Bliss Honeymoons Featured in Caribbean Journal for Launching a Dedicated Sober Travel Program

We have some exciting news to share. Bliss Honeymoons & Destination Weddings was recently featured in Caribbean Journal — one of the travel industry's most respected publications covering the Caribbean and Mexico — for the launch of our new Sober Travel Program and the hiring of veteran travel writer and journalist Joe Pike to lead it.

It's a milestone we're genuinely proud of, and we wanted to take a moment to share the full story behind it.

Why We Launched a Sober Travel Program

When we launched the Bliss Sober Travel Program in April, the goal was straightforward: to fill a genuine gap in the romance travel market. Sober and sober-curious couples — as well as couples where one partner drinks and the other doesn't — deserve the same quality of expert, personalized travel planning that any other couple receives. For too long, the default assumption in the honeymoon and romance travel industry has been that everyone drinks, and that the bar program is a central feature of any resort experience.

That's simply not true for a growing number of couples. And the best destinations, the most beautiful resorts, the most extraordinary experiences — the snorkeling, the sunsets, the private beach dinners, the volcano hikes, the cooking classes — have nothing to do with alcohol. They belong to everyone.

Introducing Joe Pike: Our Sober Travel Specialist

To lead this program, we knew we needed someone with genuine, deep expertise in the destinations we serve — not just familiarity, but two decades of professional immersion in Caribbean and Mexican travel. We found exactly that in Joe Pike.

Joe is a veteran travel writer and journalist who has spent 20 years covering the Caribbean and Mexico. He has been a regular contributor to Caribbean Journal since 2019 — which is part of what made the feature feel like such a natural fit. He spent 12 years at Questex Media Group, including a decade as senior editor and Caribbean expert for Travel Agent magazine, where he also covered Mexico, Central and South America, Bermuda, and Hawaii. He later served as senior editor and director of the Millennial Travel Forum at travAlliancemedia and TravelPulse, and has written for Travel Market Report and Insider Travel Report.

His work has earned a string of industry honors: the Jamaica Tourist Board's Marcia Vickery-Wallace Memorial Award for Excellence in Travel Journalism in 2009, and the Caribbean Tourism Organization's Inner Circle King Award for Best Feature Article in a Trade Publication in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2016. His feature on marketing the Caribbean to the LGBTQ market won top prize at the Caribbean Tourism Organization's Caribbean Travel Media Awards in 2016. He holds a master's degree in newspaper, magazine and online journalism from Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

Joe's Training at Bliss

Joe is currently completing Bliss's in-house training program, led by our advisor Kelly Chartrand. He is expected to complete his certification toward the end of June, after which couples will be able to book Caribbean and Mexican getaways directly with him.

Kelly, who leads the training program for all new Bliss advisors, put it well in the Caribbean Journal feature: "Our training goes far beyond destinations and resorts. I teach every new advisor how to listen, anticipate a couple's needs, and design trips around genuine connection."

That philosophy — designing trips around connection, not just logistics — is exactly what the sober travel program is built on. Joe brings the destination knowledge. Bliss provides the framework for translating that knowledge into trips that actually feel personal.

What the Sober Travel Program Covers

Our sober travel planning stands apart because our recommendations are grounded in direct resort experience, pre-arrival communication with concierge teams, and a real understanding of the full spectrum of sober travel — from sober-curious couples exploring what an alcohol-free vacation feels like, to couples in long-term sobriety for whom feeling comfortable and fully at ease at their resort is non-negotiable.

We also specialize in planning for mixed couples — where one partner drinks and the other doesn't — helping both feel equally at home at the chosen property. This is a nuance that generic travel planning often misses entirely.

• Sober-friendly resort selection across the Caribbean, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Europe — properties where wellness, atmosphere, and guest culture support an alcohol-free experience.
• Zero-proof beverage programs — we know which resorts have genuinely excellent mocktail menus and non-alcoholic spirit options, and which ones treat a soda water as the only alternative.
• Activity-forward itineraries built around excursions, nature, wellness, food, and genuine experience — not the bar program.
• Mixed-couple planning that ensures both partners feel celebrated and comfortable throughout the trip.
• Destination wedding planning for sober and sober-curious couples, including venue selection and vendor coordination that respects your guests' full range of needs.

A Note from Laura

Being featured in Caribbean Journal means a great deal to us. It's a publication that the travel industry takes seriously, read by agents, advisors, and travel professionals across the Caribbean and beyond. For Bliss to appear in it — in connection with a program we believe is genuinely needed and genuinely good — is meaningful.

We started this program because we kept hearing from couples who felt unseen by the travel industry. Who assumed a luxury honeymoon wasn't really for them because every resort ad features a champagne toast. Who didn't know how to ask a travel advisor about sobriety because they weren't sure they'd be understood.

We understand. And Joe Pike — with 20 years of Caribbean expertise, and a personal commitment to getting this right — is exactly the right person to help us serve them.

We're grateful to Caribbean Journal for telling that story.

— Laura Frazier, Owner & Founder, Bliss Honeymoons