18 THE BEST OF MONTEREY BAY ® WEDDING GUIDE 2025-2026 DESTINATION Like every cliché, some version of “It’s about the journey, not the destination” is often said with a sort of knowing wisdom, as if the speaker spent hours meditating in a cave or something to arrive at that pearl, when in fact it’s been uttered countless times before. Add to that, it’s often not true: If one has to drive two hours to an airport, arriving two hours before an eight-hour flight, perhaps with a layover, then if one takes more from the journey, well, it’s probably best to rethink the destination. Because if one does the proper research, it should be about the destination—the world is filled with extraordinary places, which is why destination weddings are so popular. Most people don’t live in such places, and even if they do (like Monterey County residents), their familiarity might make it less exciting, and someplace further afield might feel more enticing for the soon-to-be newlyweds. All that said, whether one lives in Monterey County or not, it is a destination, and for local wedding planners, organizing the perfect wedding for couples from afar, often out of state, is their bread and butter. For Kate Ford, the owner, planner and designer at Kate Ford Events, which specializes in weddings on the Monterey Peninsula and in Carmel Valley and Big Sur, about 90 percent of her clients are not local. “Sometimes they have ties to here, like a family Far and Wed Monterey County is a hotspot for destination weddings, and local planners help keep it that way. By David Schmalz MICHAEL DADULA EVYNN LEVALLEY PHOTOGRAPHY
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