After countless postponements, love is no longer being put on hold.
In any given year, 350,000 destination weddings take place with Mexico and the Caribbean being top choices for North American travellers. However, like the rest of the travel industry, those figures plummeted to non existent levels since the onset of the pandemic.
But over the past few months, travel advisors across the country finally got to see many long awaited destination weddings come to life and are back to planning memorable occasions that may actually see the light of day.
Here’s a look at some recent real agent booked weddings, at long last.
- The couple’s name: Madolyne & Travis
- Where and when they got married: Occidental Punta Cana on Nov. 13, 2021
- The size of the wedding group: 20
- Name of booking agent: Alison VanLoosen, Kemp Travel
- Photographer’s credit: Glorystudio.weddings (resort photographer)
“Their wedding was originally scheduled for April 17, 2021, but was postponed due to COVID-19. This was the first destination wedding that I have had travel since the pandemic and everything went smoothly. It was a beautiful day and the staff was amazing,” Alison VanLoosen, a Destination Wedding Specialist with Kemp Travel Group based in Bowmanville, tells Travel Courier. “The bride told me that it was everything that she had dreamed it would be. ‘Thank you again, it was so magical,’ she said.”
- The couple’s name: Kori Keller and Andrew Lima
- Where and when they got married: Barcelo Bavaro Palace, Dominican Republic on October 5, 2021
- The size of the wedding group: 20
- Name of booking agent: Shalene Dudley, Latitude Concierge Travels, Ltd.
- Photographer’s credit: Barcelo Bavaro Resident Photographers Tropical Pictures
After working with Shalene Dudley of Latitude Concierge Travels, Ltd. for nearly two years, Kori Keller and Andrew Lima finally got to see their destination wedding come to life in the Dominican Republic.
“With COVID ongoing and the uncertainty of everything around us, Shalene was our solid ground. She was attentive, knowledgeable and made our wedding unforgettable. She was in my corner with the on-site wedding coordinators, travel representatives and everyone in between,” says bride Kori Keller. “She was an absolute joy to work with and I can never thank her enough for all that she did. Our wedding was truly picture perfect and would have never been possible without Latitude Concierge Travel. The resort was beautiful. Picture perfect.”
Although there were safety measures in place, Keller says the pandemic didn’t ruin any part of the experience.
“It felt normal, the resort made everything super comfortable and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had to,” she says. “Protocols were in place to keep us all safe but I felt they were appropriate and nothing was overdone. Having my wedding in the Dominican makes me want to travel everywhere now.”
