To Start:

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First things first, let’s meet!  There are so many details to talk about, and planning a destination wedding is new to you, so I know you have a lot of questions.  Our first meeting allows you to ask all your questions and for me to ask mine.

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Some of the things we will talk about are:

• What is your overall look and feel for your wedding?  Do you want to be married on the beach, in a garden, or in the jungle?

• What destinations you are interested in?

• Price point for travel?

• What activities do your guests like to do or what would they be interested in?

• What kind of group is attending the wedding? Are they family and friends? What is their age range?

• Are they adventurous or do they like to lay by the pool?

• What Month / Dates you are considering?

• We talk about what I do and how the planning process works.

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We gather all the information we need in our meeting to help come up with the best destination suggestions for you and your guests!

After our meeting we send you a quote for our services.
If you are happy with the quote for our services, we do a 50% deposit and send you our destinations and property recommendations to look over.  Once you have decided which ones you are most interested in we start on getting quotes together for travel.

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While we are getting your travel quotes together, we ask that you get a list together of everyone you think you will be inviting.
We want to send everyone a quick “Heads Up / Save the Date”:  saying that you are planning a destination wedding for (example Fall 2024) and that you will get back to them very soon with all the travel and wedding information.  This is important, because once you decide on the travel quote, we only have a certain amount of time for the guests to make their deposits.  The reason for this is; once we confirm a group quote the airline and resort property will put those seats and rooms on hold and they can only hold them for so long. 

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Once we get the travel quotes, we send them to you to look over.  We talk about all the pros and cons, and what we think will work best.  There are lots of things to take into consideration, and we will talk it all through!

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When we have a destination, date and property confirmed we will lock in the group booking with the airline and property.
We will send an email to all the guests with a booking and deposit form.  Deposits are about $250-$500 per person, with the final payment 60 - 90 days before travel.  We will give the guests options for room categories, but if there are specific travel requirements that they need they can work one on one with the travel agent. 

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Helpful Information:

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By doing a group booking we can get a good travel price.  But we also earn some travel bonuses that will help a lot.
Tour Operators offer Travel Credits (TC’s) for bookings.  It is different for every tour operator, but for example if you book 12 double bookings (24 guests) you are credited with the cost of travel for one person.  This is really helpful.  You can use this towards your travel, the photographers, or just keep the money.  As the Bride and Groom you are also upgraded on the flight and your room (when available). 

 

We suggest you start planning a year to a year and a half in advance.  It takes time to get travel quotes.  Most likely we will be looking at a couple different destination or different properties.  Once we have the travel quotes, we can talk about them and decide what will work the best for you and your guests.

 

You also want to give your guests as much time as possible to plan.  Our biggest suggestion to clients is to pick a location that guests want to travel to.  You need to consider that people only get a certain number of days off a year, and not only do they want to be there for your wedding with you, but this is also a vacation for them as well.  Asking people to take time off and pay to travel to somewhere they can go on a last-minute vacation isn't always appealing.  You want to have a destination wedding.  So, make it a destination! 

 

With over 15 years of Destination Wedding experience, Forever True Destination Weddings has travelled almost everywhere and built amazing relationships with not only the best resorts and their staff but with tour operators and local vendors as well. We also work with travel agents who only deals with Destination Weddings to ensure that we receive the best rates for our clients.

 

We highly suggest that a Local Photographer comes with us to the destination.  This way we have the freedom to have photos all throughout the week and do off site photo shoots, which are always the best!  On Site photographers can be very costly and often run by the hour. They also only give you a certain number of photos and we do not recommend it.  The flexibility of bringing a photographer with us is a dream!  I promise.  You can also do this with a videographer as well. 

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Planning:

What we discuss during the planning process:

• Food and Beverages

• Location for the ceremony and reception

• Décor details (for examples you can take a look at our “Destination Wedding” galleries)

• Floral arrangements

• Photography

• Videography

• Welcome bags for the guests

• Wedding day Stationery

• Music

• Wedding Day timing

• Group excursions

• Wedding Week Itinerary

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This is just the short list, there will be a lot to talk about and plan.  We will work on the itinerary for the week.  We know that the guests are there to relax, but they also want to see you and spend time with you.  Planning breakfasts and dinners with certain guests is a really nice way to include them and spend time together.  We will plan those as well as a group day excursion and an off-site photo shoot (if that is something you want to do, but I highly recommend it)

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A typical wedding week looks something like this:

Thursday – Bride, Groom and Guests arrive
Everyone checks in, and we let all the guests get settled.

Friday – Everyone gets to explore, enjoy the sun and beach!
Wedding Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner.  After dinner we have a welcome cocktail reception.
If you are having hair and make-up done for the wedding, this is a good day for a trial.

Saturday – Wedding Day!

Sunday – Day off for everyone

Monday – Off Site Photo shoot, guests can explore the area, or relax.

Tuesday – Excursion Day!  We can do a Catamaran Day to snorkel and picnic, or head into the Jungle and go Zip Lining, or a Local Tour of Coffee Roasters, Coco Farms, Tequila plants, and Local Food. 

Wednesday – Relax, Recover and enjoy your last night.

Thursday – Fly Home

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It is such a fun week!  I can’t fully explain how amazing destination weddings are.  It is a once in a lifetime chance to get both your families and friends all together in one place for a whole week!  The memories are incredible. 

Over the next year, we will be in constant contact with the resort. We give you a list of things that you need to have done and when.

I arrive at the destination 4 days to a week before the group to finalize all the Destination Wedding details with the resort, vendors and staff and get everything ready for your arrival.  Due to large changes with resorts, the final week of planning is the most important part.

 

When you and the guests arrive, we are there to meet you and get you all settled.  I am there to answer any questions for your guests and help them with anything they need.  You don’t have to do anything!  You don’t have to meet with anyone, plan anything or worry about any of the details. I have all that covered for you.  Unpack, change and go enjoy all the people that came to see you tie the knot!

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To help the guests feel settled, we always put together an itinerary for the week so that they know what activities are planned and when.

We make sure to have that ready for them in their room upon arrival, as well as welcome bags if that is something you wish to do. In some countries, we cannot always get our hands on items for weddings that are needed. (Ex. table linens, décor pieces, welcome bags).  Any items that we need and cannot get at the destination will come with us from Vancouver. We will arrange any activities that they are interested in. We will be at the rehearsal, wedding day, all activities and also any off-site photo shoots. With our Destination Wedding package, we take care of everything so that you and your guests can have fun, enjoy the sun and not have to worry about anything!

Destination Wedding Coordination starts at $8,500 (plus travel) and goes up from there based on logistics and level of execution.  

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We can’t wait to plan the most amazing Destination Wedding with you!