Every honeymoon couples wants their “escape” to be magical, memorable, and stress-free, but with a life-threatening food allergy to contend with, the #1 item on Allison and Greg’s wish list was to be able to eat/drink at an all-inclusive resort without worrying about a medical crisis. We chose a Sandals resort in St Lucia, because of Sandals’ strong track record in accommodating special dietary needs, and they were able to relax and enjoy their honeymoon knowing that they were in good hands!

Hi Ann,

We had a fantastic time on our honeymoon.  I’ll break my email up into sections to make it easier!

Resort

The resort (Sandals Halcyon Beach) was perfect for us- quiet, romantic, and tropical.  It was exactly what we envisioned.

Dietary needs

Sandals was amazing with my dietary restrictions.  Within five minutes of arriving at the resort, the executive chef was waiting to meet me.  We discussed all of my concerns then and he went over the restaurant options and menus.  All of the waitstaff was extremely cautious as well.  The first question the servers asked was “are there any food allergies at the table” so even if I had not warned them, I would have been fine.  I ate great all week without being sick.

Sandals Honeymoon Registry

We did a lot of great excursions through the Sandals Honeymoon Registry, which I would definitely recommend.  They had prebooked everything for us, but were open to changing them if needed.  This took a lot of stress out of the registry process.  Unlike others, you didn’t have to estimate how much the excursions were, find a place to do them, get the money from the registry, pay for the excursion, and then book it yourself. Everything was taken care of.

Excursions

The excursions/extras we did were: Zip Lining, Soufriere Jeep Tour, Piton Sunset Cruise, Couples Massage, and the Private Candlelit dinner.  We absolutely loved every single one.

Zip Lining

We did it with Tree Top, who is #1 on TripAdvisor.  This was through the Honeymoon Registry.  They were great. Everyone was assigned a “guide” who assisted during the excursion.  Our guide took great photographs and videos for us.  The zip lining course was awesome.  There were 12 lines, each of different heights, lengths, and speeds. I was totally petrified before doing it, but I got over it and had so much fun.  The views of the rain forest were gorgeous as well.

Soufriere Jeep Tour

This was from our registry as well and was our favorite.  We were picked up at the resort in a big open air jeep and were able to stand in the back. We viewed the Pitons, went to the Sulphur Springs, went to a waterfall, ate lunch at a local restaurant, and stopped in a lot of towns/villages.  We really felt like we got to see so much of St. Lucia.  The views were breathtaking and we had so much fun at each stop.

Piton Sunset

This was on our registry, but not purchased, so we used the Tour credit we got when we booked the honeymoon.  Also a very fun excursion.  We took the large catamaran out to the Pitons, snorkeled between the Pitons, and then sailed back.  The sail to the Pitons was relaxing and scenic, while the ride home became a party with a DJ and rum punch!

Couples Massage

One of the best massages I have had!  The massages are all done in gazebos outside throughout the resort.  It was very romantic, with candles that we got to pick the scent of, and take home for a souvenir.

Private Candlelit Dinner

A can’t miss!  The food was exquisite and the service was excellent.  You can choose to have the dinner on the beach or in a gazebo. We chose a gazebo because of the rain.  We had a private server.  It was a four course meal, with a bottle of champagne (and other drinks if you wanted) and a rose.  Very romantic!! We just loved it!

Weather

I know I voiced our concerns about the weather before we left.  It was definitely rainy! Not so much like Florida.  It rained almost every day we were there.  A few days it rained all day long.  Friday was a complete wash out, the towns were flooded, the shuttles were canceled between resorts, and the beaches were a mess with debris.  Even the locals were amazed with how much it was raining.  For this reason, I would probably not suggest St. Lucia during this time of the year, although of course overall we would highly recommend St. Lucia.  We made the most of our trip and didn’t let the rain affect us at all, but a lot of guests were complaining!

Airline

We had a good experience flying into St. Lucia, but the trip home was horrible.  The shuttle got us to the airport very early, so we waited forever!! Then when we landed in Miami, they didn’t have a gate for us so we sat on the tarmac for over an hour.  We had to rush through customs and security.  We made out connecting flight with honestly not a moment to spare.  We boarded, but then were delayed because of a missing lifejacket.  By the time we were at our house, it had been 14 hours of traveling!  We seem to always have problems with American Airlines like this and probably won’t fly with them again.

I hope this all helps! Let me know if you have any other questions! Thank you again for helping us plan our dream honeymoon!!!!