Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana Destination Wedding: Sumer & Tanner

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

Sumer and Tanner’s love story began in college, and they’ve been together for almost nine years now. A true example of how love can grow over time, they’ve shared countless memories with their friends and families, all of whom are just as excited about their wedding day as they are.

When it comes to fun, this couple loves the outdoors—there’s nothing better than soaking up the sunshine and enjoying each other’s company. Their group of friends is a perfect blend of people Sumer went to high school with, as well as others they’ve met along the way, and they all share a love for traveling together. In fact, Tanner proposed to Sumer during a ski trip with their friends—a moment that’s now part of their love story forever!

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

For Sumer and Tanner, the idea of a destination wedding was something they’d always thought about. But it wasn’t until they attended a wedding in Cancun last April 2023 that they knew it was the perfect choice for them. They were drawn to the intimacy of the destination wedding, where they could spend quality time with their loved ones—unlike the typical rushed wedding experience. Plus, they absolutely loved how everyone could experience the fun and relaxation of the destination together.

Their vision is already coming together, and it’s one that many couples dream of—a destination wedding that’s not just beautiful, but full of memories that will last a lifetime.

Real Wedding Q&A with Sumer & Tanner

What were your biggest fears when planning a destination wedding?

• Tanner and I felt an immense amount of pressure trying to choose a resort for our wedding. It is difficult when you haven’t been somewhere and are now making a decision on a vacation for all of your guests. There are so many factors that go into making the decision, we just didn’t even know where to start. Ashley and her team were so incredibly helpful, patient, and had an abundance of information on each resort/location.

Is there anything about the actual destination wedding experience that surprised you?

• We had to make a lot more decisions than we originally thought, but it allowed us to customize our wedding weekend to be exactly what we dreamed it would be. The packages offered by our resort were very simple, but had all the basics you could think of.  If you were wanting anything extra, the resort had vendors who could help supply items to perfectly execute your vision.

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

What is your favorite memory of your destination wedding?

• It is really hard to narrow it down to one specific memory. We enjoyed spending a couple of days with our guests as opposed to a couple of hours, if we had done a local wedding. It was great to have everyone in one place. You were able to spend as much time with people as you wanted while still feeling like you had your own space. Our resort had things going on every night, and one of our favorite things was the silent disco! We had a private dinner one night on the beach, where we were able to spend quality time just the two of us. Our personal favorite memory was our reception. After a long day, the reception is where we finally got to relax. We had so much fun singing and dancing with our favorite people. We still talk about the overwhelming feeling of love and support we felt that night. Being able to share that special time with our friends and family is something we will always remember.

Did you splurge on anything travel or wedding related? If so, what was it and was it worth it?

• As far as travel we chose to fly first class, because what better time than your wedding! We did agree it made the flight home a little less sad. We also upgraded our room to a suite. The extra space was worth it! The groomsmen were able to all hangout and get ready in our room the day of the wedding. We did a welcome cocktail party instead of a rehearsal dinner. It happened to fall on Halloween so we did a Til’ Death Do Us Part theme, and we splurged on extra decor and food/drinks for everyone. This allowed us to invite everyone as opposed to just our wedding party. We agreed it was definitely worth it, and everyone talked about how fun that night was! Lastly, during our cocktail hour we splurged on cigar rolling and live music from a steel pan duo. It was nice to be able to incorporate a little bit of the Dominican culture into our wedding. The music was amazing and the cigar bar was a huge hit!

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

Did you attempt to *save* on anything travel or wedding related? If so, what was it and was it worth it?

• We had saved up a lot of points through our credit card and were able to pay for our flights completely with points. Credit cards are a great way to pay for flights by saving the points you accumulate; plus they sometimes offer discounts if you book through the credit card site. For the wedding, we didn’t feel the need to pay for extra food items or upgrade the bar. Our package already included a lot of options for both food and drinks; we just made sure to choose a variety of food options. For the ceremony aisle, we were going to have flowers lining the entire aisle as well as the alter. Instead we chose to just have two arrangements at the beginning of the aisle and the arrangement at the alter. This was worth it, because you spend less than a minute walking down that aisle and take only a handful of photos, in which you don’t really even notice the ground. We also brought a lot of decorations down for both the welcome party and the wedding. It was worth it in the sense that the welcome party and wedding looked amazing! BUT it was a lot of work packing and traveling with so many things it really takes up more space than you would think (not to mention some things are breakable).  

If you could change anything with your wedding (planning, the day itself, the location, resort, ANYTHING) – what would you change?

• Rain is something you can’t control. We had to relocate our welcome party, ceremony, and cocktail hour from the beach to an area protected from the rain. I wish we came up with a plan B, before the morning of the wedding. We had to make the decision on a new location all while I was getting my hair and makeup done the morning of the wedding. It just added unnecessary stress. Speaking of rain…no one talks about wind!!! The wind on the beach is crazy! Originally that’s where everything was supposed to be. Looking back, I am actually glad we had to move it. Because of the wind, you would not have been able to hear us say our vows, and I would have been holding my veil the entire ceremony. Something else to consider when choosing your hotel is the plan B rain options. Our resort did not have good options for rain.

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

What kind of feedback did you get from your guests?

• Our guests loved the resort! This was such as relief for us since we had some rainy days. Everyone raved about how beautiful the resort was. It was clean and well kept. The food was good, and there were plenty of restaurant options. We never ate at the same place twice. The service was amazing; all the staff were so nice and helpful. Whenever you walked by someone who worked there, you were always acknowledged and greeted with a smile. Many of our guests are already talking about going back!

Now that you’ve been through it, what is your #1 best piece of advice for wedding couples entering the planning process?

• Be patient. The planning process was long and difficult. We had never been there in person, which made it hard to picture how everything would look. Planning a wedding from a distance takes a lot of time. Just be patient it will all come together. Plus you have chosen a beautiful destination that adds so much natural beauty.

Photo Credit: The Iris Image

In what ways did Alpaca Your Bags Travel make this less stressful for you?

• We had no idea where to start when deciding on a resort or location. Alpaca Your Bags made this so much easier by narrowing down our options based on a questionnaire we filled out. In the questionnaire you answer questions like wedding size, price range, beach accessibility, adults only vs family friendly, what activities/events you are looking for, ect. After you fill out your questionnaire, they send you options, that best fit what you are looking for, for both destinations and resorts in those destinations. They have an entire file on each destination and each resort with more information than you can even imagine (with pros/cons everything). It was so helpful to have all the information in one place. Knowing what we wanted, Alpaca Your Bags gave their honest feedback on each resort. We really appreciated the honesty. It took us a while to choose a destination and resort, and we so appreciate the patience from Ashley and her team!

Once you choose a destination and resort, Ashley and her team take it from their. They handle all of the travel plans for each guests including transportation. They answer any questions guests may have so that you don’t have to. Once you are getting close to the event date, they send detailed emails ensuring every guests understands how to prepare for travel and what to expect during the travel days. We can’t say enough great things about the level of detail and organization Ashley and her team have. Everyone is very responsive and if someone if out of office there is always someone else covering if we were to need anything. We felt so comfortable and confident in Ashley and her entire team at Alpaca Your Bags. We couldn’t have done it without them! 

Photographer:The Iris Image

Travel Advisor: Alpaca Your Bags Travel 

Resort: Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana