Destination Wedding, Riviera Cancun

Some of our favorite planning efforts result in the three little words “I Thee Wed”.  We’ve been sending couples on their dream honeymoon for years, but many people don’t realize that we also send couples away to live out their wedding day dreams.

Whether the typical country club wedding just isn’t your thing, or it is your attempt at naturally cutting down the guest list because you know there is now way Aunt Sally, Uncle John and their 6 kids are getting on a plane to Mexico, there are a ton a great reasons to go with a destination wedding.

When we received the phone call from friends Christine and Chuck that they were engaged, they quickly followed the announcement with a request to start working on their wedding plans. They knew they wanted a destination wedding, so we started right away with our consultation to gather the wants and needs of the bride and groom as well as their anticipated guests.

After narrowing down and presenting our top recommended resorts offering excellent destination wedding options, Christine and Chuck decided on a resort, and it did not disappoint.  Their selection boasts a dual resort style with family friendly pools and lots of activities for children of all ages, as well as a more private, quiet section including an adult only pool for those guests who rooms booked in the Preferred Club.  Amazing food, drinks, entertainment and impeccable service is available to all!

Christine and Chuck had arrived 5 days prior to their wedding day to confer with their on-site wedding planner and feel out the place.  Their wedding wasn’t a legal one, but in the case that someone wants a legal marriage, different countries require you to be in-country at least 48 hours before the wedding.

I arrived into Cancun airport, excited and ready for our first Corona.  That’s where I found my wife, Kristie, waiting for me at the bar just outside the arrivals hall.  She had patiently waited for my flight to arrive as I was coming from another group trip in Clearwater, Florida.  No sooner had we said hello than we were off in our private transportation to the resort.  We highly prefer this method as the cost is relatively low, while the time gained, the comfort, the conversation and wifi are usually great.

As a side note, we also offer this service free of charge to our bride and grooms, as their baggage usually includes the wedding dress and much more and it’s very much a helpful service in many ways.

After a fun, chat-filled ride with our driver, Miranda, we had arrived.  The resort was beautiful and introduced you to their tranquil white-sand, turquoise-water beach through windows in the lobby that must have been 40 feet high.  The tone was set as we looked straight out over the beach, courtyard and fountains.  Check-in was a breeze, as part of the package when booking in the Preferred Club, we were offered VIP check-in complete with a drink of our choice while our bags were delivered to our room.  Soon we were settled into our Preferred Club Suite boasting ocean views and outdoor Jacuzzi tub on our balcony.

Fast forward a few days and…the wedding.  A pergola overlooking the crystal clear ocean waters was the setting of the nuptials. Ocean front cocktails for the guests while the wedding party takes pictures in the white sand, followed by a top notch reception complete with melt in your mouth filet.  Did I mention the service? Everything we asked and anything we needed arrived moments later (shots anyone?). And what wedding is complete without an after party…which we continued at the on-site Disco.

Aside from the wedding, most of the guests spent an additional 3-4 nights at the resort and that meant a ton of extra memories could be made that you wouldn’t normally get with a typical wedding. Recalling stories the next morning at breakfast, afternoon drinks in the infinity pool, bike rides into town and snorkeling in the ocean were just a few memories that Christine and Chuck can recall from their wedding week. Not to mention more than one late night room service call!

As guests, we recommend embracing the opportunity when the invitation to a destination wedding comes around. Added cost to an already busy wedding season is one way to look at it, but better yet, consider it a vacation for yourself and enjoy the time, relax and celebrate with friends!

We were so excited to be guests in a destination wedding that we spent so much time planning, and even more honored to join in our friend’s celebration.

Congratulations to Christine and Chuck!