It is hard to believe that it has been almost 2 months since we were married…in the most beautiful place on earth! We cannot thank you enough for making our trip so incredible!
From the minute we began planning you made everything so easy. We kept thinking, “What are we forgetting?” “It can’t be this easy!” People say it is so stressful to plan a wedding (especially a destination). But that is certainly not the way we felt! You took care of all of the details and we felt so incredibly relaxed from start to finish.
From the time we landed in Costa Rica to the time we painstakingly left, everything was beyond our expectations. Villa Cascada is absolutely gorgeous! The food was outstanding – including all of the special dietary accommodations. And the drinks were always flowing! The setting was perfect for our whole family. The kids ran around and played in the pool/on the beach and really just entertained themselves. One of our favorite parts of the trip was having the chance for our two families, from separate sides of the United States, get to really know each other and become one big family!
Guillermo took such great care of us, from our last minute plans for excursions to covering EVERY detail of the wedding day. He made sure all of our guests were organized on the big day (not an easy task), and even helped the groom to surprise his bride with a spectacular fireworks show! All of our guests commented on how helpful he was throughout our stay. It felt like he was a long-time friend almost immediately. He even showed us the nightlife of Coco!
All of the villa staff were so friendly and accommodating. The rooms were always sparkling clean. The tables were set perfect for every meal. The bartenders felt like part of the family. Gabrielle made the adults (and kids) delicious drinks and quickly became great friends with Jacoby (our two year old nephew). Gabrielle entertained Jacoby with fun toys from behind the bar and even sent him home with a little pirate sword that he could not part with. Needless to say, we had one sad boy on our hands when we had to leave!
From seeing pictures of other weddings, of course we knew it would be beautiful. But again we were totally blown away!! Carlos took outstanding pictures. The decorations were so personalized and the colors were a PERFECT match. The flowers and cake were stunning. The beach setting was drop dead gorgeous, we especially loved the tiki torches and the decorated arbor. The ceremony officiant was so sweet. The big event went off without a hitch. Of course, the reception was the time of our life.
All anyone can talk about is how amazing Costa Rica was. We took a huge boat out for the day to a little private island with caves. We saw flying fish, dolphins, monkeys, all kinds of cool birds, and the snorkeling was out of this world. Our snorkeling guide was a great addition.
Before we found you, we were looking into a destination wedding at big resorts. Boy are we happy for not going in that direction! This was the absolute perfect setting for us, our family, and friends. Every single guest (young and old) wants to go back someday! On the last night of our stay, everyone was planning a five-year reunion 🙂 Although we are pushing for three 😉
A friend asked, “What was the worst part of your trip?” The best answer I could come up with was, “That it’s over!!”. Here is to hoping that we get the chance to come back to the villa someday…
Lots of love,
Chad & Shawna
