If you've ever met my niece Kendra, you know a fire breathing beast that leaves devastation and desolation in her wake would not exactly describe her. In fact, she's one of the sweetest people I know. And her new husband Chris has an equally amiable and kind dispostion.Pleasant Holidays, therefore, seemed the appropriately named and oriented vendor for their beach wedding in sunny Cabo San Lucas.
Unlike a monstrous Bridezilla with outrageous demands and an unlimited budget, Kendra wanted something "easy peasy."
My company Cruise Planners American Express has an excellent Destination Weddings Program with particularly great rates in the Caribbean, and industry-leader Sandals has free Martha Stewart Weddings for anyone who stays there. As a Cruise Planner, of course, I put cruises near the top of the list for ease and value in destination weddings.
Kendra, however, selected Cabo as her destination wedding locale, because it would be easy to reach from San Diego, the home base for most of her friends and family.
She didn't even restrict where her friends could stay to attend the wedding, because she wanted to have as the most friends possible attend, despite the fact that I explained that having attendees book into one big group could earn the wedding couple reduced ceremony and reception rates, free air, and hundreds of dollars rebated as the "Tour Conductor."
She contemplated just meeting at the edge of the sea for an unsanctioned, casual gathering to exchange vows. Beaches in Mexico are open to the public, but it was deemed a bit too risky for this guerilla-style approach for such an important day.
As a leader in Mexican Riviera vacations, Pleasant Holidays has a finger on the pulse of the market, and they suggested the beautiful, all-inclusive beachside resort Hotel Barcelo in San Jose Del Cabo, which made a special deal with Pleasant Holidays for excellent early season all-inclusive pricing and a terrific, inexpensive wedding program.
Again, Kendra put her friends first, insisting that she knew her friends would want to be closer to downtown Cabo San Lucas (and the staff of Cabo Wabo would agree she was right!). Plus, she didn't want to straight-jacket them all into booking exactly the same accommodations.
We went back and forth for a long time with different possibilities, and she surprised me when she declared the Villas Properties as the winner. She, Chris and baby Claire would go with Villa del Arco, but her friends could then stay at the less expensive sister resort Villa del Palmar or at any other property in the general area of Cabo San Lucas.
It turned out to be an excellent choice. The accomodations were modern and comfortable, and the food at the restaurants on site was universally delicious.
The Villas has a great wedding program too, especially if all of your friends book into your group.
At the time, however, I was less than thrilled with the choice, because the prices I was being quoted were so much higher than Hotel Barcelo's. Nonetheless, I know that prices on vacations can go up and down over time, and with Pleasant Protection, hotel and even air prices can be adjusted to lower rates that become available later.
After Kendra announced her plans in the 21st Century Town Square, Facebook, her friend phoned me to ask about pricing. We were still almost a year away from the trip, and air prices were on the high side at that time. Combined with the initially higher room rates that concerned me, I have no doubt sticker shock pushed her away. Because I don't own the airlines or the resort, I can't tell them how to price, and neither can Pleasant Holidays. We can only reveal areas where we find particular value, and at least initially, it did not appear to be with these Villas packages. I took solace in the fact that at least Kendra and Chris could earn free air if enough of her friends simply booked through Pleasant Holidays, which meets or beats any legitimate competitor pricing.
I put off booking for my own family for several months, considering other alternatives before the prices came down to meet our level of interest. For a bride planning a wedding, however, she must commit early so others can make plans. Fortunately, Kendra went with the aforementioned Pleasant Protection, and she was able to save a few hundred dollars over the ensuing months.
Kendra ended up using the Villas Wedding Program, and it turned out fantastic. White chairs and trellis in the sand facing the sparkling blue ocean made a beautiful venue and a fitting tribute to her Greek heritage. Her Aunt Cheryl, a minister, conducted an appropriately cheerful wedding ceremony, followed by a terrific reception including drinks, hors d'oeuvres and delicious meal on the hotel's bluff perched above the beach.
As you can see from the videos, a good time was had by all.
