Photo by Corey Ann Photography
Whether you are having your wedding in New Orleans or Mexico, a destination wedding can be quite the experience (as with all wedding planning) however, the most important aspect in planning a destination wedding is research, research, research!!! After looking at many venues in New Orleans to have our wedding, I soon realized that almost every venue I liked had a minimum of 100-150 guest as well as a price minimum let's say $8,000 for the reception. I truly didn't mind paying the money but I have to tell you guys that I barely know 50 people to invite and that was pushing it. As my mom and I tried to come up with 100 people to invite, it just was not working so my dreams of a New Orleans wedding came to an end very fast. Since my mom and dad moved to West Palm Beach, FL after the storm, I then started to picture having a beach wedding in the sand with a nice reception to follow. If anyone knows south FL, the prices per person were almost triple the prices in New Orleans. I'm talking $120/pp :::blank stare::: After researching and more research I saw amazing pics from a wedding at a wonderful venue in Boynton Beach, FL. I took my mother along with me and it was very impressive. It was all-inclusive and the price was perfect. A couple of days go by and something just told me don't do it. I don't know if it was family drama or what but I said I am not doing it in Florida. I decided that I wanted to go to Jamaica so without any research, I booked a weddingmoon at Sandals Ocho Rios (BIG mistake) Thank God they give full refunds because after paying my deposit, I started seeing pics from weddings there and I was not happy. You also could not bring your own photographer without sneaking them in and acting like they are a guest. If anyone who knows me, photography is the most important vendor and you will see why in a few. So after realizing this I cancelled our trip waited on my refund and started over. While researching, I came across a gorgeous boutique hotel located on the cliffs in Negril, Jamaica called Tensing Pen. It took just one look at their website to know that this was the place!!! I called them to get wedding info and all they said was to book your rooms. I was a little hesitant because I was like"what if someone else books rooms the same time as me and want a ceremony the same day?" So I book the rooms and that was it. Now on to the search for an amazing photographer. Did I tell you I had a wedding planner while doing all of this myself and fired her once I realized she was not helping me at all and she lived in Jamaica. (Another story, another time) She also was my inspiration to becoming a wedding coordinator because I did so much work while I was paying her and she didn't do anything :::sigh::: So I find our photographer, pay deposit and we are ready to go. WRONG!!! After a few months I continue to have this anxiety about our photog after reading their blog and website and seeing some not so impressive pics from recent weddings. I just wasn't seeing the photojournalism that I had seen before. Maybe it was an obsessive compulsive mental issue I have with amazing photography but to make a long story short, I fired them at the last minute and hired a new photographer I flew in from the states. I am so happy I did. Our pictures are so amazing and with the beautiful location you really couldn't have gone wrong with photography but I didn't want to take that chance. If you have any doubts, nightmares or concerns about any vendor for your wedding, please take care of it before it is too late. Photography, in my opinion is the most important vendor you will hire for your wedding. Many brides (like myself) are so excited in the beginning and book a photographer too soon without doing much research and after the contract is signed or they see pics from another photographer, they change their mind. That also happens with dresses which is why there are so many 2 dress brides. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind. I did it but sometimes you can't afford to change your mind too many times because most deposits are non-refundable ;( I just wanted to share my destination wedding story with you and hopefully you can learn from my mistakes. Lastly, if you are planning a destination wedding to Jamaica, Bahamas, Mexico or almost anywhere not in the U.S., please be aware of what is called "Island Time!!!" This is when you call and nobody answers the phone or you send email after email and get no response. Don't worry. This is just how they do business I guess. Once you get to your destination is mostly when you will choose your flowers, decor, cake, etc. Sometimes the day before so just continue to plan as usual from home and bring everything you have with to show them the either the day you arrive or the next day.
