it to be amazing of course but I'm not interested in going in to debt to achieve it. Also since we aren't taking the kids using their college funds seems wrong lol

Bahamas0515 · January 2014

Hi Ausome and congrats! maybe my love and i are too self reliant but we did all the research ourselves and decided on Abaco in the Bahamas and Atlantis for the honeymoon. we live in a 'wedding factory' in the rocky mtns and wanted something more remote but easy to get to because two of our party are older and we wanted to make sure every accommodation can be made for their participation. ML (my love) is adamant that he and the boys play golf so that helped us narrow some resorts down but ultimately it took really researching the resorts for about a month and talking to some people in their catering depts to get a good feel for them. The resort will usually help as little or as much as you want and if you want them to do everything for you they certainly can!! send out some RFPs and see what you get for responses then call a few people and get a good feel for them. i wish you oodles of luck!!

Ausome13 · January 2014

@bahamas0515 what are RFP's?

Bahamas0515 · January 2014

request for pricing.

most resorts will have a form you can fill out on their website to make contact with someone in their group sales or catering department. if they don't have anything that comprehensive they surely have a contact email you can send a quick note too. the nice thing is you can get an idea of pricing and date availability without having to commit, like window shopping!

i got a call and email back for all the inquiries we sent out. the calls were most helpful because we brides have TONS of questions and it is nice to actually converse with someone who has answers!!

nelliecake · January 2014

I found it extremely helpful to look at reviews of the resorts. I went to Tripadvisor and searched for reviews that included the term "wedding" and then wound up picking the resort that had the most favorable reviews for their all-inclusive weddings.

I wrote a blog post that details my whole experience and some helpful tips for anyone planning a beach wedding, which you can read here: www.thisnerdhouse.com/2013/06/destination-wedding.html

Ausome13 · January 2014

So are the request for pricing different than the prices you get off line? I guess I haven't gotten that far into it. We're debating pricing just from what the travel agent gave me and what I can read online.

Who knew there were so many awesome beaches to get married on??

Re: Who knew there were so many awesome beaches to get married on??

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