ResortHatch

Here’s a phrase you don’t often hear a bride use to describe her wedding: “The most exciting and easiest time of my life.” Exciting? Of course. But easiest? This requires some explaining.

“Yes, that part tends to get attention,” says the bride, Taylor, alongside her groom, Hunter. “But that’s why we eloped to Sandals Grande St. Lucian. I needed our wedding week to be fun and relaxing — the way the beach feels.”

The easy feeling of the beach goes back to Taylor’s childhood. It never completely left her conscious. Growing up in Alabama, her family would vacation on beaches around the Florida peninsula. They were the most care-free times of her life.

“I’d cry whenever we left,” she says. “The beach was my happy place.”

Happy thoughts about her happy place slowly percolated back to the surface after Hunter proposed. The two had dated from teenage fun into the responsibilities of adulthood, including Taylor’s demanding schedule in a Doctor of Nursing Practice program starting as early as 5 a.m. So, when she and Hunter toured wedding venues and met vendors, she felt layers of decisions, expectations for perfection, and exhaustion piling up.

Randomly, Taylor mentioned to Hunter the idea of eloping, just to see how he’d respond.

“At first, I was skeptical,” he says. “But then I realized I didn’t want her to be stressed. I said, ‘Maybe you’re onto something. Maybe this is how God is redirecting our steps.’”

With those steps in mind, Taylor also redirected her Pinterest searches. Key word: elopement. The pictures on her screen took her to beach weddings, which segued into Caribbean beach weddings. It sure seemed like destiny, because what could be a better wedding location than the bride’s lifelong happy place?

“From that moment on,” she says, “nothing else sounded right.”

But she did have two important people to convince.

Taylor braced herself. Her family is close. She approached the subject of eloping very delicately with mom and dad. To her surprise, they said something that washed her Caribbean wedding idea with a blessing: “Let us throw a party when the two of you get back home.”

She and Hunter were free to go anywhere. A friend who’s traveled to every Sandals destination suggested the three resorts on St. Lucia — each one with its own personality ranging from quiet to lively. They could shuttle between all three, trying as many amenities and restaurants as they wanted.

“We chose Grande St. Lucian for a blend of everything,” Taylor says. “We could lounge on a quiet beach and play games at the pool.”

And the wedding plans?

“Easy. I had three phone calls with a planner to choose the cake flavor, hors d’oeuvres, and music. We didn’t have to worry about guest arrivals, so we scheduled the ceremony for Thursday at 4 p.m. On the beach.”

The planning was complete.

Two days before their wedding, Taylor and Hunter flew to St. Lucia with everything they needed. Swimsuits. Beachwear. A wedding dress. And her grandmother’s sapphire ring.

“I folded up my tux and put it in a suitcase,” Hunter says. “We were off.”

The full spirit of “easy” greeted them upon landing at the southern tip of St. Lucia. There, they boarded a boat, sat up top with mimosas and plantain chips, and, for the next 90 minutes, watched in awe as they cruised past waterfalls, the iconic Pitons, and Caribbean lushness to an oceanside welcome at Sandals.

“The most beautiful place I’ve ever seen,” Taylor says. “I couldn’t believe we were starting our vacation here — and getting married here.”

One request still had to be made. Just one. Twenty-four hours before her wedding, Taylor toweled off pool water and strolled to the office of the wedding team.

“Would it be possible to have flowers shaped in a half-moon on the beach?” she asked.

This would be the easiest conversation in the history of “eve of wedding” conversations.

“No problem. By the way, you can come back in an hour to sign your marriage license. Go have fun.”

Taylor and Hunter did as instructed. They joined kayak races in the pool, marinated in the vibes of a sunset cruise, and dined on sushi (repeatedly). On Thursday, nine hours before their ceremony, they woke to another spectacular Caribbean sunrise … and continued to follow the directive to have fun. After experiencing the morning comfort of fresh papaya and mango, the almost-married couple waded into the ocean, climbed onto floats, and drifted between the mountains and forever.

“Isn’t it crazy to think,” Hunter said, “in a few hours we’ll be getting married on that beach?”

A few minutes before the 4 p.m. ceremony, they did the only thing required of them: They showed up, mostly dry. Sandals staff members showed up, too.

“They wanted to be there,” Taylor says. “It says a lot about their character, how they genuinely love people.”

The ceremony would be a wonderful, magical 15-minute blur on the beach. Taylor walking down the aisle to Oceans by Hillsong. Hunter waiting at the edge of the sea. A Sandals team member hustling back to the suite to grab the vows Taylor had forgotten. Promises made about faith, commitment, and unconditional love. And then, for the only time all week, they each had to lift a finger.

“With this ring, I thee wed …”

They danced their first dance. Enjoyed their first candlelight dinner as husband and wife. And they made FaceTime calls back home to say, “We miss you,” while their eyes said, “and we’re really, really happy.”

One thing about eloping. Upon returning home, family and friends have a lot of questions. At the party that mom planned, guests wanted Hunter and Taylor to fill in every blank, including this one: “What was your favorite moment?”

“That’s easy,” Taylor says.

It came during their final night in St. Lucia. Taylor and Hunter had just finished dinner with a panoramic ocean view at Gordon’s on the Pier. The tropical air invited them to take a cloud-nine walk around the property when they came upon an empty hammock.

“Let’s lie down and listen to the music,” Hunter said.

Cuddling next to each other, they looked up at stars twinkling just above the palm fronds and listened to waves sweeping the beach.

“It’s where we were meant to be,” Taylor says.

As a girl, this is the part where she’d begin to cry. As a newlywed, she felt nothing but joy and peace.

“I didn’t cry this time because I knew this isn’t the end,” she says. “This is just the beginning.”