The Vero Beach Hotel & Spa, Disney's Vero Beach Resort, and Costa d'Este Beach Resort hosted our accommodations. We stayed at Gloria Estefan's Costa d'Este Beach Resort. The resort was full of South Beach style!
The rooms were super modern and utilized lots of natural materials. We were greeted with Cuban pastries and a goodie bag filled with lots of great souvenirs and goodies!
And, this was our breathtaking view!
The first activity of the three day event was a Meet and Greet Cocktail Party at the Vero Beach Hotel & Spa, a surely luxurious locale! It was so overwhelming to meet planners from all over the U.S.! It was so great to have this time to learn about everyone!
On the second day we were invited to enjoy brunch at the Vero Beach Holiday Inn, and then headed out for a boat ride on Indian River. We were treated to a VIP tour of a private island, where they can host small weddings. Some dolphins even joined us on the ride back.
After an eventful morning, we headed back to Costa D'Este for a formal lunch with amazing centerpieces by Mystique Flowers. Our lunch was filled with lots of memorable experiences and surprises!
Susan Moynihan, editor in chief of Destination Weddings and Honeymoons magazine spoke about the trends for destination weddings. We were also surprised to hear that Florida is now the top destination wedding location in the United States, beating out Hawaii & Nevada.
Grace Ormonde, of Wedding Style Magazine, stopped by in the middle of her national book tour, to do a private book signing for us. The Indian River Chamber gifted us all Grace's new book, "Grace Ormonde Weddings: Being In Love Never Goes Out of Style."
After lunch, we were all treated to a glass of Dom Perignon to toast her new book!
Each of us, had our own moment to meet Grace and have our book signed by her. She asked me about my business, and I mentioned that I'm an event designer, with a background in Interior Design. She winked and told me that I had to send her photos! How exciting, and what an honor!
Our day continued with a tour of the historical McKee Botanical Gardens, and a stop by the Hall of Giants, which houses a table made from the largest single piece of mahogany in the world.
To round out our second day, we enjoyed a Cocktail Party, designed by the Event Firm. The event was originally setup poolside, but was very suddenly forced inside due to a rainstorm. There was an array of different stations, including a complete dessert station provided by Frosting Cupcakes. The bar was serving orange mojitos and they were delicious!
After dinner, we relaxed in the lounge area and danced into the wee hours of the morning to the sounds of DJ Sarli.
Luckily our last day had a late morning start, because all of us were in recovery mode from the party the night before. Disney's Vero Beach Resort provided bloody marys and mimosas, and a full brunch buffet!
Surprisingly, the most powerful presentation was by Rebecca Grinnals, of Engaging Concepts. She is such an intelligent and motivational woman! Her knowledge of the wedding industry is undeniable!
Thank you so much to everyone that made the Come Discover Love event a success! We enjoyed learning all about the Vero Beach area, and look forward to planning some amazing events there!
Images courtesy of PS Photography, Costa D'Este, and a few from us! :)
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