A Destination Wedding with Toddlers and Grandparents: The Honest Version
A six-event Indian wedding in Mauritius, twin toddlers, a four-year-old and grandparents in tow — the honest story of the best wedding we've ever been to, with a luxury family holiday tacked on as the cherry on top.
Could you actually take twin toddlers, a four-year-old and grandparents to a destination wedding and actually enjoy it? A six-event Indian wedding extravaganza, at that? Turns out — yes. More than that, it'll be the best wedding you ever go to, with a luxury multi-generational family holiday on the end acting as the cherry on top.
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In This Guide:
- Taking Toddlers and Grandparents to a Destination Wedding
- What to Consider: Taking Kids to a Multi-Day Wedding
- Where the Wedding Was: Flic en Flac
- From Wedding to Holiday: Why We Stayed On
- What We Packed
- The Honest Bit
- Planning Your Trip
Taking Toddlers and Grandparents to a Destination Wedding
Mauritius was never on our list. My cousin's fiancée's parents were born there, and she wanted the wedding to pay homage to that. So off we all went — the pull of going somewhere that meant that much to someone, somewhere we'd never have picked for ourselves, was impossible to say no to.
Having now been, I struggle to understand why Mauritius wasn't on our list. It surprised us in the best way. The beaches, the people, the service — but more than anything, the culture. True island vibes, everyone smiling, almost looking at you like: can you believe I live here?! Wild dolphins in the ocean. Fresh seafood sold along the road. Reggaeton fused with South Indian pop blaring from the stereo. This is Mauritius, and this is why RSVPing yes was the best decision we made.
That's the thing nobody tells you about attending a destination wedding with a full multi-generational group in tow: it isn't really about the wedding. It's about being handed a reason to go somewhere you'd never have chosen, with the people you'd want there anyway.
This wasn't one ceremony and a reception. It was an Indian wedding, spread across four days: the mehndi, the haldi, the satak, garba, the wedding ceremony itself, and the reception. Six events. Four days. One hotel. 3 kids. 2 grandparents. And one very large glass of wine required.
The bride's family still has deep roots and a lot of relatives in Mauritius, and that's what made this destination wedding different to ones we'd been to before. This was Mauritius with locals, not around them. They taught us the dance moves for each event as we went — none of us had done this before, and by the end of four days we were doing it properly. Months later, we still catch ourselves singing the songs.
This wasn't just a destination wedding. It was a chance to explore a new country, make some memories with the wider family and introduce our kids to a big Indian wedding. We were probably a bit naïve about the toll 4 days of events can take in one hotel, more on this below, but overall the memories we made were worth every moment of doubt.
What to Consider: Taking Kids to a Multi-Day Wedding
A single wedding day is one thing. Four days of events, back to back, with toddlers and grandparents both in the mix, is a different kind of planning altogether. A few things we hadn't fully thought through going in:
You need to pack a lot. My first real challenge, before we'd even left home, was packing for six events for five people. I have never been so thankful for our Samsonite hard-shell suitcases. I've had mine for over fifteen years — they pack to the brim and the hard shell genuinely protects everything in the suitcase in a way soft-sided luggage never could.
The days are long, and the nights are loud. Between six events across four days, there's very little downtime, and the evening celebrations run properly late with proper sound systems. We hadn't planned for how loud some of it would get for little ears. Take ear protectors.
Mosquitoes love an outdoor event. With it being a destination wedding and all, we were outside in the evening a lot. The fresh sea air was incredible, but boy do the mosquitos have a field day. Go prepared with patches and repellent.
Four days of Indian wedding food is incredible — and, for kids, eventually a lot. The food across the whole event was genuinely outstanding. But by day three or four, the children had had enough of rich, spiced, unfamiliar food at every meal, and we wished we'd planned better for it from day one rather than scrambling on day three. Keep your snack boxes packed and be prepared for Delhi belly.
Long events need proper entertainment, not just a phone. Six events across four days is a lot of sitting, waiting, and being patient for very small people. Writing pads, ipads with stands with plenty downloaded, wireless headphones and plenty of colouring books.
Getting ready for six events, out of two hotel rooms, needs a plan. We had two rooms — my parents in one, my husband and I in the other — and the getting-ready logistics could easily have broken us. We packed smart, using packing cubes to have outfits packed by event not person, saved so much time an stress every day. Our son went to my parents' room each time, since he was the quickest and easiest to get ready, while my nieces stepped in to help me get the twins dressed. It turned five people getting ready into a system rather than a scramble.
Where the Wedding Was: Flic en Flac
The wedding itself was held in Flic en Flac, on Mauritius's west coast — chosen specifically because it's where the bride's family are from. If you're attending a wedding here, you'll most likely be staying in this area for the events themselves; it's worth booking early given how many guests a multi-day wedding like this can bring to one hotel. There's a real range of hotels to meet every budget.
Although not as popular with travellers as some of the other parts of the island, Flic en Flac has lots to offer. Beautiful beaches, the best spot for dolphins and a much more of an authentic feel than some of the high tourist spots. If you're here book the dolphin spotting tour, it's one of the best trips we've ever done.
Use the map to explore accommodation options in the Flic en Flac area
From Wedding to Holiday: Why We Stayed On
The wedding wasn't the whole trip. It was the reason for it.
Once the four days of events finished, we moved on to Constance Belle Mare Plage on the east coast, in the Belle Mare area, for the second half — the family holiday leg we hadn't originally planned around. If you're doing the same thing — attending a wedding in Flic en Flac and extending into a family holiday afterwards — the Belle Mare area is where we'd point you.
If you've read our honest review of where we stayed, or our guide to doing Mauritius with toddlers and grandparents, that's the part of the story this post leads into.
Not every destination wedding needs to be just a wedding. Ours became two trips in one, and it was better for it.
The Master Packing List
For the Wedding
- Glow sticks — genuinely bought us more patience across six events than anything else in the bag.
- Ear protectors — for the children through the louder evening events, once the sound systems really got going.
- Hair wax stick — perfect for little girls hair
Packing
- Hard shell suitcases – these can fit a lot in whilst keeping everything protected
- Packing cubes – pack one cube per event for the kids, will make life so much easier
Sun and Heat
- Wide-brim sun hat — grandparents
- Sun hats (family) — kids
- Sunscreen brush applicator
- Handheld fans
- Clip-on stroller fan
Insect Protection
- Insect repellent patches — kids
- Insect repellent — family
Carrying
Footwear
- Crocs
- Kids Jelly shoes — perfect for the beach and comfortably dresses up any outfit
Electronics for Every Trip
- Slimline battery pack — for the days you're too far from a plug
- Universal travel adaptor — we never travel without ours
Long Day Essentials
The Delhi Belly Kit
- Kids' upset tummy relief
- Travel first aid kit — always, especially in a non-English-speaking country
The Honest Bit
Getting everyone ready — toddlers, a four-year-old, grandparents, ourselves — for six separate events across four days, out of two hotel rooms, was genuinely hard. Not romantic. Not photogenic. Just hard, in the specific way that only a multi-day wedding with small children in the mix can be.
The girls' hair alone nearly undid us most mornings. And by day three, four straight days of rich, unfamiliar food had genuinely worn the kids down, no matter how good it was. It's a small thing to admit, and it's the truest thing in this whole post.
Planning Your Trip
This post covers the wedding leg of a trip that became two. For where we stayed and what we did afterwards, read our Constance Belle Mare Plage review and our honest guide to Mauritius with toddlers and grandparents.
Cloud Kissed Adventures — aspirational but accessible luxury travel for families who refuse to stay home. All recommendations are personal experience: nothing sponsored, everything tested with a three-year-old on my hip and a 72-year-old on hiking poles. This post contains affiliate links for products and services I genuinely used and loved. If you book through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support — it keeps these guides free and detailed for families like yours.
