With wedding season coming up and having just attended a wedding in Clearwater Beach, we thought we’d share the last destination wedding we attended. Since Alex likes lists so much, we looked up the hotel we stayed at on Turks & Caicos and found it was on the 2012 traveler’s choice luxury list for the Caribbean. We remember one of our favorite hotels on the list very well. We’ve always wanted to go back and are contemplating it after revisiting our pictures from the trip.

The Regent Palms in Turks & Caicos was a perfect island wedding setting. When we received an invitation from good friends to attend their wedding we were so exited. We were so excited because we got to participate in their wedding and experience an island we’ve never visited. Turning a destination wedding into a long weekend getaway with friends and Mrs Weekly Flyer (pre-Baby Flyer) was a real treat. The beach at Grace Bay was beautiful and not to mention the fact that you can get to the Turks & Caicos for only 4,500 Avios points one-way from Miami.

Hotel

The Regent Palms is a 72-suite resort right on Grace Bay on the island of Providenciales, in the Turks & Caicos. This hotel was ranked #10 on the traveler’s choice luxury list for good reason. The hotel has a fantastic spa and plenty of grounds to relax. The pool is fantastic with a swim up bar and a great infinity edge. We paid a negotiated wedding party rate which included breakfast each morning at the main restaurant.

On the night of the big event, the ceremony, dinner and reception were all held at the hotel. The ceremony was held on the beach. A local guitar player arrived to welcome the bride and groom down the sandy aisle. The reception was held upstairs above the main plantation house. It was a fabulous setting for a wedding and the bride of course was glowing.

Hotel Entrance

Hotel Open Air Lobby

Courtyard

View of Restaurant

Plantation House

Room

The hotel rooms were in top shape. Everything felt so nice and new. But forget the rooms, the resort has a great layout, access to the beach, a great swim up bar and was perfect for the wedding.

Bedroom

Bedroom

Beach

If you’ve ever been to Grace Bay you know it is a beautiful beach. The sand is soft, white, and the water calmly falls into the shore with a gentle ripple. There is a reef about 1 mile left and only 100 meters off the beach.

This is the kind of beach we love. The water was so crystal clear you could see your toes.

Windsurfer

Beach View Left

Beach View Front

Beach View Right

The setting for the wedding ceremony was close to as good as it gets. The aisle was sandy so all of the wedding guests went barefoot. The sound of a gentle waves and guitar strings were all we heard as the bride walked down the aisle.

Beach Wedding

Bottom Line

This is what the points and miles game is all about. Getting to places free on miles to enjoy time with friends and family.

We enjoyed our time so much in Turks & Caicos that we are actively planning a return trip. When you can spend only 4,500 Avios points one-way per person from Miami to enjoy this island, it’s hard not to getaway for a quick weekend.

We feel lucky to have visited 6 of the hotels on the traveler’s choice Caribbean luxury list and have a stay planned at another hotel on the list later this year, on points of course.

Sign up to have blog posts sent directly via email, join us on Twitter and Facebook or check back with us at Points, Miles & Martinis

I’ve confirmed with my sources that the huge 100,000 bonus Avios points offer from British Airways will expire on June 7th. In the past, we’ve shared how powerful Avios points can be with both short and long haul flights. When you can get a one-way ticket for as little as 4,500 Avios points, it is… continue reading

Delta won the best redemption promotion at the Freddie Awards but they are still one of the most difficult programs to find international business class low level awards. The program weakness is exacerbated when looking for business awards to Asia. But I will give them a nod for having good partners and plenty of ways… continue reading

We fell in love with British Airways Avios points after our first short haul award redemption. But what if you don’t have enough points for an award? Did you know that British Airways allows members to pool their points among family members? The easiest thing to do is to set up a household account and… continue reading

It’s been almost 6 full weeks since my last international (points-funded) trip and I am getting antsy. What better time for a ridiculous routing award through South America and into the middle of the Pacific Ocean! It was a sad day for me last year when British Airways transitioned to Avios.  While there are some… continue reading

British Airways Executive Club has teamed up with eight hotel partners allowing members to convert hotel points to Avios Points. For a limited time, the hotel to Avios point conversions will provide a 25% bonus. I’ve mentioned a few times how valuable hotel and airline programs can be, so it’s important to consider the conversion… continue reading

We first acquired the British Airways credit card back in 2009 when they offered a 100,000 mile (expired) bonus offer. Since then, British Airways changed their award program from miles to Avios points forever changing British Airways awards. With the new program comes a new bonus credit card offer and new ways to redeem your points…. continue reading

A few weeks ago, I mentioned how the sky is not falling with the Chase credit card sign up bonuses. We shared how the New Ink Bold offer was staying at 50,000 points even though the Sapphire Preferred offer was being lowered to a 40,000 point offer. The current offer will be removed on Wednesday,… continue reading

I have been spending a lot of time lately booking tickets for clients. In doing so, I collaborate often with the The Weekly Flyer discussing our techniques. This week we were discussing using Avios for short haul American Airlines flights and he pointed out that I have quite an unorthodox way of developing routings so… continue reading

Mrs Weekly Flyer takes a practical approach to selecting her credit cards. I on the other hand, focus on getting it in and keeping it in my wallet. She knows that credit card sign up bonuses play a big part in our ability to take dream vacations to places like the Seychelles, Paris, Mauritius, Bora Bora… continue reading