Newbie Intro

[michelle10]

Hello!

My name is Michelle, and I'm from Minnesota. I am planning (or should I say trying to plan) a destination wedding in Jan or Feb of 2011. I am just starting the process, and am feeling a bit overwhelmed. I'm not sure if I should try to plan it on my own, use a local travel agency, or enlist the services of destinationweddings.com. I'm also trying to figure out if we should go to an all-inclusive resort or not.

 

I dont' have my heart set on a particular location. As long as there is white sand, warm weather, and blue water we will be happy. We just want to try to make travel feasible for as many people as possible from a time and cost perspective. My fiancee and I also have an 8 year old daughter together that we want to be an integral part of the ceremony.

 

Would welcome any advice from those of you that are further in your planning process or that have recently gotten married in a tropical location.

 

Looking forward to chatting with all of you!

 

Michelle

[Dmitri_Markine]

Welcome and Enjoy the forum!!

 

Dmitri

[Kits55]

Welcome to the forum Michelle!

 

I just typed a super long post but then my internet connection said it was a broken link so I lost it all!

 

Briefly, I, too am from MN!! I don't currently live there but I grew up there and lived there for 18 years. I LOVE MN!

 

I was married this past April at Secrets Maroma Beach. I'm not sure what kind of budget you are thinking for for your guests but our guests paid around $1178 per person based on double occupancy for 4 nights. They also had to pay airfare but nothing other than that besides tips and personal purchases. SMB is not one of the cheapest but it's extremely nice and worth the money in my opinion.

 

I personally think all inclusive is the way to go even though I always have sticker shock when I initially see prices for resorts. When I remember that all food, drinks, desserts, and activities are free of price with an AI (all inclusive) rate I understand. Also the service at SMB was fantastic.

 

My FI and I hired a company to help us and it was such a PITA I would only hire someone on here to help me or it all myself. I love doing things myself but if you don't have the time or patience to search then check out the forums on here as much as possible. The BDW people helped me out SO much. Every time I had a question I'd do a quick search on here. If I couldn't find the answer I'd post a question and almost within a day I'd have multiple responses...this forum is amazing!

 

Your daughter can definitely be a part of your wedding! She could be in the wedding party and/or double as the "ring bearer", read the speech for the sand ceremony if you're having one, etc. The possibilities are endless! With that in mind, it should help make your search for a location easier...you'll have to stay at a place that is kid friendly!

 

Good luck!

 

You can PM (private message) me if you have any questions.

[Dianna]

Hi Michelle!

Welcome nad congrats. My daughter was five when my husband and I got married. We had a family ceremony and gave her a beautiful necklace during it. It was so special to all of us. Best of luck and happy planning!

[SuperKate]

Michelle, congrats and welcome to the forum! I'm personally using a travel agent since my work schedule doesn't really give me the time to do all the planning myself. I would recommend it.

 

Good luck planning!

[Sascha Gluck Photography]

Hi, welcome to the Forum and good luck with everything..

[debbmach]

Congrats and welcome to the forum!

[QueenDiva]

Congrats! Just so you know, the folks that operate this site are travel agents that specialize in destination weddings, and have each had a destination wedding themselves. So, you may want to click on the banner at the top right of the page and contact one of them. We're getting married at Tensing Pen in Negril, Jamaica in April of 2011, but are not going all-inclusive. Just a personal decision since neither of us prefer all-inclusive plans as we like to experience the actual country wherever we're staying and just have not found the value in doing an AI plan. But, just ask the TA's their thoughts and I'm sure they can find out what will work best for you. Good luck!

[ML YoungLove]

Congrats and welcome Michelle! We used a TA, and she was very helpful with all of the planning and contact with the resort. I would recommend it, but it depends how hands on you want to be. Happy planning.

[*Meagan*]

HI and welcome to the forum! Good luck with all of your planning!