STEP SIX: Planning out the wedding details

So, you sent out your save the dates, invitations, and travel information. Your guests are sending in their RSVPs and booking their travel. Now is the time for you to focus on the details! While you may have been working with your resort’s wedding coordinator all along, once you have an accurate head count, you can now plan and secure some of the finer details.

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As I begin to establish myself in Colorado, I am currently not accepting any new clients, as I can not provide the level of service my clients have grown to expect from me. Please feel free to contact the Easy Escapes main office at 800-294-6643 or info@easyescapestravel.com for assistance. You may also contact Caroline@easyescapestravel.com for all South Pacific inquiries or Marjorie@easyescapestravel.com for all Hawaii, Caribbean, or African inquiries. Both of these agents are experts in the areas I have noted and will work with me to ensure a first class getaway! Please be sure to reference my name in your information request so the agent assisting you can reference my website when answering your questions.

I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused and thank you for choosing Easy Escapes to plan your dream escape!

Review to come!!!!

Since visiting the Seychelles was on my bucket list, we decided the two days of travel from Arizona to the Indian Ocean for vacation was worth the haul. Even though the weather was questionable due to an odd streak of rain during the dry season in the Seychelles, we thought the trip was totally worth the wait. We flew four different airlines and
stayed at four different hotels- not something one normally does on a vacation that is meant for relaxation, but it had to be done to get the itinerary we wanted!

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In April 2005, I made a first attempt at an all-inclusive resort in Jamaica. I chose Sans Souci. While the food was good and I really enjoyed not having to pull out my wallet for everything, I vowed to never return to Jamaica because it rained for my entire trip. Only on the very last day did the sun peak through- as I was heading to the airport. Now, flash forward to May 2011. I somehow had it stuck in my head that I needed to give it one more try. DEJA VU! Though the resort was different (only a mere 5 minutes down the road), I sat and enjoyed 6 days worth of clouds and rain, only to see the sun shining on my drive back to the airport. For the amount of money it costs to fly to Jamaica these days, especially from my current hometown of Phoenix, I want to see sun. Heck, I see sun almost everyday in Arizona, so I would surely enjoy it if it was sunny for most of my trip. I can accept a little bit of rain, but 6 days worth?? If it weren’t for the awesome staff at Couples Tower Isle (also known as CTI), I’d be crying over the bill, which mostly consisted of over $900 worth of airfare and even more complaints about USAirways.

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One of my colleagues, Marjorie, recently posted EXCELLENT information on our company blog in regards to price matching. Agents can usually meet or beat any quote, even that one you found on Expedia or Travelocity! However, there are a few guidelines on getting a successful price match. Read below to learn more about what price matching is and the process everyone has to follow.

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STEP FIVE: Invitations and Travel Information

Again, this is something not pertinent to my destination wedding, but it will be crucial to the success of yours if you want people to attend! Now that you have your date set and your destination wedding resort booked, you can send out the invitations and travel information to your guests. You may have already sent some initial information to them to give a heads up to those needing to block of f vacation time or to save up that well earned bonus from work to pay for the trip, but you now have the specifics in hand. You will want to get your invitations out well ahead of what a traditional wedding timeline suggests, as you have booking deadlines to meet with your travel agent and it takes a lot of preparation to travel, especially to an international destination.

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 STEP FOUR: Finalizing the travel package

Once you have narrowed down your destination and your date, you will need to work with your travel agent to find your ideal destination wedding resort. You may not actually marry on the resort property, but you will need to find a place for you and your guests (again, if you are inviting any) to stay during your event. The travel agent will most likely recommend a few different resorts that fit your tastes, needs, and budget, so it’s wise to take time to go through those recommendations and see which resorts stand out the most to you. You want to make sure you have a good feeling about a place when you look at the pictures and read reviews online. Once you have taken the recommendations and narrowed them down to 1-3 resorts within your chosen destination, have the agent provide you pricing.  If you qualify for group pricing (10+ rooms), the pricing process will be a bit more complicated and will take longer as rates need to be negotiated with the properties. If group air is to be included, contracts will also have to be negotiated with an airline. Your package may also include some customizations for your wedding, such as a private island dinner reception or private transfers for your guests, so all of that has to be taken into account during the negotiations, if available to be booked upfront. Typically, resorts only offer travel agents access to a few pre-packaged ceremony and reception options, with even less options for customizations. If you are looking for a completely custom package, or want to add on more than what the agent is able to offer, it’s best to book the travel portion with your agent and then work with the wedding planner at the resort to design your special day (more on that below!) If your wedding group is just you, the lucky couple, fewer than 10 rooms, or you just want the standard wedding package, the pricing process will be a little less complicated and time consuming. A lot depends on the destination chosen, but expect South Pacific or Asian destination weddings to be far more complex to piece together than Caribbean or Mexican destination weddings.

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STEP THREE: Which comes first- Choosing the date or the destination?

I’ll admit, I haven’t gotten there yet. We’re struggling with choosing the destination. Some destinations we are considering are Fiji, Tahiti, Mauritius, Australia, Malaysia and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Talk about some tough choices! However, for some couples, the date may very well be the most important aspect if you want to get married on a date that is significant to you as a couple. So, there really isn’t a right or wrong answer to the big question. My advice is that if the date is more important than the destination, choose your date, then contact a travel agent to discuss which destinations will best suit your needs, wants, budget, and chosen date. You certainly do not want to get married in Asia during monsoon season. However, a big caveat- try to have your destination choices narrowed down a bit before contacting the agent. With the whole world to choose from, it will be hard for an agent to help you choose the right place if he/she doesn’t have some examples to go on. I know that I work hard trying to figure out the personalities and tastes of my client based on past travel experiences and resorts that have caught their eye.

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STEP TWO: Establish a budget

Even though having a destination wedding is often much less expensive than having a traditional wedding, it’s not always the case. The destination and how much assistance you provide to your guests (if you are inviting guests), will play a huge factor in how much your big day will end up costing. So, sit down and look over your finances. Be realistic and don’t feel as if you have to go into debt, because you certainly do not have to do that! Establish how much you think you can feasibly spend on your part of the wedding. In some cases, it’s just the travel costs- airfare, hotel, food, etc., since some hotels offer free wedding packages. Then, if you have chosen to share your big day with your loved ones, try to establish a reasonable budget for what you think they will need to spend during their stay to attend your wedding. Keep in mind, the bride and groom typically stays longer than their guests, so don’t assume your cost will be the same as the guests’ cost. After talking about your finances, be completely honest about your budget with your travel agent and take your agent’s advice as to what can and cannot be done feasibly within that budget. As I mentioned above, different areas of the world have different costs, so keep in mind that when you ask for a traditional Fijian or Tahitian wedding during high season, but your guest budget is only around $2500 per person, your choices will be extremely limited or not even an option at all. Also, try to maintain a consistent budget throughout the planning process. Travel agents understand that things come up and you might have to make cuts, but telling your agent that you have $25,000 to work with and then slashing the budget to $10,000 after the agent prepared several proposals creates a lot of frustrations on everyone’s part. Remember, budget is a very personal thing and everyone has a different idea of what their limit is, but for us, we know going in what is feasible and what is just not going to fly. We’re using research tools such as hotel and airline websites, as well as my agent expertise, to see what areas of the world and resorts fit within our target price. You would be surprised how many resorts publish their wedding packages online!