Honeymoon

Planning a wedding?


Why not get married in the Caribbean?

We’ve all heard of some crazy couple, that ran off to a tropical island, and got married on the spur of the moment. Most of us have thought to ourselves,

“Well, we could never do that… It wouldn’t be right. What about the church? What about the family? They would never forgive us.”

If any of these thoughts have ever crossed your mind, here are a few good reasons why you may want to give them a bit more consideration.

Anyone planning a wedding these days, has almost certainly heard the rumors of the astronomical prices of the average wedding. Well, we did a bit of research of our own, and here is what we found:

Wedding on the Beach

Wedding on the Beach

Dream Honeymoons; Destination Weddings at Sandals Resorts!

Cost

Even with the Economic downturn, the numbers are staggering. Here is a quote from Theweddingreport.com in an article posted 1/11/09,

Economic trouble takes its toll on the average wedding cost. The average cost of a wedding in 2008 was $21,814. This is a 24% decline over the 2007 average of $28,704.”

Even with this big decline in prices, the average cost is still over $20,000. Let’s break that out. Obviously, depending on where you live and the choices you make your costs could be more or less, but here is a modest example, based on a 100 guest wedding.
* Rehearsal Dinner: $300-$500
* Church/Officiant Fee: $500
* Reception Site Rental and catering: $6000-$13,000
* Photography and Video: $1500-3500
* DJ or Band: $500-$1000
* Flowers: $750-$1500
* Cake: $500
* Rings: $2000-$5000
* Wedding Attire: $1500-$3000
* Open Bar: $2500-$3000
*Honeymoon:$3000-$7000
* Total: $19,050 -$38,500

We’ll come back to this later as we break out the cost comparison and show the savings gained by choosing a Caribbean Wedding and Honeymoon.

The average wedding also takes over 1 year to planning. Anyone in the process, or who has been through it, can tell you that it is a lot of stress, on the bride to be, the family, and other members of the wedding party.

Bride on the Beach

My wife and I were lucky enough to have a small wedding, but even so, the one and only thing we regret now is that we didn’t get married in Jamaica. For what we spent here we could have had twice the wedding there with half the hassle.

Here are a few thoughts you may not have considered:

  • Bickering family members – Every family has several people who just can’t get along. I’m sure you can relate. The question is, How to not offend either one while preventing additional stress and potential regrets later on.
  • Then there is always the problem of trying to make everyone happy. It would seem that, what may be nothing but the best intentions of family and friends, are not always in the best interest of the Bride and Groom. Remember that this is your celebration, and it is only right that you would want to share it with those close to you. However, don’t let those around you dictate how they think your wedding should be.
  • If you are planning an outdoor wedding, or just hoping for sunny weather, you should be concerned about the probability of picking a rainy day. With a typical wedding, once the date is set, you can’t pick a rain date. The chances of fair weather are much greater if you choose a location where the sun shines 90% of the time, and typically a simple Caribbean wedding can be moved an hour or two or even a day or so if needed.
  • Then there is the question of where to put all those out of town guests. Who’s paying for their hotel? You could try pitching tents in the back yard but I would expect a few empty seats at the reception.

    • Then there are those out of town guests that may feel obligated to go despite the financial burden. Do you cover their costs at your expense? Wait, there goes the budget!

  • By the way, who is paying for this wedding anyway? Even if Mom and Dad are forking the majority of the bill, is it right to strap them for an extra $20,000? Surely they have it stashed away in a mattress… right underneath your college fund.

    The Good News

    So now that you’re wondering what you got yourself into, lets talk for a few minutes about the benefits of a Caribbean wedding.

  • Planning a Caribbean wedding takes just hours instead of weeks or months. Plain and simple, that is a lot less stress. At some resorts free wedding planning is included.
  • Your ceremony can be as casual or formal as you prefer.
  • There are an infinite number of choices for wedding locations from quaint little Chapels, to sugar sand beaches.
  • Fully customizable wedding packages range from $0 – $5000 US. Sandals resorts, currently offer a basic wedding package free, if you book a Concierge level suite or higher.
  • Spend less money on the wedding and more time on your Honeymoon.
  • Less stress on the wedding party. No need to worry about picking “reliable” people. All the hard stuff is taken care of, you’re in control.

    Off to the Honeymoon

    Off to the Honeymoon

    Make the Celebration of Love a family affair at Beaches Resorts in Jamaica and Turks & Caicos!

    You set the rules!

  • Invite only those you want to, or invite everyone and let them decide.
  • The difference you save over a traditional wedding, will enable you to cover the cost of anyone you really want to be there but can’t afford to go. Others can work out arrangement to stay at the same resort or offsite to save money. Day passes are generally available for a small fee.
  • For all the friends that won’t be able to make it to the wedding, you’ll meet new ones while at the resort that will be happy to join you.
  • The Honeymoon starts the moment you say “I do”.
  • If you pick an all inclusive resort like Sandals or Beaches, there is always an open bar. No need to pay extra.
  • Dad can leave his wallet in the room… He won’t need it!
  • A Caribbean wedding can be simple, relaxed, and equally or more memorable then a traditional one.

    All right, we said way back in the beginning, we would give you some comparable costs, so here it is.
    Traditional Wedding: 100 guests
    * Rehearsal Dinner: $300-$500
    * Church/Officiant Fee: $500
    * Reception Site Rental and catering: $6000-$13,000
    * Photography and Video: $1500-3500
    * DJ or Band: $500-$1000
    * Flowers: $750-$1500
    * Cake: $500
    * Rings: $2000-$5000
    * Wedding Attire: $1500-$3000
    * Open Bar: $2500-$3000
    *Honeymoon:$3000-$7000
    * Total: $19,050 -$38,500

    Caribbean Wedding held at an all inclusive resort:
    * Rehearsal Dinner: $0 (Private dinners can be arranged for minimal to no charge)
    * Church/Officiant Fee: $0 (Included in package)
    * Reception Site Rental and catering: $0
    * Photography and Video: $0 (Depends on Package)
    * DJ or Band: $0 (Depends on Package)
    * Flowers: $0 (Included in package)
    * Cake: $0 (included in package)
    * Rings: $2000-$5000
    * Wedding Attire: $1500-$3000
    * Open Bar: $0 (Included in package for guests staying on resort)
    *Honeymoon:$3000-7000 (Bride and Groom 7 nights including air)
    *Optional wedding package upgrades $1600- $5000
    * Total: $8100 -$20,000

    Additional guests for 3 nights, including air, on resort $750-900/person: $6000-$7200
    Total: $14100 -$27,200

    Our comparison is based on a 6 person wedding party – Bride, Groom, 2 brides maids, 2 groomsmen, and parents of the bride and groom staying on resort. Obviously if your guests and family pay some or all of their way your cost is drastically reduced. We added this as an example of how much you can really save by getting married in the Caribbean. The cost could also be lowered by having some guests stay off resort at a less expensive hotel.

    Your Wedding should Be Fun!

    Your Wedding should Be Fun!

    No Regrets!

    We’ve had the opportunity to witness several dozen Caribbean marriage ceremonies, and to date have not heard of one person who has had any regrets about it. In fact, many people we’ve talked with, who had a traditional wedding ceremony, or were working on a second, have told us that next time they wouldn’t hesitate to marry in the Caribbean, due to the ease and stress free nature of the planning process. Hopefully we’ve given you a little more to think about, and a few more reasons to dive in and get married in the Caribbean.

    Thanks for coming back to visit us again!

    Be sure to check out our FaceBook Page for the Hottest Caribbean Deals!

    Book Early and Save More at Beaches Family Resorts
    Posted Under: Other
    This post was written by admin on July 10, 2009

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