
Stefanie & Cody: A Destination Wedding That Exceeded Every Expectation
A Caribbean wedding at Melody Village, Puerto Plata. Stefanie and Cody were nervous at the start. By the end, they said they’d do it all over again.
For years, the conversation was usually about guest numbers. How do we fit everyone in? Can we make room for another twenty guests? Lately, the conversations sound very different. More and more couples come to me with a simple request: keep it small. Twenty guests, sometimes even fewer.
What many people don’t realize is that some of the most exceptional weddings I plan are also the most intimate.
When you’re hosting twenty people instead of one hundred, the focus shifts. The budget stretches further. The experience becomes more personal. And couples gain the freedom to prioritize what matters most to them.
In the Dominican Republic, intimate destination weddings are no longer simply a practical choice. For many couples, they have become the most intentional one.
Micro-luxe isn’t simply a small wedding. A small wedding can sometimes feel like a compromise. Micro-luxe is a deliberate choice.
Instead of spreading your budget across 100 guests, you’re concentrating it on 20. The result is often a more elevated experience for everyone involved.
Fewer people. More intention. Better everything.
Spontaneity, mostly. With a small group you can move. A sunrise ceremony on an empty beach. A long lunch that turns into an afternoon swim. A dinner that lasts for hours because nobody’s rushing anywhere.
Large weddings run on a schedule. Small weddings run on a feeling.
It’s not for everyone. If your family is large and close-knit, limiting the guest list to 20 may cause more challanges that it solves.But if you’ve ever looked at a 120-person guest list and felt tired instead of excited, that’s worth paying attention to. You’re allowed to have the small, beautiful, ridiculously well-done wedding. Some of my favorite couples did exactly that.
If you’re planning a destination wedding in the Dominican Republic and want clarity before committing to a resort package (Click here) , working with a local planner early can change the entire experience.
You don’t need more options.
You need the right structure.
Contact us for more information: hello@anniroth.com
See other interesting Blogposts:
Planning the big version? Here's what 100 guests truly demands — logistics, venues, budget — before you commit.
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The real luxury at a destination wedding isn't the venue or the flowers. It's how your guests feel — and what they remember.
Click here
A Caribbean wedding at Melody Village, Puerto Plata. Stefanie and Cody were nervous at the start. By the end, they said they’d do it all over again.

Some weddings stay in your memory because everything went perfectly. Others stay because something almost went wrong — and didn’t. Simona and Tautvydas flew to the Dominican Republic from Lithuania to get married on November 11th, 2023. They had planned for months. They had a vision. They had everything ready. What they didn’t have, when they landed, was their luggage.

It always begins with a vision, something effortless, beautiful, and deeply intentional. Maybe it’s a beachfront ceremony in Punta Cana, a stylish villa weekend in Las Terrenas, a cultural celebration in Santo Domingo, or something more intimate, like the mountains of Jarabacoa or the untouched beaches of Las Galeras.

It always begins with a vision, something effortless, beautiful, and deeply intentional. Maybe it’s a beachfront ceremony in Punta Cana, a stylish villa weekend in Las Terrenas, a cultural celebration in Santo Domingo, or something more intimate, like the mountains of Jarabacoa or the untouched beaches of Las Galeras.

There’s a moment at almost every destination wedding when everything becomes very clear. It’s not during the ceremony. Not during the first dance. Not even when the sun sets perfectly over the ocean in Punta Cana or Las Terrenas. It’s usually later—when guests are sitting together, barefoot in the sand, a drink in hand, laughing with people they met just two days ago.

Planning a simple beach wedding in Punta Cana, Las Terrenas, or Cabarete? Discover the hidden costs couples often overlook—and how to plan it right.