You've decided on a Destination Wedding- Congratulations!
You may even have narrowed the choices down to a particular location, date and maybe even a resort! Now you are asking yourself -should you use a Travel agent and if so which one?
We highly encourage you to use a travel agent and agency that specializes in Destination Weddings- it's very different than booking and assisting with a vacation package and we have had many couples come to use after they booked with another agent, online or even direcetly with the resort asking for help! Many times the agent found that Destination weddings are considerably more work and require a different skill set than what they have ( not that they may be a bad or inexperienced travel agent- destination weddings are just different!), online bookings can run into many different issues from airline schedule changes to the wedding couple or their guests being "bumped " from the hotel with no one to assist on the other end- or the guests having a ton of questions and the couple having to try to answer them all! Or to hotels whose service disappears after they receive their deposits!
A true Destination wedding specialist can assist with all of those issues- and MORE! Most often behind the scenes while the couple can concentrate on the "fun" parts of planning a wedding and each other!
Why Use Sand & Sun Vacations for your Destination wedding?
Experience- our agents have booked hundreds of destination Weddings. From intimate affairs with just the bride & groom to destination weddings of 150 guests!
Specialization- Each of our agents have specific resorts and destinations that they work with, this means that they know the wedding packages, the staff and can easily answer your questions or know where to quickly find the answers!
Saving YOU a lot of time and effort! For our Destination Wedding couples, Sand & Sun Vacations explores what they desire for their wedding & travel experience. Then Sand & Sun Vacations makes recommendations based on the couples desires, budget and wedding guidelines while providing the couple with a detailed resort report and photo's.
· Assistance with planning the Wedding details including securing dates & times with onsite wedding coordinators if the couple would like. We also will use our connections at the resorts to assist with any additional requests.
· Sand & Sun Vacations assist with all of the guests travel questions and arrangements Our travel consultants provide one point of reference for you & your guests to ask questions! That way the couple isn’t overwhelmed with questions about travel, the destination, amenities at the resort, passports ect! We service all of the travel arrangements from deposit till everyone arrives home.
· Trouble shoot (especially with the airlines!), We’ve all heard horror stories of guests that called the bride or her groom the day before the wedding because they are having flight issues and can not make it in time- who needs that stress!? We take care of the issues so the couple doesn’t have to! For our clients we review the flights booked through us to make sure connection times are reasonable and can assist with getting them to the destination if there is an issue. If there are issues our travel consultants will work it out while you & your guests are leisurely enjoying the resort.
Coordination Sand & Sun Vacations travel consultants become your personal secretaries! We provide updates throughout the process on who has requested quotes and who has booked their travel arrangements. After final payment ( or whenever requested!) our Travel Consultants provide the couple with an excel spreadsheet of the guests who have booked, their travel dates and their flight times (if we’ve arranged that). This allows the couple to easily track who is attending their wedding, make reception plans and seating arrangements and plan for excursions or gift bags. This list is also available to give to the wedding coordinator.
Sand & Sun Vacations also coordinates all payments for the bride and groom plus their guests. This service includes accounting and tracking down those who have forgotten the final payment date ! We can also do payment plans for couples or their guests !
What is the cost of using Sand & Sun Vacations?
There is no cost to use Sand & Sun Vacations- however, Sand & Sun Vacations has a retainer structure in place based upon the amount of work involved – the retainer is paid back to you after travel.
Why a retainer ?
At Sand & Sun Vacations, we take a great deal of pride in our work and are determined to provide the absolute best service to our clients. To manage our time so that we can provide that service we have chosen to work with a select few clients.
- We will only do 1 large ( 25 plus rooms) and 1 midsize ( 15 to 25 rooms), or three mid sized weddings, per travel consultant a month so that we can be assured that everyone is well taken care of. Our number one goal is to provide great service to our brides and their guests! If your wedding has less than 10 rooms booked by 7 months out we may add another wedding to that month.
- Destination weddings take a great deal of time to put together- from researching and recommending a destination and property, contacting the wedding department to determine dates and times available discussing & assessing group vs individual booking options, working with guests to make sure that they are fully informed and comfortable with the travel arrangements, applying payments.
- A DW may not always work out for the bride & groom. There are a number of issues that may come up after the research and/or group was set in place. We’ve encountered many unforeseen situations that have made a DW no longer an option - while we understand that life happens we must make sure that our expenses (such as international phone calls), and time (dispensing advice, answering questions, providing quotes and negotiating on your behalf,) are at least partially covered. We more than likely have turned down assisting other couples with their DW.
Professionals – At Sand & Sun Vacations we travel several times yearly to do site inspections (on our own dime- no, as TA's we do not travel for free!) meet with general managers, and wedding coordinators! We feel that it is very important to have first hand knowledge of a destination and resort plkus a personal relationship wuth the resort staff so that our clients can benefit from our experience. We also spend a tremendous amount of time training. We average at least several hours a week educating ourselves & keeping abreast of the travel industry-whether reading up on changes at destinations and resorts in trade magazines, taking an online course, meeting with a tourist board or supplier representatives. Forming those relationships that benefit our clients!
Destination Wedding $ 50.00 (Just the Bride & Groom up to two other couples)
Destination Wedding $100.00. (Estimated Group of 3- 10 rooms or less-no group contract )
Destination Wedding $150.00 (Group of more than 10 rooms- no group contract)
Destination Wedding $200.00 (10 rooms or more with a Group Contract)
Your retainer covers travel arrangements for yourself, and for a destination wedding, all of your guests that book with Sand & Sun Vacations. Once you have traveled, we will refund the retainer within 45 days of your return. Your retainer is not refundable if you decide not to travel, book your travel with another agency or you need to cancel. There may be additional cancellation fees. If the group books less than half the estimated rooms then you will be refunded half of the retainer.
The retainer covers packages- airfare and hotel. It does not cover airfare only bookings for which there will be an additional fee. We do not book outside vendors such as photographers, florists or bakeries.
All Services Include the Following:
· Personalized Attention – (We only assist a select few Brides & Grooms at a time to ensure that you receive stellar customer service).
· Customized Quotes (Retainer includes 2 Quotes & Reports, for both you & guests)
· Personalized Guests Request Forms-includes info on the resort & room categories available
· Customized Resort Reports with photo’s for the bride & groom.
· Destination Reports for you & your guests who book through Sand & Sun Vacations ( if available through Weissman).
· 24/7 Emergency Support while traveling.
· Office Support Pre & Post trip for the wedding couple & their guests.
· Excursions & Site Seeing recommendations.
· Packing & Travel Tips.
· Working with onsite wedding coordinators to assist in planning your wedding details
· Honeymoon planning & booking services ( Retainer Includes two quotes & Reports)
Pricing
Sand & Sun Vacations partners with several different suppliers/ tour operators to provide the best service, amenities and price. When we provide a quote to our clients we offer the best overall value from our trusted and reliable suppliers/tour operators.
Price Matches – We can match nearly all internet package rates. The clients need to send us a copy of the itinerary that they would like price matched. We need the full itinerary, from the final page so that we can be sure that the price includes all taxes, fees, same flights, dates, room categories and transfers. Generally we find that our quotes are less expensive and that the internet prices do not include all the same components. In the rare case that an internet price is less expensive we may be able to price match! In that case you & your guests will enjoy the additional services provided by our travel consultants!
Thank you for allowing us to be a part of this special time in your life. We look forward to making your Destination Wedding and Honeymoon dreams reality!
Warmest Regards-
Sand & Sun Vacations