A destination wedding in the Caribbean has been the dream of many couples, because who wouldn’t want to get married alongside a tropical lagoon, beneath coconut palms, to the sound of island music? And every year the choices for where they can have that wedding seem to grow. Here are four fine resorts that have opened in the past year, all eager to hold destination weddings – perhaps even yours.
Dorado Beach Ritz-Carlton Reserve
The Dorado Beach Ritz-Carlton Reserve
San Juan, Puerto Rico
About 20 miles outside of San Juan, this former Rockefeller retreat officially opened in December and had its first celebrity wedding in April when actor and musician Duane McLaughlin married Amber Ridinger in front of guests who included Eva Longoria, Khloe Kardashian, and Marc Anthony.
The hotel sits on a three-mile stretch of beach amid 1,400 lush acres of preserved land, with all 115 rooms facing the ocean. Your guests would no doubt be delighted with any of the accommodations, but the most spectacular, as it should be at something like $30,000 a night, is Su Casa, the 1920’s style hacienda of the original plantation and now a four-bedroom villa whose private lawn is just right for a reception of up to 150.
There are plenty of other venues, too, all of which you might want to scout by golf cart or the bicycle each guest gets. As you’ll discover on your ride, there are more than six miles of nature trails, golf courses, tennis courts, a spa whose treatment rooms include a tree house, and a gourmet restaurant, Mi Casa, presided over, to bring it back to celebrities, by Jose Andres, the innovative Spanish chef who brought small-plate dining to the U.S.
Sugar Beach Viceroy
Sugar Beach Viceroy
St. Lucia
On the site of the former Jalousie Plantation, Sugar Beach Viceroy not only has a beach that can ably fulfill your fantasies about getting married in the sand, but boasts a front-row view of one of the most spectacular natural attractions in the Caribbean – the soaring, green-clad peaks of the Pitons, which are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
After a $100 million renovation, the resort’s 78 rooms and 42 hillside villas all have private plunge pools and butler service. And amid 100 acres of beach and tropical rainforest, there are at least eight wedding venues, from the Colonial-style Luxury Grand Villa for an intimate affair for up to 20 guests, to the beach itself, which can accommodate up to 220 for a cocktail reception.
The resort offers a half-dozen wedding packages, including, if your parents are particularly generous, a $500,000 ultimate destination wedding experience, which includes a Marchesa bridal gown (along with a fitting and alterations by couture tailor Madame Paulette, in New York) and, of yes, 60 guest rooms for three nights.
Eden Roc at Cap Cana
Eden Roc at Cap Cana
Dominican Republic
Punta Cana has long been at the heart of the Dominican Republic’s lively, sometimes downright raucous, resort scene. But this new 34-suite resort within the gated community of Cap Cana is one of the DR’s most upscale and serene. The beach is five minutes away by golf cart, but the resort’s Caleton Beach Club sits on a beautiful stretch of it and is ideal as a wedding venue. Or if you’d like a little less sand in your vows there is the club’s beachfront gazebo.
And of course no matter how much you’ll enjoy having friends and family close around for your special occasion, you’ll no doubt appreciate that the suites, each with its own pool, are free-standing, for additional privacy.
Don’t come here looking for some sense of authentic Dominican Republic culture. That’s not this place. But don’t be surprised if you feel a European vibe, as the Milan-based architect purposely set about trying to achieve a Caribbean version of the Mediterranean Revival style of the 1960’s French and Italian Riviera – splashes of bright color on the outside, cream and eggshell within. Something to keep in mind if you are looking for a wedding theme.
Trident Hotel Port Antonio Jamaica
Trident Hotel
Port Antonio, Jamaica
Having visited just after it opened earlier this year, we have already written about the Trident Hotel and its adjacent sister property, the Trident Castle. But because of the attention it continues to garner (Travel & Leisure’s It List: The Best New Hotels 2013) and our sense that Port Antonio will continue to grow as an upscale destination, we’d be remiss not to mention it again in a roundup of noteworthy new Caribbean properties.
Trident, as we said, is a destination for trend setters. The once-hip community of Port Antonio may be on the cusp of becoming an “in” destination again, and Trident (along with a group of similarly spirited hotels, notably the Geejam, with roots in the entertainment industry) is leading the way.
As a stand-alone property, 13-room Trident has much to offer as the venue for an intimate wedding – sea views from all rooms, restaurant featuring frequent appearances by local musicians, private beach that would make an ideal ceremony/reception site. But what really sets it apart is that by co-ordinating with Trident Castle, a huge private mansion currently being renovated, you’d be able to host a reception that Jay Gatsby, had he built in the Caribbean, would have been proud of. — Bob Payne
