Real Destination Wedding: Mackenzie & Mike

Mackenzie and Mike were married at the beautiful El Dorado Casitas resort in October of 2021. Right from the beginning of our planning, it was clear that their main focus was on providing a wonderful experience for their wedding guests. The quality and size of the resort, plentiful activities, dining, and entertainment activities were all factors that we looked for when comparing resort options. Mackenzie and Mike asked thoughtful questions and in the end, chose the perfect resort for their wedding.

Initially, Mackenzie and Mike weren’t sure how many people would travel because Covid was still an issue when we began planning in September of 2020. Their guest list kept growing though! We had to pull a few magic tricks to get more rooms added at the larger El Dorado Royale in order to accommodate their additional guests. After the wedding, I heard from so many of their guests about what a fabulous time everyone had celebrating Mackenzie and Mike!

Resort: El Dorado Casitas Royale

Wedding Date: October 29, 2021

Photos and videography: John Myers Photography

“Having Kate as a point person for our guests was a huge help! Kate is an expert and fielded all questions and concerns, making our lives so much easier. I received nothing but great feedback from our guests on how easy it was to work with her. I would recommend Kate to other couples because she made our destination wedding a breeze.” ~ Mackenzie

Wedding Q & A with Mackenzie and Mike

Why did you choose to have a destination wedding?

Mike and I always knew we wanted a destination wedding. We love to travel and liked the idea of a smaller, more intimate wedding, that could be spread out across 2-3 days. In addition, US weddings can be very expensive, and we hoped by having it in Mexico, we could save money by limiting our décor, and guest count and relying on paradise to set the ambiance and tone of our wedding. We worked with 3 wedding coordinators, one for planning and two on the day of our wedding, at no additional cost. The amount of work and value they added to our wedding experience was priceless and to achieve the same in the US would have cost thousands of dollars.

Why did you choose Kate’s Travel?

Kate was recommended to us by a friend whose sister had worked with Kate for her own destination wedding (and another friend’s brother was actively working with Kate for their destination wedding). We reached out to various wedding planners before making a final decision, but we connected with Kate, she understood what we wanted, and she provided us the most peace of mind

How did you select your wedding resort? What were the deciding factors?

Kate was a HUGE help in finding our wedding resort. The number of options available for a destination wedding is overwhelming, but Kate was able to take our must-haves (adults only, great food, swim-up bars) and present 5 great options that were unique and slightly different from one another. We went through those 5 resorts over and over and found it very difficult to decide which size resort would suit our wedding best. It needed to be large enough for guests to have plenty of food/bar options, but not so large that guests would get lost and be overwhelmed. We changed our minds countless times, but, with Kate’s help, we decided El Dorado Casitas was going to be the best option for us. It was a smaller resort within a much larger resort. I am so grateful we chose this one. In the end, we needed more rooms than we blocked off and options were extremely limited. Having El Dorado as a backup enabled us to secure another 11 rooms for our guests.

What was it like working with the wedding coordinator at the resort?

The wedding team at El Dorado Casitas was exceptional. Our wedding coordinator changed a few months into our planning. Our new coordinator, Lisbeth, was amazing and so patient! In talking to other destination brides, we knew a lot would not be finalized until 2-3 months prior to the wedding. We were lucky enough to visit our resort 6 months before the wedding and it was SO SO SO helpful! We saw the ceremony/reception options firsthand, tasted food/cake, and familiarized ourselves with the property.

Describe the meeting you had with the onsite wedding team when you arrived at the resort.

Our day of coordinators, Ale and Alejandra were amazing. We had a meeting 4 days prior to our wedding where we walked through every detail of our welcome party, rehearsal, ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception. They were extremely attentive and professional and there is no way we could have afforded their services in the US. The on-site staff made the entire process easy and so much less stressful than a traditional US wedding. They are the easy button when it comes to planning a wedding.

Tell us about your wedding! What was different about a destination wedding compared to a wedding at home?

Our wedding was everything we had hoped for and more. We did a Mexican Donkey Welcome Party the day before our wedding, so we could greet and thank each guest for coming and so guests could mingle and get more acquainted with one another. There were various beach games, light hors d’oeuvre, and an open bar for 2 hours.

After the Welcome Party, the wedding party and immediate family went to the semi-private rehearsal dinner. We had their Mexican-themed dinner and mom still raves about it being one of her favorite meals at the resort. The staff was extremely friendly, and attentive, and we truly felt like important guests.

On the day of our wedding, the bridal party met at the Casita Salon to get ready and champagne and small bites were set out for us to enjoy while we were getting ready. The groomsmen got ready in our room and the resort provided beer, alcohol, and lunch.

Our wedding ceremony was on the beach, and it was absolutely perfect. After the ceremony, our guests were taken via a golf cart to our cocktail hour where they had a bar set up and we added a violinist for music/ambiance.

The reception was held in a very large tiki hut that was the perfect size for our group. We added fairy lighting, relocated the flowers from the ceremony, had a Mezcal and Tequila tasting table between our table and the bar, and limited table décor to flowers and tea light candles. We hired a DJ, and he did a great job getting everyone out to the dance floor. We added an extra hour to extend the party to 11 PM and I am so glad we did because it was a perfect segway to the resort’s nightlife for an after-party.

What was the best part of having a destination wedding?

There is no way we could have afforded our wedding in the US and there is no way a US wedding could be as stress-free as our wedding was at EDR.

The best part of having a destination wedding is being able to extend your wedding from a single day to a long weekend. It allowed us to enjoy more time with our guests and more time with each other to soak up our wedding day(s). I cannot imagine how overwhelming (and expensive) it would have been to recreate our Mexican wedding stateside. 

How did Kate’s Travel make the planning less stressful for you?

Having Kate as a point person for our guests was a huge help! Planning a wedding and traveling thousands of miles can be somewhat stressful, but Kate is an expert and was able to field guests’ questions and concerns, making our lives so much easier. We received nothing but great feedback from our guests on how easy it was to pick a room, book, make changes, and travel to our resort.

Would you recommend Kate’s Travel to other couples who are considering a destination wedding?

I would recommend Kate to other couples because she made the choosing, booking, and traveling part of our destination wedding a breeze. It was very hard for us to narrow down our resort initially, but in talking with Kate, she really helped us select El Dorado Casitas and I could not be happier. It was a beautiful resort and it had everything we wanted for our guests and wedding.