A bachelorette fete complete with wineries and a pink limousine.
By Amanda Parker
If I can give you one piece of advice when it comes to wedding planning it’s this: Let your bridesmaids plan your bachelorette party. I was totally against this at first because I’m a control freak. I wanted a say, I wanted to participate and I felt like I was being left out of a day that involved me. But let me tell you, it was for the best. There’s nothing like a surprise.
At 7:30 a.m. we loaded the cars and headed off to…I had no idea where. We headed towards Connecticut…must be going to the casinos. We passed the casino exits and kept going. Hmm…this is odd. We got off in New London, Connecticut. Odd place for a bachelorette party but whatevs…I’ll go with the flow on this one.
We take a few turns and then I see the sign (yes, like that 90s classic tune) Block Island Ferry! We’re in line at the ferry dock ready to board this little tiny boat that looks like Jaws. The champagne bottle opens and the cocktails begin. I’m clueless and singing, “Sail away on the Block Island Ferry.” (Thinking about it now I looked like a complete idiot, and they all just let it happen.) We’re on our way and about midway through the trip I look around and say, “Now, I know I’m not the smartest when it comes to geography, but I’m pretty sure Block Island is the other way.” They all mock me and call me an idiot so I just keep sipping that champagne. Once we get off the boat we’re getting ready to leave and there’s this massive sign: Welcome to New York! This isn’t Block Island?!?! We were on Long Island and evidently the captain of the ferry said Long Island several times, but I was just too excited to even pay attention.
We go to the hotel and upon our arrival we are greeted with matching anchor shirts and sailor hats. Then a pink (yes PINK) limo pulls up and we all pile in to head to our first winery. We hit three wineries on Saturday and two on Sunday, and we were the talk of them all with our shirts and hats. Random people were taking pictures of us — it was so much fun! Sunday we went to a sparkling wine vineyard, which was my personal favorite. Nothing was missed — personalized wine glasses with an anchor, cheese and crackers were brought along, hangover bags were made (aspirin, makeup remover, hairspray) and Saturday’s dinner on the river was fabulous.
I can’t wait to go back again. It felt like we were in California or somewhere far, far away from Rhode Island.
Having your bridesmaids plan the bachelorette party and surprise is definitely worth it. You have lots to worry about when planning a wedding, and it’s way more fun to be totally surprised than to know every single thing that’s going on.