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So if you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that a little while ago I went on a few trips to places around the Caribbean! I was doing some research on destination weddings and honeymoons, and throughout the next few weeks I’ll be highlighting some tips and best practices on having a destination wedding and planning a honeymoon.

We’re starting with a fun and exciting concept… a Sandals WeddingMoon®! A WeddingMoon® is the concept of celebrating your wedding and honeymoon in the same beautiful location and was first conceived and created by Sandals Resorts… sounds awesome, right? Before we get into more details, I want you to know that have something exciting for you regarding a WeddingMoon® (maybe winning something…), but you’ll have to read through the whole post to find out at the end!



Having a destination wedding is a great option if you’re wanting something a little different. It’s also a great option if you’re having trouble with your guest list- whether it’s too many people, or you just want those closest to you attending your wedding. If you choose a destination wedding, you also don’t want your guests who are there to just be thrown to the wayside while you and your honey enjoy yourselves, and luckily, Sandals Resorts offers an unforgettable experience for not only you, but for your guests as well.

What I love about the concept of a WeddingMoon® is that you can enjoy both your wedding and your honeymoon at the same time. I always say that one of the best parts about planning a wedding is the honeymoon, and this just takes that one step further and puts you in your honeymoon immediately! Sandals Resorts are all-inclusive, which means that just about *everything* is included- food, drinks, activities, etc- it’s truly an awesome experience, and I highly recommend an all-inclusive resort no matter what you do!



So now for the fun part! I was able to “TestDrive” a Sandals WeddingMoon® at Sandals Whitehouse European Village & Spa in Jamaica to learn more about how the process goes so I could share with you…

1. Getting Started | You can browse the Sandals WeddingMoon web page for inspiration and insight to all the possibilities and amenities Sandals WeddingMoons® have to offer. And to help you online, Sandals Resorts has created an exclusive Online Destination Wedding Designer, an interactive tool where you can browse island destinations and specific resorts, color palettes, floral, ceremony and reception décor, entertainment and more.



You will contact Sandals’ Wedding Concierge to help plan your budget, and review room prices for your guests + honeymoon suites. You can learn all about their destinations and options for your Sandals Wedding, and they will even hold your wedding date for 72 hours for free! Once you’re ready to book, all you need is a $400 deposit to get started with booking your suite and deciding on your wedding date!

2. First Steps | Once you have your date, your personal wedding planner will contact you to schedule a kick-off call and get you started with planning your dream wedding! You will receive a group code to share with your friends and family so that all the rooms that are booked are tied together. (The more rooms booked with your code, the more inclusions you will receive for your wedding!) You will be able to setup a free personal Sandals wedding website that will have all the information your guests will need.

3. Inspiration & Design | You can use Sandals’ interactive Wedding Designer tool to save your ideas to share with your wedding planner during your kick-off call! With Sandals Resorts, you have the option of customizing your wedding or choosing one of their fabulous predesigned themes – both of which your expert pre-travel wedding planner will help you in bringing your vision to life.

4. 6-11 Months Before | About six to eleven months before your wedding date, you will “meet” with your pre-travel wedding planner via phone on your “kick-off ” call to plan your wedding design, make appointments for wedding day salon services, select your photo and video packages, and make any excursion plans. At this time you will usually also confirm all events such as the cocktail hour, reception and rehearsal dinner.

5. 2-3 Months Before | Two to three months prior to your wedding, it will be time to finalize details! You will confirm the guest list and room requirements, and finalize all of the details and special events that have been planned with your Sandals pre-travel wedding planner.  All final payments will have been made at this time also! You can make any last minute additions, like a sunset cruise for your guests or extra floral details. At this time, you will so be introduced via email to your personal resort wedding planner, who will welcome you at the resort and work with a dedicated team to bring to life all the details of your wedding!

6. Wedding Week | It’s suggested that you arrive at your resort 48-72 hours prior to your wedding so that you can meet any residency requirements, take the time to experience the resort and decompress before your guests arrive. Once you’ve relaxed and settled in, you will have a final wedding detail meeting with your resort wedding planner. It is at this meeting that you will choose your wedding cake flavor (yes, you get to taste the cake too!), your wedding location, and make any final entertainment and décor choices! Once this is done, you get to sit back, relax and leave everything in your wedding team’s capable, expert hands!

Left: The view of resort grounds at Sandals Whitehouse. Right: My personal favorite choice for a possible ceremony location at Sandals Whitehouse.

7. Wedding day! You can get your hair and makeup done at the resort’s exclusive Red Lane® Spa, and then you just wait for your resort wedding planner to handle everything else for you!

Jessica from The Budget Savvy Bride and I both love the same color- so what do you know, we looked like bridesmaids with our matching dresses and lovely bouquets!

If you’re wondering about documentation needed to have a WeddingMoon, no need to worry! Sandals’ Wedding Concierge will ensure that you are aware of any required residency and documents that will be needed to wed in your destination. With each island the requirements may be different, so they will make you completely aware of all the necessary documentation and submit all of the applications for your marriage license!

What I love about a Sandals WeddingMoon® is that Sandals Resorts takes a single-day event and transforms it to a multi-day celebration of activities for you and you loved ones. In fact, you can even keep things intimate and have a WeddingMoon® with just you and your future spouse.

Oh, and did I mention that you can have a “Test Drive” to see if a Sandals WeddingMoon is the right fit for you? That’s right- you can have a little getaway and test out a destination wedding at the same time… sounds like an awesome way to celebrate your engagement if you ask me!

And on that note… I have some incredibly exciting news for you!

Sandals Resorts has teamed up with Every Last Detail to give away a Test Drive Your WeddingMoon®!

Click here for details and enter for a chance to win!

What better way to get a sneak peek of what’s in store for your dream destination wedding than hopping on a plane to the Caribbean and Test Driving Your WeddingMoon® at Sandals Resorts? The Test Drive Your WeddingMoon® program includes a 3 day/2 night getaway where you will chat one-on-one with wedding experts, look over venue, décor, cake and flower options, and take-in the surrounding tropical beauty as you experience first-hand everything the Luxury Included® resorts have to offer. To enter for a chance to win our Test Drive Your WeddingMoon giveaway with Sandals Resorts, CLICK HERE!

Friends, I’d love to hear from you- are you thinking about a destination wedding- and maybe a “WeddingMoon”?

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