The first of many wedding blog posts…
If I had to imagine the perfect wedding week, this one comes close. Beyond the delight of having chips and guacamole on our wedding day, the entire weekend in Cabo was an intimate celebration with our closest friends and family. We made memories that will last a lifetime, and I feel incredibly grateful we finally held the destination wedding we postponed the previous year due to COVID.
Below is a full recap of our eight days in Cabo. I’ll publish separate posts with more photos, vendor details and links soon — the teams we worked with made the weekend truly special. If I miss anything, please leave questions in the comments.
CABO, MEXICO
Cabo has always been a favorite place for Bridger and me. We first visited together ten years ago on a post-high-school trip, and we’ve returned several times since. The warm hospitality, outstanding service, beautiful weather and incredible food keep drawing us back. Bridger proposed at El Arco (The Arch) in October 2019, and that moment made an intimate destination wedding feel right for us. We toured several venues and chose The Cape for its stunning views — including an unforgettable sightline to El Arco where we became engaged — plus the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets.
Throwback to our wedding tasting — the food completely blew us away. It was one of the best meals I’ve ever had.
POSTPONED WEDDING
Planning our wedding was surprisingly smooth and enjoyable. With the help of our planner, everything came together easily despite the usual guest-list uncertainties. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, we made the difficult decision to postpone the Cabo celebration for a year. Rather than cancel everything, we chose to get legally married on the original date in Bridger’s parents’ backyard with seven people present, including our photographer. The day was perfect and, admittedly, I wore jeans — and it felt amazing. That small ceremony actually eased a lot of pressure for the destination wedding and let us relax and enjoy the celebration with our guests.
Getting married that day, on a whim and with a tiny guest list, allowed us to focus on what mattered. When it came time for Cabo, we were able to savor every moment.
OUR BIG WEEKEND
For our big weekend, we planned three main events to make the trip meaningful for guests who traveled to Mexico for us. The schedule gave people time to mingle and get to know one another, so by the last morning, strangers from different parts of our lives were sitting together over breakfast. It felt special to have such a close group of friends and family there to celebrate with us.
DAYS LEADING UP TO THE BIG DAY
One of the best parts was seeing friends and family arrive at the hotel. It’s such a wild and joyful feeling to have people from different chapters of your life gathered in one place. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday we took over a section by the pool at The Cape and spent the days lounging, visiting the rooftop at sunset and enjoying the staff’s excellent service. I was hooked on spicy skinny margaritas the entire weekend.
I like to keep my workout routine on vacation, so each morning before the wedding day I used the hotel gym to stay energized and feel my best. I also packed my Recreation Sweat x Good Sweat resistance bands for compact, intense workouts. After exercising, we enjoyed breakfast with friends staying at the hotel before heading to the pool for the day. The food at The Cape was consistently excellent, and every dish I tried was a standout.
About half our guests stayed at The Cape while others stayed nearby in hotels or Airbnb rentals. A must-see at the property is The Rooftop — it offers unparalleled views and is the perfect spot for sunset drinks.
FRIDAY NIGHT COCKTAIL HOUR
Most guests arrived on Friday, so we hosted a cocktail hour before dinner at the hotel bar. We treated everyone to the first round of spicy skinny margaritas — my signature drink — and loved catching up with friends and family. After dinner we danced on the rooftop until midnight; it felt so joyful and spontaneous.
Top and outfit details noted during the weekend were comfortable and suited to the relaxed, celebratory vibe of the trip.
SATURDAY REHEARSAL DINNER
If you’re in Cabo, make time to visit Acre. It’s a 25-acre sanctuary with an award-winning restaurant, a hotel with treehouses, a pool, a rescue for dogs, several animals and a central mango orchard. We fell in love with Acre during a previous visit and knew it would be the perfect setting for our rehearsal dinner. Guests rode in sprinter vans for the 35-minute drive from The Cape, and the evening felt like a private escape.
We hosted cocktail hour by the pool and dinner in the mango orchard. The long single table under string lights felt cinematic and intimate, and the family-style meal matched the cozy atmosphere. Guests explored the grounds, met baby goats and enjoyed a passionfruit mezcal signature drink during the cocktail hour. More vendor details and photos from the rehearsal dinner will be in a dedicated post soon.
Our planner, Bonnie (Events By Bliss), helped make the weekend flow effortlessly.
One decision I’m very glad we made was to bring our photographer, Marci, from Seattle to capture both the rehearsal dinner and wedding. Her work is priceless and perfectly preserved these moments.
SUNDAY WEDDING DAY
I’ll dedicate a full post to our wedding day with all the details, but briefly: it was the best day of my life. An intimate 40-person destination wedding was everything we hoped for. From our altar we could see El Arco where we got engaged, which made the ceremony feel full-circle. The afternoon brought some haze, which worried me at first, but the clouds cleared in time and we captured golden-hour photos between the ceremony and reception. I’m excited to see the wedding video from our videographer and will share it once it’s ready.
Thank you for following along and celebrating with us. I’m thrilled to share these photos and will be posting more recaps and vendor details soon. Stay tuned — I have so many more moments to share.
xx Rachael