Be it a festive destination wedding or a secluded honeymoon escape, Mexico has your clients covered. And, from a practical standpoint, Mexico offers myriad options that combine the wedding ceremony and honeymoon, in some cases at a fraction of the cost of a traditional wedding. All-inclusives abound, making it more affordable for your clients and their guests. Here are some of the best locations to sell your clients.
Riviera Nayarit
Mexico’s newest resort destination is continuing to grow by leaps and bounds, and the wedding and honeymoon business is growing right with it. The region extends along the entire coast of the Pacific state of Nayarit including the resorts of Nuevo Vallarta, the historic colonial town of San Blas, exclusive Punta Mita, picturesque fishing villages, miles of serene beaches and spectacular Banderas Bay. With 100 miles of golden sand beaches just north of the Puerto Vallarta airport on the Pacific coast of Mexico, Riviera Nayarit offers couples a beach getaway with endless activities and entertainment. There is something for everyone—nature, adventure, culture, history, spas, dining, entertainment, shopping, beaches and plenty of sun. Construction on new hotels is underway including top brands such as Park Hyatt, Capella, Grupo Vidanta, Iberostar and Grand Hyatt over the next two years.
Cancun
Your clients planning a wedding or honeymoon may only be a few years removed from their own spring break adventures in Cancun, but assure them that this destination has plenty to offer for couples. In fact, each year nearly 5,000 couples head to Cancun to have a destination wedding. Located on the northeastern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula and bordered by the Caribbean Sea and tranquil Nichupte Lagoon, Cancun boasts a 16-mile stretch of beach filled with numerous hotels, from four-star luxury to group-friendly all-inclusives. And as everyone knows, when the sun goes down, Cancun lights up. Rock, jazz, Latin, salsa and reggae seep from numerous clubs and discos. For a quieter scene, the newly married couple may prefer to check out the more sophisticated lobby bars of hotels for flamenco and jazz. Another good option is dinner cruises offering music and dancing on the waves.
Riviera Maya
Close to Cancún, this 81-mile-long stretch of powdery white beaches on Mexico’s Caribbean coast still feels enchantingly remote and is a good choice for young couples who may be weaning themselves off the Cancun club scene. (Should they get the urge, however, Cancun is only an hour away.) And Riviera Maya’s own Playa del Carmen has plenty of restaurants, cafés and bars to keep them occupied when they feel like being part of the crowd. But for wedding and honeymoon couples, low-key pleasures are this destination’s big selling point. In Playacar, just minutes from Playa del Carmen, couples find the perfect combination of the leisure and romance of a private hotel zone with 12 different hotel options to enjoy a wedding and honeymoon on the beach. Each resort here has its own unique tropical style and amenities. Other options include the quieter, more nature-oriented Tulum or Punta Maroma, where smaller, luxe resorts and spas offer more personalized service and amenities.
Los Cabos
Here in this Pacific Coast resort area, your clients can have their ceremony on the beach, on a yacht, in a private villa or a golf clubhouse, even while scuba diving. And, for more traditional couples, several resorts have wedding chapels. Los Cabos comprises two very different, very picturesque towns surrounded by desert and sea: to the northeast, San Jose del Cabo, a mission town established in the 18th century and still charming; and at the southern tip, Cabo San Lucas, whose shops, restaurants and nightclubs rock around the clock. Its most notable landmark—and the perfect background for photos—is El Arco, a rock arch at the tip of Land’s End, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Sea of Cortes.
Puerto Vallarta
Nestled between the lush jungles of the Sierra Madre Mountains and one of the most alluring stretches of the Mexican Pacific coast, Puerto Vallarta is one of Mexico’s top wedding destinations renowned for its white sand beaches, warm blue waters and stunning sunsets. Whether a couple is looking for an intimate romantic seaside wedding, or a weekend-long fiesta, Vallarta is a good bet. There is also a sense of Mexican culture that may be missing from some of the other resort areas. Puerto Vallarta, despite recent growth, retains its distinct small-town pueblo feel with cobblestone streets, friendly faces and its bustling Malecón (ocean walk), which continues to be a center of social activity for the locals. Traditional mariachi music is often an intrinsic element of a wedding in Vallarta, be it on a beach, in a chapel, or on the edge of the sea.