This past month my family and I hit a few milestones.  Our son is two months old. Our daughter is 20 months old.   My wife and I also just celebrated our 15^th anniversary.  We started the “kid thing” a bit late so we’re finding we’re more tired than we imagined.  Don’t get me wrong, my children have shown me a love I never knew existed, but there are times I wonder how people make it look so easy.

On our anniversary day, my wife and I woke to a crying little guy that was letting us know it was time to feed him. My wife said to me “Fifteen years ago today, we were on Crete, with all our family and friends, walking to the tiny chapel to get married. Happy Anniversary!“   As the second child started to cry (as if just to mock us), I replied “I’d rather be waking up on Crete right now.”  My wife knew exactly what I meant, but I’ll explain it for you.

 To give you the background, my wife and I were planning one of those obnoxious five-hour, over-priced weddings that was causing its fair share of arguments. Who would we invite? Who would sit next to whom? What food would we serve? What about the band? (You know the drill.)  As the guest list hit 250 and in a moment of frustration, I said to my wife “For this kind of money, we could take our closest family members to Greece, invite our best friends, and have a great wedding.”  She replied “Really? Let’s just do that!”  In one of those rare instances we agree on something so quickly, we just went with the flow.

I used to own a Greek tour company (Zeus Tours), so it was actually quite easy.  We invited our friends and family and all headed to the Elounda Beach Hotel on the island of Crete.  There were about sixty of us (half from the USA and the rest was family and friends from Greece).  For each couple, we had reserved a private bungalow right on the water.  From the exterior, the bungalows were (at the time) traditional “looking” but the interior was a different story. Each lavish bungalow was filled with beautiful marble floors, hand-crafted furniture and came complete with every amenity you can imagine (entertainment systems, satellite TV, climate control systems, spa tubs, some even with private swimming pools, and more).  (Just a note, the resort, one of “The Leading Hotels of the World” is now is even more amazing, with various types of accommodations and is clearly one of the finest resorts in all of Europe. Another favorite of mine is the luxurious Minos Beach Art Hotel.)

We had a beautiful ceremony in the tiny chapel right on the property.  This was followed by an awesome party right on the water’s edge, complete with traditional musicians, a ten-foot grill filled with sumptuous meats and just-caught seafood and uncountable carafes of delicious local wine.  The party lasted through the night, in the open air and under millions of stars that are so brilliant in the Greek islands. It was like a dream. Better yet, the entire group stayed four days so it was one long party.

In the morning, we’d awake and order room service, with an assortment of freshly baked croissants, local cheese, fresh jams and the most amazing, Greek yogurt with silky, sweet honey.  All served to us on the patio just feet from the Aegean. We’d then head to the little private beach and spend the day with those we loved. After everyone left, we continued our honeymoon for three more weeks going to other islands and coming back to the Elounda Beach for a few days before heading home.

Fast forward fifteen years.  Sure, we love our life.  We wouldn’t trade a moment of it. Every once in a while though, it’s easy to wish we were waking up to the sound of the sea lapping the shore and to the smell of fresh croissants.

Our travel specialists can make dreams like this happen for you.  Destination weddings are actually very popular now.  If you’re trying to decide if you should get married locally or have a wedding in some exotic locale, you know what I would vote for… cancel the big wedding at home, cut the invitation list down dramatically, have a small destination wedding and save your money for a down payment on a house.