This Valentine’s Day, All You Need Is A Little Love – And A Passport – To Sandals Resorts

Know what’s better than getting married? Getting re-married. It’s twice as nice to recognize why you married your spouse in the first place and to recommit to making your marriage work even better. And there’s no better place for travelers – and lovers — to do just that than at Sandals Resorts. On Valentine’s Day — or to be honest, any day! With their Luxury Included® amenities – and posh resorts – you can get hitched – again – without a hitch – and then have a heavenly honeymoon on a wonderful island. What do I recommend? Get married (or re-married) in a sunny spot at Sandals Montego Bay, for example, and then “hop” an hour away to Sandals South Coast, where you can indulge in a honeymoon in an Over-the-Water Bungalow! Trust me – you haven’t truly vacationed until you sleep with the fish directly below you!

My beloved Bill — and I — recently had a vow renewal ceremony at Sandals South Coast in Jamaica, to celebrate our 20 years of marriage! We loved saying “I Do, I Do,” and the Sandals team went the extra mile to make our day extraspecial.

In this exclusive interview for Forbes.com, I interviewed Marsha-Ann Brown, who is the Director of Romance for all of Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts. Get ready to be impressed! Sandals hosts more than 10,000 weddings and vow renewals every year, so they obviously are doing something very, very right.

Q: I hear you’re an incredible romantic. Tell me about that.

MB: I have always believed in love and the whole importance of living a life that’s focused on love. I can recite lines from When Harry Met Sally and Romeo and Juliet, and strongly believe with every fiber of my being that some souls ought to be connected. The beauty of Sandals is that we create sanctuaries in our resorts for people to connect, come together and celebrate their love. At the end of the day, life is riddled with interruptions; however, couples can take the time to reconnect, plug into their love and cherish the bond that holds them together. It truly is a beautiful moment to see couples renew their vows, no matter the stage of their love. I’ve seen couples ReTie the Knot after 1.5 years of marriage and 50 years.

Marriage is by no means a walk in the park, and couples understand life is all about peaks and valleys. The beauty is how each individual couple learns to weather the storms together. As they commit to each other, they acknowledge that these experiences strengthen their bond. The vow renewal re-cements the “why” for each couple’s journey. I encourage every couple to take the time and celebrate their love – and this is one way to do it. Don’t wait for the big milestone anniversaries, celebrate and cherish every moment. If that makes me a romantic, then I can proudly tout that title.

Q: Tell me about some of the special weddings you have organized.

MB: I can go on for days about all the unique weddings I’ve organized. They are all special in their own way. What resonates in my heart now is a young couple whose wedding I set up last year. It was a lovely South Asian-influenced destination wedding at Beaches Resorts Turks Caicos. More and more we continue to see family and friends travel for the big day. They are an integral part of the celebration experience. The wedding was ethnically rich and incorporated their culture. It is a blessing to be a part of a resort company that can honor cultural preferences and multi-day celebrations. Nothing is too big or too small. We do what matters most to the couple and that brings myself and my team so much joy. My team pours their heart, body, mind and soul to create every couples dream wedding.

Q: Tell me about some WOW weddings.

MB: One particular wedding never escapes me. One of the most unique last-minute requests we received came from a bride who spontaneously said, “I’m not going to walk down the aisle – I have to ride in on a horse.” All this while the groom is patiently waiting at the altar. With tremendous effort, we fulfilled her request. That has forever stood out to me. We took an unexpected request and made it happen – within an hour. No two couples are the same and neither are their wedding requests.

Q: What’s your biggest challenge?

MB: We work with a tremendous amount of resources at each of our resorts and are blessed with a beautiful backdrop every day There’s still the unpredictability of Mother Nature. While it may be a slight bump in the road, we swiftly arrange an alternate location unless the couple decides to wait until the rain stops. We call it a “shower of blessings” for the couple.

Q: Any funny stories?

MB: (Laughs). Some of the typical scenario’s where the groom, in his zeal to exchange rings – has the ring box without the ring – it’s in the safe. It’s keeps everyone in a laughable pause as my team quickly retrieves the ring from the safe. Another example is of a groom who wore one brown shoe and one black shoe and didn’t realize until standing at the altar. No two days are the same.

Q: Trends?

MB: Without question – the core trends for 2020 are to invite more friends and family to the big day. Gone are the days of intimate destination weddings. Families are turning the wedding celebration into complete family vacation experiences. Another big trend is “honeymoon hopping.” Couples are celebrating their wedding in one destination, and then jetting off to another destination with a Sandals Resort for their honeymoon. It’s extremely popular for couples to choose an Over-the-Water Bungalow for their big honeymoon experience. Allowing newlyweds to celebrate their nuptials with family before enjoying some much-needed seclusion and RR after all the wedding planning. Honeymoon hopping allows couples the opportunity to enjoy the best of Sandals 5-Star Luxury Included® vacation.

In other words, get out your passport — it’s your visa to a very fine vacation.

For more about my Wanderlust travels, please Follow me on Instagram at @Debbikickham.