Since most of our friends and family are coming from the mainland anyway, we decided that we should make a vacation out of our wedding as well. Our wedding will take place Sayulita, Mexico, a beautiful little beach town about an hour outside of Puerto Vallarta.

Sayulita is known around the world as surf and yoga beach town, and has everything from health cafes to nightlife to beach cruises and yoga. It is the perfect place to bring together all the people we love, in a tiny town where you will run into each of us on the streets.

We are going to get to Mexico about a week before the wedding to prep. Feel free to come early to make a vacation out of it, or just come for the weekend festivities. The option is yours.

Here is what we recommend before boarding your flight!

1. Make sure your passport is up to date. As a best practice, your expiration date shouldn't fall within 6 months of travel - some airlines can prevent you from boarding.

2. Budget and bring cash with you, as much as you think you will need for your trip. There are ATMs around town but they often have high exchange rates. As far as restaurants, shops, and clubs, it is about 50:50 for accepting only cash vs. cash or card. We recommend bringing cash with you, keeping it in a secure place in your accommodations, and pulling out cash for your day to day needs.

3. Speaking of, tell your bank and credit card you're traveling internationally if you plan to use your debit/credit card. This is one way to prevent them from stopping purchases while you're there.

4. Exchange your cash for pesos in a U.S. airport in the international terminal. You may have the opportunity exchange in the Puerto Vallarta airport, depending on your arrival time.

5. Connectivity. Sayulita has ample free wifi at most accommodations, restuarants, and coworking spaces. Nearly all local communication will take place via WhatsApp with drivers, golf cart rentals, and our groups. We recommend getting an international plan for your trip to send texts and access data and online platforms. It's not necessary, but simply easier that way.

What to bring

April in Sayulita ranges between 70 and 90 degrees F, with minimal rainfall and some humidity. Please pack accordingly! This is a beach town and a coastal wedding, and not a black tie occasion. We recommend beach and aloha attire and comfortable clothes. The wedding ceremony and reception will be on grass, not sand, so you can keep your shoes on :)

Donʻt forget:

- Reef safe sunscreen

- Swimwear

- Reusable water bottle

- Sandals

- Sun hat

- Beach bag

Sayulita is nearly 1500 miles from the California-Mexico border, so we recommend flying into Puerto Vallarta Ordaz (PVR), the closest airport. The next closest airport is about three times further.

Once you land, you will have to get to Sayulita which is about an hour drive away through a beautiful, albeit winding, jungle road. There are a few options in getting to Sayulita.

- Plan ahead with a car service. There are tons of car services available online that you can schedule in advance. Taxi drivers, vans, and big car services are also outside the airport offering rides whenever an inbound US flight lands, but reserving one in advance is smartest so you donʻt get overcharged. Make sure to confirm they take card or cash. If you arrive during the day time, there is another opportunity to exchange USD for pesos at the airport.

- We have numerous personal contacts down there that we can connect you with for a ride. Additionally, our wedding planner will also have recommendations.

Sayulita has amazing and incredibly unique accommodations! We cant wait to see where you choose.

Something incredible about Sayulita is there are no large resorts (yet). The options include Airbnbs, boutique style hotels, villas, and they are extremely affordable and often come with a pool. We recommend an Airbnb close to the town square or the beach, as you can likely get something beautiful for under $100 a night. Some examples from Airbnb are below.

If you are looking for a hotel, resort, or something Sayulita town doesn't offer, we recommend staying at the nice hotels in Punta Mita (15 minutes away by car). Feel free to ask our advice on what airbnb/location we recommend!

The beauty of Sayulita accommodations is that there are places to stay for any budget... and they are all equally amazing! We will be staying on the west side of town, or the south side of the beach, at Villa Amor. This is a quieter part of town with "fancier," villas owned by boutique hotels. If you are looking for that experience, rather than lively town center, join us at Villa Amor or nearby. If you would like to stay here, please contact us so we can assign you a room if they are still available. There will be tradeoffs to where you are staying. If you choose somewhere a little further from town center it will definitely take longer for you to get from your accommodations to the festivities, and we recommend getting transportation (golf cart). On the other hand, if you are right in the middle of the town square, you may hear the nightlife. Check out the Airbnb descriptions, reviews, look at it on a map and choose what best suits your needs.

If you are coming with a group, we advise looking into staying at the same place. Most of these Airbnb's or boutique hotels are large compounds split into multiple units so it would really fun to take over a compound.

It's important to note the size of this town is so small that wherever you stay - you will be within a 5-10 minute golf cart ride of anyone else.

Here are some things you are going to want to keep in mind, given we are not in the United States anymore:

- Different country means different water. Drinking tap can result in food poisoning (Alex knows that personally). Plan to only drink bottled or filtered water. Many airbnbs and hotels offer this in your accommodation for ~$10 per 5 gallon jug.

- The streets in town center are cobble stone so pack your shoes accordingly.

- On a similar note, while the town itself isn't that large, there is quite a bit of walking from your apartment to the beach to get food to the wedding venue etc. There are also quite a few hills. If this doesn't sound fun, look below at our "transportation," section, and plan to take a golf cart everywhere. We highly recommend renting a golf cart because it makes everything quick and fun.

- As Americans, we often think that things in Mexico will be super affordable. For some things, this is true, but for others it's just as expensive as in the US. Sayulita is known as a "surf yoga town," meaning that health cafes in the area, and food in general is comparable in price to US. Plan your budget accordingly :)

Since Sayulita town is small, the primary form of transportation is through electric golf carts, quads, and walking. We recommend renting a golf cart for the time you'll be there, it's quite easy to zip around and park within walking distance to your destination. You may want to ask your accommodations if there is somewhere you can park your golf cart. The last time we visited, we would just park somewhere around the town square. Depending on how much you drive, you can charge your golf cart at the place you rent it. To be safe, rent in advance. Although, we've only ever rented upon arrival. We would not suggest renting a car for your trip unless you know you want to leave Sayulita town on multiple occasions.

Here are a few golf cart rentals you can call or whatsapp text:

Ocean Golf Carts +52 322 213 4504

Sayulita Golf Car SGC +52 329 291 3322 rent@saygolfcar.com

(can start reserving here in January 2024)

Town Around Golf Carts Rentals +52 329 298 8691

Riviera Golf Carts +52 322 980 0499

As a final note, please know that leaving the country to go to a tiny beach town with less than 5,000 residents will be an adventure you won't forget. The best things in life lay outside our comfort zone. We are so grateful you're choosing to celebrate with us.