Morning wedding ceremonies prove the most popular at Almond Beach Club & Spa and Almond Beach Village.
Almond Resorts offers couples several ways to say ‘I do’
ROMAN▼CE & WEDDINGS
CARIBBEAN
By Louise Weiss
In Barbados, the adults-only
Almond Beach Club & Spa and
the family-friendly Almond
Beach Village are popular wed-
ding venues, whether for couples
traveling alone or for those arriving with as many as 200 guests.
Both resorts offer wedding venues with decorated gazebos, barefoot ceremonies in the sand or
more traditional lawn nuptials.
At Almond Beach Club, a bou-gainvillea-covered, century-old
sugar mill is the hands-down favorite setting, according to Naomi Lyttle, the wedding director at
both Almond Resorts properties.
No matter the wedding venue,
it’s morning nuptials that prove
the most popular. “There seems
to be a ‘let’s do it and get it over
with’ attitude,” Lyttle said.
And the No. 1 priority of bridal
couples? Photographs, according
to Lyttle. (All pictures are taken
by Almond’s staff photographer.)
Ceremonies are performed by
Rev. Ricky Kirton, a Pentecostal
minister and full-time resort employee who has joined more than
1,000 couples in matrimony over
the past 11 years.
Wedding packages are as plentiful as the rice and confetti tossed
at newlyweds. The seven-night
Wedding in Paradise package —
available through this November
and again from Jan. 5 to Dec. 20,
2007 — includes a $500 wedding
ceremony. For a 10-night stay, the
Wedding in Heaven package includes a $1,000 ceremony.
Couples can opt for a ceremony
at one of the two Almond properties in Barbados and then a honeymoon at Almond Morgan Bay
in St. Lucia, all for one price. Air
between the islands is extra.
Almond Beach Village is set on
a 32-acre beachfront estate that
once was an 18th-century sugar
plantation. A $25 million tip-to-toe upgrade under way includes
the addition of 100 rooms that
Weddings and honeymoons make up a large segment of business
at the Almond Beach Club & Spa in Barbados.
will open by the end of 2007.
The resort, which caters to families as well as the romance market, offers 11 room categories in
seven villages across the property.
“There are 270 children on the
property right now,” Lyttle said,
during a recent site inspection.
That was hard to believe.
Where was the noise, screaming
and fighting usually associated
with that many kids?
“Let me amend that,” Lyttle
said. “There are 270 British children on the property.”
Close to 70% of Almond’s
guests, including well-behaved
children, hail from the U.K.
Facilities include restaurants,
bars, shops, a sports complex, kids
ROOM KEY
ALMOND BEACH CLUB & SPA
• ADDRESS: St. James, Barbados
• PHONE: (246) 432-7840
• RESERVATIONS: (800) 4-ALMONDS
• WEB: www.almondresorts.com
• NO. OF ROOMS: 161 rooms in eight
categories. All rooms have balconies or
patios except the standard rooms. The
resort is an adults-only property ( 16 years
old and older).
• FACILITIES: Three pools, a Jacuzzi,
water sports, day and evening tennis, a A pool at Almond Beach Village.
spa and fitness center, three restaurants,
room service, a beach grill and four bars,
including Tommy’s Bar, an authentic Barbadian rum shop.
• RATES: Varies by season. Numerous wedding, honeymoon and romance packages are offered.
clubs and swimming pools.
A standout among the resort’s
six restaurants is the brightly
painted Enid’s, named for a famous local cook. Weekly cooking
classes and down-home Barbadian, or “Bajan,” cuisine “are a real
draw for our guests,” Lyttle said.
A complimentary van shuttle
service transfers guests to and
from both properties, a 15-min-
ute drive from each other. Facilities at both resorts are available to
guests at each.
The two resorts offer a total of
13 swimming pools and a wide
range of water sports and excursions, including fishing trips
along the coast. Resort chefs will
cook fish caught by guests.
The European-style spa at Almond Beach Club offers Swedish and aromatherapy massages,
reflexology, hydrotherapy treatments, shiatsu, and herbal and
body wraps.
A full-service fitness center, day
and night tennis, and free wireless
Internet access in the public areas
round out resort offerings.
One price covers just about everything at both Almond Beach
Club & Spa and Almond Beach
Village, even the tips.
What’s not included in Almond Resorts’ all-inclusive rates
are lobster tails, spa treatments,
scuba equipment, wines ordered
off the wine menu — although
the all-inclusive rate does cover
house wines — and a $5 box of
golf balls for the par- 3, nine-hole
course at Almond Beach Village.
