New trend in destination weddings? Adventure and Machu Picchu!

[Jacquie Whitt]

There is an exciting trend for destination weddings.  Brides and grooms are stepping out of the comfort of all-inclusive resorts around the world, to seek out meaningful "new" venues for their ceremonies in "old sacred places."  Some are willing to hike 30 minutes to 2 hours, hauling dresses and wedding garb, for the chance to stand in the shadow of ancient Inca ruins & snow-capped volcanoes.  Alone with a shaman priest. And each other. 

Although it is not possible to conduct ceremonies in the National Parks, including Machu Picchu, the Sacred Valley is full of ruins and carved stone outcrops where couples can say "I Do."  They can whisper in the ear of the other, or shout at the top of their lungs.  It's their day.  And they can do it their way.

Brides and grooms are trading the "super orchestrated" wedding for a "go with the Incan flow" nature wedding.  The shaman priest organizes the "despacho" for the ceremony.  Coca leaf, chica beer and small sacred items are arranged to honor Pacha Mama and ask her permission for the shaman to conduct the ceremony. 

It's a game-changing collision between a major life event and the trip-of-a lifetime.  It's a wedding, a honeymoon, an epic journey, all bundled into one amazing experience.  

Adios Adventure Travel organizes a 7-day trip including a wedding ceremony, cheaper than the cost of the average wedding in the US.  According to wedding planning website TheKnot, the average cost of a wedding in America last year was roughly the price of a new car, or about $30,000 (excluding the honeymoon). 

The cost of a 7-Day trip to Machu Picchu with a 1 Day wedding ceremony is about $2900 pp including international flights and 3* tourist class hotels.  Even with luxury class hotels the cost for a 7 Day trip tops out at $5000 pp including flights and the ceremony.  This includes guide service, ground transportation, entry fees and train tickets.

For couples who want to share their experience with family members, it's customary for guests to pay their own travel expenses for a destination wedding. 

Next year is looking good for couples craving something deeply meaningful, and profoundly memorable, as the foundation of their lives together.