If you’ve always dreamed of marrying in a tropical paradise, the Bitter End Yacht Club on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands can help “wedmooners” (as resorts call couples who combine a wedding and honeymoon) make that dream a reality.
Bitter End offers pre- and post-wedding activities that include sailing, snorkeling, windsurfing and plain old picnicking set against white sand beaches, coral reefs and nature trails. The club also has a small fleet of sail and power boats for exploration of nearby islands.
Everything a couple could need for their wedding–including choice of a minister or judge, musicians, photographer, custom wedding cake–can be arranged. After the wedding, the newlyweds are treated to private and scenic beachfront, hillside villas or Commodore Club suites equipped with king-size beds, double-size showers and a wide, private veranda with a double hammock.
Most couples opt for the Admiral’s Honeymoon Package, an eight-day “wedmoon” that includes accommodations, all meals plus a full refrigerator of food, champagne and orange juice, and all resort activities. Depending on season and accommodations, the price for the Admiral package ranges from $2,240 to $4,165 per couple, excluding air fare.
“We’re so flexible that with any advance notice we can take care of a majority of the issues in the wedding,” says Petra Garrison, sales and marketing manager for the club. There are additional and various civil fees for a location ($150), wedding license ($110), the registrar ($140) and the minister ($50-$75).
– Caribbean vacations aren’t for couples only at the Bitter End, which also is hosting, along with Womanship and Coastal Cruising Magazine, its fifth annual Women’s Sailing Week, Nov. 2-9. For one week, women sailors who want to sharpen their boat-handling and boat-racing skills can learn from the best in a multi-dimensional sailing instruction program designed especially for women. You’ll combine hands-on instruction from top women instructors and sailors with plenty of time to enjoy the club’s activities, cuisine and accommodations.
Womanship is the Annapolis, Md.-based sailing school designed specifically for women, and its motto, “Nobody yells,” best describes its approach to instruction. Prices for the weeklong package range from $1,400 to $1,715 per person based on double occupancy (singles from $2,100 to $2,730) and include accommodations, all meals, activities and instruction.
Getting to Virgin Gorda is circuitous. Prospective vacationers must fly to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where they will connect to Tortola, British Virgin Islands, and then take a high-speed ferry that will drop them at the Bitter End Yacht Club.
For information on “wedmooning” or women’s sailing, call 800-872-2392.
– If you’d like to get under it all as well as away from it, El Conquistador Resort & Country Club in Puerto Rico offers scuba diving at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. Through Oct. 31, the resort’s four-day, three-night scuba package offers a full range of underwater wonders with seas teeming with starfish, parrotfish, stingrays and a wide range of colorful coral. First-time divers are welcome; they will meet at the resort for a one-hour pool session followed by a closely supervised boat dive. The price is $350 per room per night (single or double occupancy) and includes six boat dives with complete scuba gear, accommodations, daily continental breakfast, use of the resort fitness facilities and transfers. Call 800-468-5228.
– Looking ahead to 1997, the Four Seasons Resort on Nevis is offering four special vacations at its Caribbean island hideaway.
The Sporting Spree, the Four Seasons’ most comprehensive package, combines unlimited sports and two meals a day (breakfast and dinner), unlimited play with a cart on the resort’s 18-hole golf course and unlimited tennis on clay courts. All Sports allows participants the same access to resort facilities while keeping their meal options open. The Five Diamond, geared for guests who want a more leisurely vacation, features champagne and truffles upon arrival and daily breakfast and dinner. The Basic Tennis Vacation offers unlimited tennis court time, a can of balls, one hour of private instruction with the resort tennis pro, and round-robin and player-match services.
In addition to the special features of each package, the vacations at the Four Seasons on Nevis, formerly associated with the United Kingdom but now part of an independent constitutional monarchy known as St. Christopher-Nevis, include ocean-front accommodations with a private patio or veranda and use of water-sport and recreational facilities.
Rates per room (single or double) per night (with high season–Jan. 2-April 6–listed first, followed by low season–June 1-Oct. 15) are $1,025/$550 for Sporting Spree, $850/$450 for All Sports, $950/$500 for the Five Diamond and $1,025/$550 for Basic Tennis. Call 800-332-3442.
Photo finish
Islands magazine’s eighth annual photo contest is offering a first prize of a five-night, all-expense-paid vacation for two, including air fare, to Fiji’s Vatulele Island Resort. The contest guidelines are simple: Your photograph must have been taken on an island or feature an island. Special categories include underwater, people, landscapes, flora or fauna, and most usual image. The deadline for entries is Dec. 31, 1996.
Entry blanks are in the September/October issue of Islands, or you may send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Islands Photo Contest Rules, 3886 State St., Santa Barbara, Calif. 93105.
