Q: What destinations have the least amount of requirements to have a legal wedding?
A: Anywhere in the US, such as St. Thomas, San Juan, St. John and Hawaii, will be similar to getting married at home. Mexico and Jamaica are also convenient places to get married legally. In Mexico you will have to complete some paperwork prior to arriving, have a blood test in Mexico, be over 18, have a witness and be in the country a few days prior to the legal ceremony. In Jamaica you will need to be 18, be in the country for 2 days prior to the wedding date, but no blood test is need. Most other destinations have similar requirements. The reality is that most clients will get legally married in the US and then have a symbolic ceremony at the destination of their dreams.
Q: What locations at the resorts can I be married at?
A: Most of the resorts Vacationeeze works with offer several location options. The most popular location is on the beach or a pier or gazebo overlooking the beach. For South Asian clients, the most popular venues for the ceremony tends to be inside a large air-conditioned ballroom. Resorts such as Generations Riviera Maya and Azul Sensatori now have rooftop venues that look over the resort and the beach and have amazing views. Most resorts also have locations in the gardens, in a gazebo, on a pier or around the pool. One or two of the resorts even have private islands for couples to be married on. No matter what you are looking for, Vacationeeze can typically find a resort that will help make your dream come true. In addition, at most destinations you can have events outside of the resorts at places such as waterfalls, cenotes, caves, sailing boats and many more unique locations.
Q: I want to have my wedding at an adults only resort but I have guests that are children, can they attend?
A: The simple answer is, maybe. Some adults-only resorts will allow the kids to attend but for a limited amount of time. Some resorts will have restrictions as to where you can hold the ceremony and reception if there are children. In some cases Vacationeeze will work with resorts that are close to a sister family-resort that allows everyone to stay. In that case you might have the adults stay at the adults-only resort and have the ceremony at the family resort.
Q: What are your most popular destination wedding resorts?
A: The most popular resorts for South Asian clients include: Dreams Playa Mujeres, The Moon Palace in Mexico, The Moon Palace Jamaica Grande, The Hard Rock Riviera Maya, The Hard Rock Punta Cana, Now Jade Riviera Cancun, Dreams Palm Beach Punta Cana, Now Amber Puerto Vallarta, Hyatt Ziva Rose Hall Jamaica, The Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton Jamaica, Azul Sensatori Riviera Maya the Grand Velas Riviera Maya.
Q: Why do you think these are your most popular resorts?
A: These resorts tend to be very easy to work with and have creative team that can work with your wedding planner from home if you have one or are very knowledgeable of the needs for your various events. The resorts all have both indoor and outdoor space for your events. They also have flexible culinary teams to be able to cater to the diverse requirements for you and your guests. The resorts are all 4 and 5 star and will provide your guests a high level of service and will have multiple restaurants for them to dine at as well as 24 hour room service. In addition at some of the resorts we can typically negotiate free events for you and in some cases depending upon the number of room that your guests book, we might even be able to negotiate the majority of the food and beverage for your welcome party, Sangeet, Mehendi and reception to be free. This has saved our clients tens of thousands of dollars.
Q: With so many great choices how do we choose a resort?
A: We say to our clients, that just because a family member picked a resort does not mean you have to have your event at that resort. We like to get to know the family and understand the needs of their guests. We also need to know what the budgets are for events, what venues are needed and the budget for the guests stay. Once we have that information we can make a few suggestions of resorts we think will be a perfect fit for the wedding. We can provide pictures and videos of the resorts. At that point we would need to check with the resort for availability to host the events as well as to assure they have the number of rooms we need. Once we narrow the list we would typically arrange a trip to the destination to visit the resorts, see the venues, meet some of the local vendors and experience the food.
Q: I see advertisements for free Destination Weddings. Are they really FREE?
A: The answer is actually yes. Many of the resorts Vacationeeze works with will provide you a free ceremony and limited reception. Each resort has certain requirements such as a minimum number of rooms booked or that you stay in a certain room type, or that you (or your guests) stay a minimum number of nights. Most of the free packages are for symbolic weddings only. Each package typically includes the ceremony, a toast, cake and a few other special things. With some of the resorts such as Hard Rock, Palace, Azul, El Dorado and Generations we can typically negotiate that you earn credits for your décor for your ceremony based upon the number of rooms that your guests book.
Q: Can Vacationeeze organize activities or special events for our stay?
A: Yes! That is the fun of a destination wedding. Vacationeeze can organize many different group activities such as a private sailing trip, cooking classes, a welcome bonfire on the beach with s'mores, a spa day, a golf outing, an adventure zip lining trip and much more. We can also organize sporting events at the resort for your group. If you have an idea in most places, we can help make that dream a reality. We also help arrange interesting entertainment such as fire dancers, pole dancers, a Mexican heritage day, cigar rolling, tequila tasting and much more.
Q: Do I need a dedicated wedding planner?
A: Most of the resorts we suggest have a team of wedding planners in house that are familiar with the needs of South Asian clients. If a client chooses to work with the planners at the resort there will typically not be a charge for the planners service. Our experience is that most of the larger South Asian weddings we have help plan do have a planner from the US. We work directly with that planner and introduce them to the team at the resort as well as any vendors that might need in the destination you choose. We also work with your planner from home to coordinate the of their team to the resort..
Q: How far in advance should I book my destination wedding?
A: For most South Asian destination wedding, we suggest that you start to plan 12 to 18 months in advance. We have also had clients book 4 months in advance. Since most clients are going to have over 100 guests the farther in advance we start the process the better the likelihood we will have more choices of resorts and have the ability to negotiate lower rates for our clients.
Q: How do I get my wedding gown and other items for my wedding to the resort?
A: We do not suggest shipping your gown and items in advance as there is no way to assure it will make it to the resort. We suggest that you either carry your bridal gown on the plane or you ask your bridal shop to pack it for you in a carry-on or a box. Once you arrive at the resort you will meet with one of the wedding planners and they will work with you to unpack and steam the gown so it looks brand new.
Q: What is the best time of day to have my outdoor events for a destination wedding?
A: Each resort has certain times for the events. As we help you plan we need to think about the time of day and time of year. It is not much fun having a wedding on the beach at 1 pm in the afternoon when it is 100 degrees out. We have to think about the weather in selecting the location.
Q: I have guests traveling from all over, how do we assure they are able to attend my wedding?
A: This is one of the services Vacationeeze provides. Once you select the resort we negotiate a contract with them for your guests. We also include transportation to and from the airport so that none of your guests are sold a timeshare upon arrival or taken for a long taxi ride. We will have a representative at the airport waiting at the airport. We will also offer your guests the ability to extend their stay at your group prices. We will coordinate all of your guests travel plans and provide you a weekly report showing the detail for each guest so that you have an accurate picture of who is attending, on what days and when they arrive and depart. We can also work with your guests to help them arrange tours and excursion while that are attending your wedding. provide.
Q: Do you charge a fee for your service?
A: We do not charge a fee for our service. We are a family owned travel agency with over 25 years of experience and we are focused on assuring our clients turn their travel dreams in the vacation reality. If a client does want Vacationeeze staff on site then we do charge a fee for that as well as our expenses reimbursed.
For more information on the most up to date offers and promotions from these and other resort please feel free to contact Jack Benoff at Vacationeeze at jack@vacationeeze.com or 215-454-2080. Find more on Vacationeeze at IndianWeddingSite.com/destination-weddings/VacationEeze.
