We understand the temptation to book your destination wedding directly with the resort. You also may be thinking it’s cheaper to book directly with the hotel. Perhaps you’re someone who is highly organized, you are decisive and you know what you want for your wedding – check, check, check.
However, there are a number of reasons why we would not recommend that you book your destination wedding directly with the resort. The biggest one is that you will end up spending more money on your wedding event than you need to, and will possibly become frustrated during the planning process – and no one wants that!
Read on to discover why, as wedding professionals with decades of experience in the industry, we believe you should talk to us (or a travel professional of your choice!) before making the decision to book your destination wedding directly with the resort you have chosen. We break down 4 myths about planning a destination wedding directly with the resort:
1. Myth: Planning the wedding will be easier
You’ll find that the service offered from many of the destination wedding resorts across Mexico and the Caribbean is not as speedy as we have come to expect in the United States and Canada. ‘Island Time’ can be a little frustrating when you’re at home and wanting some guidance or help.
If you book your destination wedding directly with these resorts you’ll most likely find that communication can be tricky.
It can take quite a long time to get a reply to emails. If you get through on the phone you may find that you are connected from one person in the sales department to one person in the wedding department with zero communication between the two.
Your experience as the wedding couple will therefore be frustrating… it could be so bad that it might make you want to give up on planning it altogether. It doesn’t have to be this way!
2. Myth: Having a booking link will be enough for my guests
It’s hard enough to plan a wedding. Now imagine planning a wedding a tropical location that most, if not all, of your guests have never been to and have dozens of questions.
If you book your destination wedding directly with the resort you will typically be given an online link to pass onto your guests for them to book their rooms.
Whilst this may seem helpful, it rarely goes smoothly if anyone has any questions.
Think about it: Your aunt wants to know the price difference between a 3-night and 4-night stay. Your cousin wants to move room categories to be in a swim out just like your brother. Your mom needs a proximity request to be close to her sister. Your bridesmaid wants to extend her stay by 2 days.
If any of your guests have a question, it is unlikely that it will be answered via this booking link.
Your friends will then need to call the hotel individually and go through the same frustrating experience that you have.
They will then likely ask you for your help with the answers, and so the frustration continues on. You don’t want to be inundated with questions from everyone in the months before your special day as you have enough organizing to do at this time! Not sounding very fun, huh?
3. Myth: You’ll save money
Resorts do not provide any special rates or perks if you book your destination wedding directly with them. Therefore this is not the best way to get the best rates for your wedding event.
A travel provider will have the ability to get rates that are better than the resort will give to anyone directly. Remember that they will have worked with this resort before, they personally know some of the key staff and will therefore be able to get you better deals.
Some of the great perks that are available are often not even discussed if there is no travel wedding expert involved to ask the right questions. Over time, you get to know the resorts and how they work. We want you to get the most out of every dollar you spend.
A destination wedding planner can also help you compare rates from different parts of the hotel – it’s our goal to get you a group rate and the best perks for your destination wedding.
4. Myth: You don’t need an advocate
If there is any kind of issue with the hotel you have chosen, you will have no one to call except the hotel themselves. You can often be waiting quite a long time to get your call or email answered.
We heard that this happened a lot during the Covid days with resorts just not responding to requests coming in directly from their clients. Of course this was an incredibly stressful time for the resorts themselves, but it would have been helpful for the couples to receive better communication.
You need an advocate involved in the planning of your wedding event – someone that you can ask questions to and someone who will listen.
We specialize in destination weddings and we will have an ‘insider’ on the ground at the resort that we can call – this is a huge bonus for you.
You and your partner are the VIPs in this experience and sadly we have found that some of the resorts do not make couples feel like this.
Recap: Why you shouldn’t book your Destination wedding directly with the resort
We hope that this article has helped give you confidence and understanding on why not to book your destination wedding directly with the resort.
Using a travel professional will result in a much more positive and relaxing experience for you – you will get to be the bride and the groom, and not a reluctant and stressed travel or event planner.
If you have any other questions about planning your destination wedding then please do get in touch. Remember we will be with you for every step of the planning process, until you return home from your destination wedding with your heart full.
Need help planning?
Our experienced wedding planners at Destination Weddings by Vacationeeze are with you every step of the way.
With decades of experience planning hundreds of weddings, our team understands what couples are looking for and how to navigate working with the resorts.
Our dedicated team will work with all your friends and family so you can focus on planning your dream wedding.
Ready to start planning your big day?
Call us at 215-454-2070 or get in touch with us here.
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