Congratulations!!

You have made your decision to get married and have announced to your family that you are planning a Caribbean wedding!

Well after the family’s initial surprise, you will now have to:

* Defend your decision
* Accept all the praises from family members seeing the opportunity for a vacation.

At this juncture it would be wise to have all the information on the destination and hotel.

But more important, this is a joyous celebration with family and friends.  Your wedding and celebration will now last a few days instead of a few hours, and you do get to spend quality time with those you love.

Here I will provide helpful ideas on how you can make sure you, every member and all your friends have a wonderful time celebrating your Caribbean wedding.

Cheers!

Jacqueline Johnson, CTC

The Wedding Guru

PS: If you had a destination wedding and would like to share helpful hints for future brides, send an email to me at: Jacqueline@Marrycaribbean.com.  If published on MarryCaribbean I’ll be sure to give you credit.

Selecting a Destination

With over 30+ countries to select from, deciding on the destination of choice may be a bit difficult.  The list below should help you with this process:

* Wedding requirements
* Ease of getting there
* Language
* Activities
* Cost

Selecting a Hotel

* Cost
* Amenities
* Location
* Small/Large hotel
* Activities

Cost

Be clear and concise to all members of the family how much this will cost them.  It is advisable to work with a knowledgeable Travel Agent who will be able to put together group rate that would include air and hotel.  This will help you to control costs and more importantly get a good fix on the numbers attending the wedding.  In addition, make sure the Travel Agent also provide you with costs on less expensive hotels in the surrounding area to accommodate all budgets.

Travel Regulations

Everyone leaving the United States and planning on returning must have a valid passport.  NO EXCEPTION!!

Director of Romance

Every hotel now has a point person as Director of Romance or some other similar title that will work exclusively with you in preparation for the big day and provide ideas to engage family and friends.  Create an online activity newsletter and provide access to attendees so that the golfers in the family will have their tee time booked, those wishing to go swimming with dolphins will know ahead of time, and so on.

You have now cleared the hurdle and the decision has been made.  If

you are in a position to do so, you may want to help with the costs for a

favorite Aunt or special family member. You would have explained

to all,  that the trip will be relatively hassle free with easy access to

the United States, and language and currency are not a problem.

Keep everyone updated via newsletters, and be confident about the

decision you have made.  Regarding quality time with your friends and

family, your travel agent and the hotel will make sure you and your new

partner will be placed in a private area of the hotel away from children,

friends and family.

Day of Arrival

Work with the hotel and travel agent to make sure that a welcome basket is either handed out at check-in or be placed in the room of each guest.  This basket should include activity sheet and a letter of introduction from the Manager of the hotel.  It would be nice to have a few accessories included, such as suntan lotion or rubber sandals.

Your on island wedding planner should be there to meet you and to go over all the procedures.  This is to make sure you are comfortable with everything and all questions are answered.  It is your day, you want the best and you are willing to pay for it.

Children

By now the hotel should have been notified that children will be in attendance.  A good event planner would work with the hotel to create separate activities for the children.

Resources

You can save money by using the resources of the hotel/destination instead of traveling with your photographer, etc.  Florists, hairstylist, musician, and photographer/videographer all these services are available on island.  They are experts in their field, and will go out of their way to make your day a beautiful, happy and memorable one.