Wedding Dress | Wedding Ideas

The Difference
What makes an all inclusive wedding package different
than a wedding package at a traditional hotel?

Truly all inclusive wedding packages include all vendors required for the wedding, coordinating, and handling the details of the event from the day the bride books, until the last guest has left the reception, and the reception location is cleaned up. Many all inclusive wedding companies work with their brides for up to one-and-a-half years prior to their wedding. An all inclusive wedding package should include coordination of the entire event and all the vendors for a successful wedding (caterer, baker, photographer, videographer, minister, locations, florist, staff, setup crew, cleanup crew, coordination crew, bartenders, servers, live music, DJ, linen rentals, chair cover rentals, table and chair rentals, wedding invitations, etc).

Depending on the time of year, many all inclusive wedding companies will run promotions offering free services with the packages. Such promotions may include free invitations, a free wedding cake, a free bartender, and even off-season discounts. The beauty of all inclusive wedding packages is that the bride gets all the best vendors at steep discounts. It would cost more for the bride to go out and do the wedding herself than it would to buy a complete wedding package, plus she gets full coordination and a professional staff and crew.

The bride should beware of “extra hidden fees.” Make sure your wedding company does not tack on an additional $2.50 per slice to cut the cake or an additional $3.50 per bottle to serve the champagne. Having to deal with surprise fees as the wedding day approaches can be a nightmare. Many complete wedding package prices even have the tax included.

Popular Packages
What is an example of a popular
all inclusive wedding package?

An example of a complete wedding package is featured at a lake front resort hotel in Lake Arrowhead, California. This package offers outdoor or indoor ceremonies and receptions with lake views. With this all inclusive wedding package the couple gets everything for their wedding—all they need to bring is the dress and rings. There is even a hotel on site to accommodate all the wedding guests and almost every room has a lake view.

Couples may visit the Lake Arrowhead Weddings web site to view details of the package and photographs. With an all inclusive wedding package, “all inclusive” should mean all the hard work is taken care of and the bride makes all the fun decisions.

Personalization
What special touches can brides add to an all inclusive wedding package to personalize the ceremony?

The beauty of all inclusive wedding packages is that the bride customizes the package. The bride does not have specific selections they are required to choose from; they bring their ideas and the perfect wedding is created. The wedding company should be there to offer suggestions and help guide them through all that is involved in planning and running the full-scale event that is a wedding.

Simplification
How do all inclusive wedding packages simplify
a bride’s work in setting up the event?
All inclusive wedding packages save brides over 100 hours of work! Planning and putting together the specifics of a full-scale event, which a wedding is, takes numerous hours and event expertise. The bride should meet with her all inclusive wedding company, tell them her wishes, and the company should make it happen.

With many complete wedding packages the bride gets the best professional vendors in the area at steep discounts. all inclusive wedding companies represent volume business for vendors. The bride and groom are one-time clients and do not have the bargaining power that a volume client does. Many all inclusive wedding companies use their bargaining power to save brides money and time.

With an all inclusive wedding you don’t have to worry about:
• Performing endless vendor interviews.
• Mailing out several different deposits and contracts.
• Orchestrating who arrives when.
• Will the tables and linens be delivered and setup before the cake arrives?
• Who will setup the tables?
• Who will pick up the linens, set them up, and then return them?
• Who will pick up and setup all the chairs, linens, favors, flowers, decorations, bar, beverage table, gift table, sign in table, buffet tables?
• Who will run the buffet and keep it stocked?
• Who will cleanup from the ceremony, reception and the kitchen at the end of the night?
• Who will clean and package up the bridal keepsakes at the end of the night?
• Who will cut and serve the cake and champagne?
• What happens when the florist gets sick the morning of the wedding and can’t deliver the flowers?
• Who will run out to find someone, somewhere?
• Triple confirming arrival times and services with vendors.

When the bride gets 15 more RSVP’s trickling in 18 days before the wedding, the wedding company calls and arranges for 15 more plates, 15 more glasses, 15 more slices of cake, 2 more tables, 2 more table cloths, 15 more napkins, 15 more sets of silverware, more beverages, more food; the bride and her family can actually enjoy the days leading up to the big event.

Trends
Are you seeing any trends in all inclusive weddings?
More brides and grooms are choosing all inclusive wedding packages. With today’s busy lifestyles, buying a complete wedding package you can customize to your own tastes and desires—while getting a better price than if you did it yourself can’t be beat. Couples should shop around to see what it would cost them to piece together their own wedding (not to mention their time, usually over 100 hours), then compare it to the all inclusive wedding packages that are available through us or in their own area. Even if you are not getting married in Southern California, we welcome you to examine our complete wedding packages as a reference of what you might expect from a comparable company located in your area. Your complete wedding package company should offer you discounted pricing and a stress free event that is run based on your own wishes!

By  Michelle O’Connor

If you're like me, you only want the best for your once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon vacation. Why not take the time and find the best, most highly-rated resorts in the world? After all, you want the marriage to get off to best possible start and it starts with a really great honeymoon experience. It pays to do the research and read the reviews before you book. Here are some resorts that I've highlighted to you get started on the right track:

The Royal Plantation in Jamaica was voted the best resort hotel in the Caribbean for 2006 by the World Travel Awards. The resort is located on the north side of Jamaica under the St. Ann Mountains that sweep down to two perfect beaches. Royal Plantation pampers guests with a 2 to 1 staff to guest ratio, in-room massages, and three gourmet restaurants that create any dish on request. Enjoy the mango mimosas on the beach from 11 AM to PM, and afternoon tea on the Terrace from 4 -5 PM.

Vatulele Resort in Fiji is an all-inclusive barefoot resort in paradise. The resort has no TVs, no newspapers, no internet, no telephones and no shoes! Just pure, romantic seclusion. Vatulele was voted the best resort in Fiji by the World Travel Awards, AAA Tourism Awards, and Luxury Travel Magazine. Try the special honeymoon bure with 1,960 square feet of exclusive space, air conditioning, private deck, sound system, two indoor and outdoor showers, bidet, bathtub, cozy dining area and plunge pool.

Ladera Resort in St. Lucia is a highly rated resort in one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean. St. Lucia itself is rated the #1 honeymoon destination by Travel and Leisure magazine. Ladera resort is located high in the mountains on the south side of the island and it looks as if you're in the South Pacific. Ladera is not your typical luxury resort as all of the suites are open to nature with no air conditioning. Seventeen private suites overlook the sea below and each has a private pool, but it's the service there that makes this place so special. “The staff at Ladera is over the top when it comes to customer service. They make the experience all that more enjoyable. Everyone we encountered had a cheerful attitude and made us feel very welcomed. They meet our every request always with a smile. They made us feel like royalty.”

La Villa Mauresque in Cote d'Azur, France is a World Travel award winner for best villa in Europe. The Moorish style and beautifully manicured gardens set the mood - and the location, on the French Rivera, is tailor made for romance. St. Tropez is not too far from here as well as many local restaurants. If golf is your thing, there is a course nearby and beaches that offer sailing, jet skiing, and windsurfing. You may decide to just sit out on the terrace and enjoy the beautiful view.

by Paul Kozar

A couple's wedding day won't be labeled as the "big day" for nothing. It definitely is something to look forward to and to get prepared for well in advance. And what other major step can soon-to-be-weds take to make this day much bigger than finding an excellent and awe-inspiring destination wedding.

Destination weddings are becoming more and more popular for couples since many would like to steer clear of plain white church weddings in their hometowns. And when you talk about destination weddings, unique, sophisticated and fun-filled adventure, or the tranquillity of a tropical beach wedding will surely come to mind. It's like a wedding ceremony and honeymoon rolled into one – which is now actually called a weddingmoon!

The increase in demand of destination weddings is compensated with the rising number of destination wedding coordinators who polish every detail of these dreamy wedding events. They are also usually tailored to fit the requirements of to-be-weds whether they want a small or intimate wedding or they would like to bring with them the whole clan! Destination wedding services abound. You just have to look for the most reputable one by looking at testimonials or even through asking your friends, family or acquaintances on who did their destination wedding.

But, how do you know if a destination wedding really fits the bill for you? Here are some tips:

A Question of Faith
• Is privacy important to you? You will be surrounded by your guests for the whole duration of your wedding / honeymoon
• Not all of your guests will be able to take time off work to come to your wedding. Is the attendance of certain guests important to you?
• If you want a tropical wedding, be sure you can stand the heat in your wedding attire
• Can you give control of the planning of your wedding over to someone else?

Money-Wise
• Can all of your guests afford to travel to your wedding location?
• Can you afford to pay the vacation accommodation for your guests?
• Take note that not all wedding receptions are included in the wedding package and therefore this will be an extra cost

Hard Working or Hardly Working
• Can you and your guests take at least a two-week break from work to attend the wedding?
• If you like full control of the wedding planning, then this may not be the wedding for you. Most destination weddings require a coordinator to organize things at your wedding location on your behalf

If you have breezed through the above-mentioned compulsory contemplative statements and interrogations, and have decided that YES, a destination wedding is for you, you can continue getting mesmerized with all those cool locations that can make your destination wedding a dream come true.

But do you know what the hardest part is in arranging a destination wedding? It's cherry-picking your choice of destination. Here are some simple ways to ensure that you choose the best destination wedding service that can help you in learning which wedding spot will suit your needs and wants.

Make the most of the Internet technology and surf online about destination wedding package deals, destination wedding coordinators and other destination wedding enlightening info. If you want to come up with an informed decision about destination weddings, you can read reviews on them. Make sure that you take note of the good and bad points of each location, products and services that the reviews are discussing. Discuss your discoveries with your partner if you do the research separately.

Now you're armed to enjoy the beginning of your new life together as a couple which is jumpstarted by your dream destination wedding. Best wishes.

by Claire Bullerwell