THE HONEYMOONERS

St. Lucia and Antigua are two of my all-time favourite honeymoon destinations,” says Cindy Almond, the owner of Romance and Foodie Travel consultants. “Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain are o en my go-to picks for St. Lucia, but there are other amazing properties in the Soufriere area, like Rabot Hotel from Hotel Chocolat and Sugar Beach by Viceroy.”

Shalene Dudley, the lead travel concierge at Latitude Concierge Travels, is nding that “when clients are asking for the Caribbean, they’re now also asking for longer than seven nights,” she says, a re ection of the longer-stay trend that’s happening in travel generally.

Couples who are requesting longer stays are also looking at far- ung destinations. “We are getting a lot of requests for Bali and ailand,” adds Dudley, of her favourites, which also include Madeira and Mallorca, “as well as Spain and the French Riviera.”

“In Antigua, I love Galley Bay, Carlisle Bay and Coco’s Hotel as some of my favourites,” says Almond. Jamaica is also a favourite, she adds, when I mention the revamped Sandals at Dunns River.

“Jamaica’s a good one for sure; there are some neat options with amazing private pool villas like Jamaica Inn for a couple looking for that extra level of peace and luxury and romance.” In Mexico, Almond is seeing requests for the Riviera Maya, and Isla Mujeres. “ ere is a new Impression by Secrets Isla Mujeres that just opened that is a really cool boutique option, and the company is opening a new resort later this year called Secrets Playa Blanca Costa Mujeres in the Costa Mujeres area – where there is also a Palladium and TRS Coral. TRS is the adult side of the Palladium and a nice wallet-friendly option,” she adds.

Palladium, which specializes in destination weddings, has also revamped its Riviera Maya resort complex, and is planning its reopening for later this year, another Palladium option is on Mexico’s Riviera Nayarit, as well as Dominican Republic and Jamaica. Speaking of Jamaica, RIU Hotels and Resorts is opening a new all-inclusive resort in Jamaica, the Hotel RIU Palace Aquarelle, in Falmouth, near the north end of the island. It joins new launches this year and next in Tanzania, Mauritius, New York City and Toronto, among others.

“I have found more and more people are leaving the honeymoon (or trip planning in general) to the last minute, looking for departures within 1-2 months, and this really limits the wow factor we can provide at value pricing.” Last minute, she notes, is expensive, and availability is limited, so Almond suggests a bride consider approaching a good travel agent early in the process. “Ten to 11 months prior to departure, when ights become available to book, so that we can get the best room types and best pricing,” she advises. “I realize that the wedding is the number one focus for many, and that the honeymoon can be an a erthought, but that’s why we’re here, to alleviate the time and stress of planning so that you can have a relaxing and romantic time with your partner without all the work.”

Both Cindy Almond and Shalene A. Dudley are members of e 1000 Club, a rst-of-its-kind global community created to recognize the individual travel advisor for their achievements in sales.

• https://the1000.club

You can reach Cindy at

• (613) 240-5976

• cindy@romanceandfoodietravel.ca

• romanceandfoodietravel.ca

You can reach Shalene at

• (416) 799-4364

• toll-free at (833) 933-2929

• shalene@latitudeconciergetravels.com

• latitudeconciergetravels.com

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