On Wednesday, Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux surprised about 75 guests with a romantic backyard wedding at their Bel Air home. And after celebrating into the wee hours with their loved ones, the newlyweds jaunted off for what will surely be an unforgettable honeymoon in Bora Bora.
Only they weren’t alone.
After being serenaded by Sia and turning it up on the dance floor nearly all night — with A-list pals including Jimmy Kimmel, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, Jennifer Meyer, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, Lake Bell, Sandra Bullock, Howard Stern and more — the pair hopped a private plane out of Los Angeles headed for their tropical post-nuptial destination.
But at some point in the honeymoon planning, Aniston and Theroux decided they didn’t want the celebration to end at the altar.
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To keep the wedding party going, they invited, well, some of the actual wedding party to tag-along. A source told People magazine that the newlyweds invited friends like Jason Bateman, Chelsea Handler and maid of honor Courteney Cox along because they wanted to bask in the celebratory wedding bliss as long as possible.
It’s an interesting idea, a group honeymoon. I’ve certainly never known anyone who decided to bring travel buddies with them on that special occasion. However, the more I think about it, the more I’m convinced it has its merits.
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While most people don’t bring pals along on their honeymoon, that’s not to say they don’t socialize while on their honeymoon. Sure, everyone spends a great deal of time, ahem, socializing solo, uh, as newlyweds do (wink wink, nudge nudge), in their private seaside cabana or what-have-you.
But nearly every newlywed couple I know came back from their honeymoon having forged new friendships while on the trip. Often, it’s with other couples honeymooning. Sometimes, it’s with a group of locals you simply hit it off with.
So, when you think of it that way, it’s not really that strange that Aniston and Theroux brought along their buddies. Since being a celebrity makes it more difficult for them to socialize with strangers without being swarmed by paparazzi, it makes sense they’d just bring along friends they know, who they love and who understand the intense protection of privacy required.
Besides, it’s not as though Aniston and Theroux haven’t enjoyed some sexy sans-BFF trips. The couple traveled to Bora Bora twice last year alone.
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When thinking of whether I would, at this point in my life, invite friends along for my honeymoon if I were to do it all over again (and could afford to, ha!), I actually kind of like the idea. I imagine my younger bride self would have scoffed at the idea. Back then, my husband was in the military and we could barely squeeze in any time together — I can’t imagine sharing that time with anyone.
Fast forward 13 years later to the present and, yes, I could still certainly do with a little more alone time with my husband. With two kids under the age of 5 and two full-time jobs, we’re sometimes like ships passing in the night.
For those very same reasons, however, it’s hard to find quality time to spend with our friends. We’re all busy; we’re all tired; we’re all hectic. We’d all love to travel more and enjoy more experiences together as a group, but conflicting schedules make the odds of that happening slim to none.
So, you know what? Yeah, I dig it. I’m down with the idea of a group honeymoon. Who’s with me?
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