Just married? Well, lucky you. If you enjoyed yourself so much, you could marry all over again – or you and your other half are simply looking to make a solemn promise among your beloved ones in a romantic environment – doing so has never been easier, or indeed, more on-trend.
Tying the knot in a symbolic ceremony in a tropical setting halfway across the planet is, of course, a memorable experience. In fact, we remember our first destination wedding (well, not ‘ours’, you know what we mean) like it was yesterday – despite a not inconsiderable amount of Balinese rice wine that simply called for our attention everywhere we set foot. But when it comes to finding an abode that’s as welcoming as it is luxurious, our community can run into challenges on the way to the altar. This is where Secret Retreats, a collection of over 100 independent boutique hotels, residences and cruises all across Asia comes into play.
Not only are many of the properties they represent clearly marked LGBT-friendly, but they can now also be booked for magical and intimate ceremonies. For instance, why not put a ring on the Villa Song Saigon, an ivory-coloured four-star property beautifully nestled along the Saigon River just east of Ho Chi Minh City? Given, we’d say ‘I do’ to just about anything that involved a palm-fringed saltwater pool and the scent of plumeria submerged in mid-air, but if unlike us, you needed more time to contemplate, there’s always the option of a 60-minute banana body wrap in the on-site spa.
Still unconvinced? Secret Retreats’ exclusive property catalogue for the romantically inclined also includes the Aava Resort & Spa in Thailand’s unspoiled Surat Thani region, Bali’s Villa Mathis and the distinctively Javanese Mesastila Resort & Spa among other LGBT-friendly hotels. Because why not turn your big day into a big holiday?
Photography courtesy of Villa Song Saigon
