Two Wedding Visions, One Destination, Zero Regrets

Jasmine’s future came into view, literally and vividly, during an adult mom-daughter getaway to Beaches Turks and Caicos. Jasmine had come to the island as her mother’s plus-one — the same way she’d experienced several Caribbean destinations.

“Mom travels a lot for work,” she says, “so being her daughter has its perks.”

On those trips, Jasmine vaguely pictured herself as the bride in a destination wedding — on a beach or in a garden, somewhere beautiful with someone special. During the vacation to Turks and Caicos, everything about “somewhere” clicked.

The celebratory atmosphere.

The turquoise ocean and cheerful flowers.

The 24-7 friendliness of the Beaches staff.

“Every single moment on that trip — seriously, every moment — was incredible,” Jasmine says.

She remembers one of those moments with added incredulousness. She and mom had just ordered dinner at the rooftop restaurant, Sky, when a quick sprinkle of rain sent them inside for 10 minutes. When they returned to their dried-off table and seats, Jasmine’s eyes turned to the west, from Sky to sky.

“It was stunning. I thought, ‘Wow, this is so peaceful and perfect.’ I’d never experienced anything like it.”

At some point, she looked away long enough to FaceTime her boyfriend, Robert.

“The best way to describe her emotion during those calls is ‘glowing,’” he says.

Jasmine knew at that moment Beaches Turks and Caicos would be “the place” whenever her wedding day came. By then, she also knew Robert would be “the man.”

There was, however, a potential obstacle between them and a Beaches wedding.

Robert had his own wedding vision. It was as vivid and literal as Jamine’s vision because he’d grown up in it.

“I always thought I’d get married where I’ve spent most of my life, here in the Baltimore area,” he says. “Everyone we know would attend. It would be a familiar location and just … comfortable.”

When he proposed to Jasmine (“Jazz” as he calls her), the decision had been made.

“She brought me around to believe maybe we could do something outside my wheelhouse,” Robert says. “I can’t say I was completely at ease about a Caribbean wedding — the travel, the passports, the effort it would take for my sister and her four kids. Plus, I’m not one for big events, but Jazz made the idea of a wedding at Beaches sound feasible.”

Honestly, she hadn’t seriously considered a local wedding. She’d talked with enough married friends to know that she didn’t want to deal with catering, expenses, and planning.

“It would have sent me into a spiral,” she says, “and neither one of us wanted that.”

The mom-daughter trip to Beaches Turks and Caicos had shown Jasmine, in real life, what she did want. There, she also learned that a Beaches wedding could be miraculously turnkey with a phone call, an email, and a simple checklist.

The general vibe you want: Beachy and tropical.

The colors you’d like: White and green.

The scene you envision: Natural and elegant.

“The wedding team at Beaches made it manageable instead of putting me through an infinite series of decisions,” Jasmine says. “The peace of mind to know they would handle it from there, for me, was priceless.”

Robert had something else of value on his mind: family.

“Our family is close. I had a hard time picturing my wedding without my nieces and nephews there.”

Jasmine assured him that the kids wouldn’t just attend their Beaches wedding — they’d be actively involved as flower girls and ringbearers. For the other five days and 23 hours, they could drench themselves in the waterpark, eat pizzas for lunch, and sip tropical smoothies at the edge of the pool.

“No one — not even the kids — will come to our wedding out of obligation,” Jasmine said. “They’ll come out of desire.”

Robert had to admit Jasmine’s vision sounded better than his. He did, however, still harbor some trepidation three days before the wedding, right up to their 5 a.m. departure for the airport in Baltimore. And then he suddenly transformed into a different Robert. He became Rob.

“I left all of my stress back at home,” he says. “I felt … chill, which is rare for me.”

Jazz felt it, too. This is three days before their wedding, the time of the week when anxiety typically escalates for brides and grooms. For Jasmine and Rob, two detail-oriented people, the opposite happened. Anxiety gave way to freedom. On their first night at Beaches, the two of them sat at a candlelit dinner table next to the ocean.

“It was the most relaxed I’ve ever felt,” Rob says. “The sand was so soft and, what’s the word, ‘buttery’ on my feet. I sat there thinking, ‘OK, I get it now. This is why she want our wedding here.’”

Over the next 72 hours, they would welcome guests with a cocktail party. They would sail the Caribbean Sea on a catamaran, snorkel over reefs, and marvel at marine life. The adult wedding guests could lounge at the adult pool, relax on the beach, eat casual or eat formal. While the guys watched sports in The Cricketeer’s Pub, the girls entertained each other in the karaoke bar.

“We thought of ourselves as these amazing hosts, telling our friends and family, ‘This whole place is yours to do whatever you want,’” Jasmine says.

In hindsight, it’s no wonder that 65 people RSVP’d for their Beaches wedding (Jasmine and Rob expected maybe 35). Even better was the fact that each guest was having fun in their own, personal way.

“It’s important for me to know,” Rob says, “that when we look back on our wedding celebration, our guests are also looking back on it as one of the best experiences of their lives. Personally, the ‘firsts’ made it more memorable for me: my first time to a destination like Turks and Caicos, my first all-inclusive, and my first and only wedding.”

The destination and wedding converged on an oceanview boardwalk. “Exactly the way it was meant to be,” Jazz says.

Rob stood at the altar facing the Caribbean Sea.

“I kind of lost myself staring at the water. The pastor had to repeat to me, ‘Turn around, Robert. Turn around.’”

When Rob did as told, he saw Jasmine walking toward him. They hadn’t done a first look earlier for pictures, so this was the first time they’d seen each other all day.

“Waiting to see her until the ceremony added to the gravity of the moment,” Rob says, “because it reminded us of how much better life is when we’re together.”

A short time later, the two of them saw something else together: the sky changing colors over the ocean. Rob, once again, had never seen anything like it. The sight, however, looked familiar to Jazz.

“That’s what the sky looked like when I was there with mom, the moment I decided I’d be married at Beaches Turks and Caicos someday. And here I am. On the beach. With the same view and same colors in the sky.”

This time, Rob completed the picture.

“Neither one of us can envision any other way to be married. Now we hope our friends decide to do the same thing, so we can go back to Beaches and celebrate again.”