WEDDING DESTINATIONS

IMAGINE ELOPING By Amanda Jones

One of you just popped the question, the other agreed and the euphoria of lifelong commitments has set in. . . . Ah, but you are still an innocent, you have no idea of what is to come. The ugly truth about the cost of getting married is yet to be revealed. The average-budget wedding, according to most professional wedding planners, costs about US$30,000 - and that's with average food, average dress, average flowers, average music - in short: nothing special.
So, has the thought of elopement ever occurred to you? Imagine where you could go, where you could stay, what you could eat and drink for HALF the $30,000. . . Or, for ONE THIRD of the $30,000?

COCONUTS BEACH CLUB, UPOLU ISLAND, SAMOA

If your style is barefoot on a beach somewhere far, far away - would Samoa do? The island of Upolu is lush and pristine, abundant with waterfalls and white sandy beaches. And, it has a fine beachside resort - the casually elegant, American-owned "Coconuts." You can take a few family and friends, or, (here's a concept), go alone. Although you can get married perfectly legally by a Samoan Methodist minister or a secular celebrant, consider the exotic option of being joined by a local chief, (who also happens to be the late-night bartender at Coconuts), in a traditional Samoan ceremony. Chief Papali'i, wearing his bark cloth LAVA LAVA (wraparound skirt), presides; the best man is Sila, the tour guide, and Alofa, the hotel manager's pretty girlfriend, stands in as bridesmaid. Get the fireknife dancers (more skilled than anything you've ever seen in Hawaii) and traditional string band to perform afterward as you snack on your lobster feast by tiki light.

Coconuts Beach Club & Resort. Phone (685) 24849; Fax (685) 20071, E-Mail: reservations@coconuts.ws Room rates: US$99 - $299; website: www.coconutsbeachclubsamoa.com

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