PHOTO: More than 11,000 weddings take place in St. Lucia each year.

The saying is, “Saint Lucia is for lovers,” and it is true: 41 percent of all destination weddings are held in the Caribbean, and St. Lucia is the top Caribbean location hosting more than 11,000 weddings per year. Brides and grooms have been coming to St. Lucia for their honeymoons for decades, but with the destination wedding business becoming more the norm, the island known as the, “Helen of the West Indies” is more popular than ever. Here are some ideas to keep in mind when selling Saint Lucia destination weddings to your clientele.

Saint Lucia Is Diverse

Shri Lildharrie, the global travel director from XO, Inc. parent company of the number-one wedding website TheKnot.com, conducted a demographic study that encompassed 1,460 qualified couples. The study showed that the average age of a destination bride skews a little higher than brides in general to just over 30, and most of the destination brides are college educated and employed full time. The top reasons why they are choosing a destination wedding is that they want a wedding that is different, fun and a more intimate experience with fewer guests. Nearly all brides are looking for a destination that is restful and relaxing, yet they wanted the accommodations to be affordable for their guests. Saint Lucia speaks to all levels of travelers from expansive resorts with discounted packages to luxury boutique hotels where they spare no expense. In Saint Lucia, there are options for every income level. For instance, there are three Sandals resorts on the island in the midrange and places like Calabash Cove, Jade Mountain and Sugar Beach that are on the higher end.

Complimentary Wedding Planner

More than half of surveyed brides said that it was easier to plan a destination wedding than planning one at home. One reason for this is the communication between the resort and the engaged couple. All of the St. Lucia resorts have at least one dedicated person and some an entire team that will walk the bride and groom through the process of booking their big day. These connections at the resorts are there to help explain, answer questions and make sure that everything the bride and grooms want for their nuptials is going to be correct. It is highly recommended that the travel professional seek out these connections in advance and build a personal relationship. Nothing will calm a nervous bride more than knowing the person on the other end of the phone at the resort is a friend of their loyal travel professional.

Try It Before You Buy It

PHOTO: After the wedding, many brides and grooms stay for the honeymoon.

Almost all resorts and especially the Sandals properties offer the occasion to “test-drive your wedding.” This is a three- or four-day trip down to the resort where the couple meets with the planning staff, tries the culinary fare with the chef, tours the facilities and plans a location for the wedding and reception. Sure, this can all be done over the phone/Internet, but some folks want to touch, taste and feel what they are going to commit to. This is another trip that can be planned by the travel professional.

Honeymoons Are Built Right In

Destination weddings in general have a high rate of stay of over 40 percent. It is even higher in Saint Lucia. In fact it, is so high that Sandals has coined their wedding packages as WeddingMoons and offers discount packages to those who decide to book them both together. It is important to realize that not only are the bride and groom staying on after the wedding, but many guests turn their stay into a vacation for themselves.

In fact, make sure to let your to-be-wedded couple know that just because they are planning the wedding for Sandals Grande Saint Lucian doesn’t mean that they can’t go to the south end of the island to Sugar Beach for their honeymoon. This is especially appealing to the more private couple that might not desire to run into the other guests that chose to stay after the wedding.

Groom Involvement and Appeal

Wedding planning is often more the bride’s doing than her groom’s. The honeymoon is the exact time to engage the groom and welcome him to the planning process. Getting a good idea of the groom’s activity level and preferences can help steer you more toward a certain resort or activities that fit the needs of both participants. Saint Lucia appeals to grooms because of activities that will interest the male attendants as well. Golf, action water sports, and ziplining are just a few of the activities that are offered in Saint Lucia.

Wrap-Around Events

Four out of every 10 brides pay for wrap-around events either before or after their wedding. Saint Lucia offers such a variety of activities and events that have wide appeal across all demographics. There is the whole lot of typical activities in Saint Lucia, including scuba diving, fishing, pool volleyball, etc. If your bride and groom are more into the action sports, there is paintball, kite surfing, and more. If you are looking for something for the whole bridal party to do, there are great group activities like Spices Cooking Studio where chef Jenni Killam helps guests explore, experience and enjoy cooking with Caribbean flavors. The group gets to prepare and eat the meal with plenty of Jenni’s secret recipe rum punch. There are treks up the Piton Mountains and drives into the volcano with a stop at the mud baths on the way out. Sunset cruises, street parties and local market visits are just some of the ways that couples can get out of the resorts and mingle with the locals. If there are children in the group, remember that certain resorts are more family friendly than others, and these can offer facilities and programs to keep younger guests entertained.

Deals, Deals, Deals

PHOTO: Couples can enjoy extraordinary accommodation with views like this one from a villa at Sugar Beach Resort.

There are incredible deals to be had in the winter months and the Saint Lucia Tourism board does a spectacular job of compiling them on their website. This is great for those booking ahead of time to go down to the island and do their exploratory mission. The honeymoon deals that are available during this time of year are also very appealing. Thirdly, more than 70 percent of previous brides return to the place they were married or honeymooned in. This is a great incentive to reach out to your previous guests and make them a repeat customer. Most resorts will offer a buy four nights and get a fifth night free or a buy six and get a seventh free, but some resorts will just cut rates by up to 30 percent across the board.

All-Inclusive

A big seller is the all-inclusive option that most resorts on Saint Lucia provide. There is no better way to take the worry off of a bride and groom’s mind than to tell them everything is included. All-inclusive is a pretty big deal on the island and almost every single resort offers some packaged deal. A word of warning so there is not an over-promise/under-deliver issue here. Not all of the resorts have the same all-inclusive policies. Make sure to see what it is that your bride and groom desire so that you can touch base with the resort and make sure that it is included in their package. Sometimes only certain liquor or certain entrées are included and there is nothing worse than your client finding a surprise in their final bill upon checkout.

Tourism Council Accessibility

The Saint Lucia Tourism Board is one of the most engaged tourism boards in the Caribbean if not the world. They have regional representation throughout the United States and in Canada and have an extensive website that is easily understandable and navigated. They understand their stake in the destination wedding industry and even host a wedding symposium every year to educate travel and wedding professionals on everything Saint Lucia has to offer. These folks are here to work in conjunction with the resorts, the media and the people selling the island to make sure the world sees them with their best foot forward. This relationship allows for quick and transparent communication, which translates to more client satisfaction, which ultimately results in more sales for the travel professional.

Opportunity

There is no better time to make a foray into the destination wedding business. This is an $18 billion industry that has grown by 30 percent since 2011. Right now only 7 percent of brides are using a travel professional to help them with the booking. The market is ripe for the picking. Saint Lucia is the number-one Caribbean destination for weddings and is growing by leaps and bounds each year. The resorts on the island not only support weddings, but are years ahead of their Caribbean competition in guest communication and ease. The tourism board supports the people in and around the industry, and the deals that you can find are hard to pass up. Saint Lucia is a name that is synonymous with weddings, honeymoons and romance. The view is grand, the locals are friendly and the food is fresh and phenomenal. Saint Lucia truly is paradise; and what bride doesn’t want to have her wedding in paradise?

Note: This article is from the Caribbean: How the Islands are Building for the Future supplement.