A Luxurious Honeymoon at the Royalton Punta Cana
First, let me say, I need to apologize to all my readers for not keeping my blog up to date. There really is no excuse, but there has been a shit load of craziness that has occupied my life for the past year and a half; including a major key alert – I’M MARRIED!
Yes, Lawrence and I finally exchanged vows on July 29, 2017 at Noah’s Event Venue in New Albany and we are now officially husband and wife, as Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Pelt. We were so blessed to have such a beautiful ceremony led by Pastor Luke Ahrens from Vertical Church Columbus as we shared this day with family and friends. I'm still amazed at how fast the day went.
We are so grateful for everyone’s love and support, and are happy to begin this new chapter in our lives. We promise a more detailed blog post will be provided later once we receive our professional wedding photos and video. We believe we hired the best talent to capture our day and are so excited to share it with you all.
After a long weekend celebrated with family and friends who traveled near and far, we knew we were ready for our honeymoon. Thankfully, we had our luggage already packed and we were ready to hop on a flight and travel back down to the beach, sand and warm weather.
We stayed at an all-inclusive resort, the Royalton Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic for nine nights and ten days. Previously, we stayed at The Reserve at Paradisus Palma Real which was absolutely breathtaking and you can read about our experience here. This time around, we tried to be cost-friendly, but also wanted a luxurious stay since our visit would be much longer. Also, this was the country where Lawrence proposed so it definitely brought back great memories.
When we arrived at our resort, we were immediately greeted with cold, wet towels, champagne toasts, and a warm welcome by guest services. We checked into Diamond Club and were taken back by the ocean views from the main entrance. For just a moment, as we waited on our room to be ready, we sat on a couch near the bar and just took in the smell, the humidity and each other. It was perfect.
Royalton Punta Cana Resort & Casino is an exclusive family and couples-oriented hotel that features modern décor, beautiful landscaping, and a luxurious private beach. The staff and butler service was excellent and we would definitely recommend this resort to couples looking for a cost-friendly honeymoon.
We booked a room that included a luxury swim-out pool located 30 ft. from the ocean and five feet from the beach which meant it took just seconds to sink our feet into that white sand. It was pure paradise. Everyday our agenda included the beach, pool, a 1-hour hydrotherapy session, and great food and drinks (more specifically lime, mint mojitos and Presidentes “a common Dominican beer”).
We also shared the occasional Mama Juana shot together in the evenings during and after dinner. It was fun to share in the experience with our bartenders, who constantly encouraged one shot after the other. Mama Juana is an aphrodisiac, so be careful my friends. It's made with herbs, spices, rum, honey and special island ingredients.
The locals also say it cures hangovers, cancer, diabetes, and even world hunger. It’s the problem solver for everything in Punta Cana. If only life were that easy, and it was, even if we only got to experience it for just that brief moment.
Whenever we travel, we always like to venture off and experience the country we’re visiting. This time we decided to do a cultural excursion called, “Go Yuma – Raw Culture” hosted by our tour guide, Americo at Outback Adventures.
Through this excursion we were able to:
Visit a medicinal garden at a local resident's home
Taste fresh local fruit and brewed herb tea
Walk through the museum of Juan Ponce de Leon’s home (the man who discovered Florida)
Travel by boat to experience a water bird sanctuary
Eat lunch at an ocean view restaurant
Watch how handmade cigars were rolled along with smoking a fresh cigar with the owner
Drive through the buzzing city of Higuey and visited a local boy’s shelter where we donated school supplies
During our tour, we met a beautiful couple from Philly who recently got engaged, Tina and Mike. We shared great conversation with them during our 8-hour tour and we would like to wish them happy wedding planning and congratulations on their upcoming nuptials. Marriage is so beautiful and we know their day will be amazing! It was great getting to know you both especially with our tour being an intimate group of five.
Lawrence and I both know we are extremely blessed, especially with all the love and support we were surrounded by on our wedding day. We also know that not everyone has accessibility to education, healthcare and basic supplies or toiletries, so instead of hosting a bridal registry, we collected school supplies to donate to the Boy's Shelter in Higuey (pronounced e-gway) through the "Pack for the Purpose" (PfaP) program.
The PfaP partners with local excursion companies to encourage travelers to pack requested supplies in their extra luggage space. They have opportunities available all over the world. For more information, click here.
While Lawrence and I were walking along the beach one day we ran into a few of my sorors from the illustrious Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated who were staying at the Hard Rock Hotel. The resort had a fun hashtag sign on the beach so we had to take a picture in front of it. Also, it was just nice to get off our resort for awhile and see what other people were doing.
Also, I want to apologize to my mother-in-law because she would not be happy with this photo, but how can you blame me? He looked so handsome in the middle of a beautiful group of women wearing pink and green, don't you agree? I love you, Mrs. Pelt!
Disclaimer: My mother-in-law is a beautiful woman of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.
During our stay, we experienced international cuisine and top-notch drinks at the resort. Lawrence was a huge fan of his morning omelet, while I thoroughly enjoyed eating dessert before dinner every night. The resort had several restaurants to choose from and offered 24-hour room service, which we definitely took advantage of on lazy pool days.
Restaurants + Bars included:
Gourmet Marche – International
Grazie – Italian
Jade – Asian Fusion
Hunter – Steakhouse
Zen – Japanese Steakhouse / Sushi Bar
OPA! – Mediterranean
Diamond Club Beach Bar
Martini Mix Bar
Scoops – Coffee Shop
The resort also partnered with Memories Splash Punta Cana (a sister resort nearby) which Royalton guests had full-access too (including the waterpark which was a lot of fun).
If my husband could tell you his favorite place on the resort, he would say the spa. We enjoyed a 50-minute Swedish massage the day before we left, but a luxury service of the Diamond Club was that you could use the Hydrotherapy Suite everyday for an hour.
This included: the stone-coal sauna, a steam room, a hot tub, and a hydrotherapy pool. We always had the place to ourselves and we were completely relaxed every single time. This experience will definitely be missed; I'm actually missing it right now as I type this out. Ugh! Take us back.
Our honeymoon was a vacation we'll always remember and I'm so happy Lawrence and I were able to share this beautiful experience together. It was the perfect time away after a long year of wedding planning.
Lawrence, I love you more, always. I am so blessed to be your wife and I am excited to grow old together. More than anything, I am ready to build a family and look forward to many more adventures. I know our love for travel will keep us young. This is just the beginning.
For those interested in booking with this resort, please see details below. This was not a sponsored post and I am not getting paid for my opinion. Happy travels everyone!
Hotel Details:
Royalton Punta Cana Resort
All Inclusive Resort in the Dominican Republic
1-888-774 0040 or (305) 774-0040
Website: www.royaltonpuntacanaresort.com
*Traveler’s Note: There is a Level II Travel Alert for the Zika Virus which has been reported in several countries throughout the Caribbean. Please visit the CDC website, www.cdc.gov/zika/ if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant before traveling to any of the affected areas.