The average honeymoon lasts 5 to 7 days and the average cost is $4000. This is a good reference point when starting to plan your budget. The following should help you get started on planning , setting your budget & what direction to head for your dream honeymoon!

Start with how long do you have to honeymoon after the wedding week. Do you have out of town guests that you need to entertain after the wedding date? Can you leave Sunday or Monday? When do you need to return (typically to get back to the real world and work)?

When is your big day? Travel has peak seasons where prices are significantly higher than other times of year including spring break and the Christmas holiday season. You will need a bigger budget during these timeframes vs. other times for the same location & resort!

Do you want to leave the country?  It is necessary at this point to have a passport to fly – First time applications are $75 Plus a processing fee.

Are you a 3-star or 5-star property person? Is it important that your room have a view of the ocean or OK to be garden view?  Do you plan to sit on the beach all day or venture out on excursions daily? Will you need a rental car where you are going or can you get a shuttle from the airport? All these components will affect your budget.

If you are on a tight budget or want to know in advance just how much a trip will cost, All-Inclusive options are a great choice! A-Is are available throughout the Caribbean and Mexico. Your stay, food, beverages, gratuities, taxes & many on-property activities including snorkeling are included in your price upfront! No worries about how much your spending while on vacation – you have already got it covered!

Travel insurance is a must for honeymooners. The cost for such coverage is minimal compared to having to buy replacement air tickets, new wardrobes for lost baggage or needing medical care wherever you are! The fee will vary with your age, length of stay and cost of trip.  A cancel for any reason policy (also a good idea!) for a couple under 30 years old for the average honeymoon is $298 or less.

DYIs -  please be careful if booking on-line specials. These are typically run-of-house rooms – meaning poor view or last of the lot. Often the airfare is not a great itinerary costing you time that can be avoided. If they have oversold the property you may get bumped to a property you’ve not even heard of let alone researched! This is your special day, don’t save a buck and cause your honeymoon to be memorable for the wrong reasons.

We Want To Sing You A Love Song!

Anne Murray sang in 1974, “I wanna sing you a love song….”. That’s the desire of all of the talented professional musicians and vocalists that perform “live” for weddings and events in the Valley of the Sun. These performers are there to sing and play for you. And, as Shakespeare so beautifully wrote: “If music be the food of love, play on”!

Whether for your wedding ceremony, cocktail reception and/or dinner reception, live music creates an extraordinary atmosphere that elevates the entire experience by adding a soundscape designed with you, the bride and groom, in mind. Live Music is an art form that is created and enjoyed in the moment, instantly lifting your emotions and senses as the experience of your event unfolds. Live Music connects with the emotions and energy of the bride and groom as well as the guests. The joy of your event is tangible as the performers and their music enliven the ambiance. You can feel the energy of Live Music- music created in the moment- and the memory of these magical musical moments can last forever!

Live Music has been a part of life’s celebrations forever! Music history teaches us that music is a very important element in sacred religious services, including the marriage ceremony. Unaccompanied voice was the first instrument used in early sacred music. Performance styles were very restricted depending on the time period and music creation had very stringent guidelines and practices. The Church allowed only sacred texts to be set to music. This music was passed down from performer to performer and was not notated. At first, hauntingly beautiful and simple (in terms of composition) single line vocal melodies were performed. As time progressed another voice, as a sustained note (or chant drone), was added below the melody and basic harmony was then created. Music composition and performance changed over time as single line melodies developed into melodies with harmony by adding complementary notes to the melody played in exact rhythm. From simple harmony, music became more intricate with the use of inter-woven melodies that created harmony by their movements and the “rules” of music composition were expanded.

Secular music (music for use outside of the church), especially songs of love, became more and more popular and was performed usually by a stringed instrument called a lute (the predecessor to the guitar), which was also used to accompany the voice. Over time, keyboard and orchestral instruments were added to sacred and popular music performance. Though “early music” was very beautiful, contemporary music performance today encompasses a wide and varied range of musical styles and performance mediums. Performers today are always adding something new and fresh into the mix and this can be very exciting to hear. Anything goes!

The “wedding musicians’” highest purpose is to provide an impressive soundtrack for your most special day. To a professional musician, now as in earlier times, being in the moment of this musical creation is always an absolutely awesome experience! Professional musicians who perform for weddings describe their music as extraordinary, elegant, sophisticated, and beautiful. And that allows you, the bride and groom, to feel exactly that – extraordinary, elegant, sophisticated and beautiful!

Listen online to the Lisa Pressman Ensemble at http://www.opusfromus.com/events . Contact Lisa at lisa@opusfromus.com