There Was Dancing Every Night—And a Trinidadian Carnival Party—At This Five-Day Wedding Celebration

Ally Love and Andrew Haynes first met at a New York City club. She—a Peloton instructor who also moonlights as the in-arena Brooklyn Nets host and is the founder of Love Squad, a women’s empowerment community—was in town from Miami and he, a financier, had flown from Trinidad and Tobago, and they were both out on the town with friends. For a long time their relationship was platonic, but eventually it segued into something more.

Ultimately, Andrew proposed in 2020 while they were on vacation at the Rosewood Mayakoba in Mexico. “It’s a really special place for us because we’ve spent a lot of time there with both of our families over the years,” Ally says. “It holds a lot of meaning for the two of us. We were there last December, and on Christmas Eve, we were enjoying dinner on the beach when Andrew let me know that earlier that day he called my mother to ask if it would be okay if he asked me to marry him. And then it happened! He told me he wanted to spend the rest of our lives together and popped the question. I grabbed his face and just said ‘Yes!’”

The five-day al fresco wedding extravaganza began on a Wednesday and culminated in a July ceremony in the exact same location as the proposal. Planners Andrew Hanes and Daniel Scott worked to oversee everything from the creative vision to travel logistics, which included making sure guests followed all CDC guidelines required by the country that they were entering Mexico from. 

The first night the couple hosted drinks at Zapote, a Tulum-inspired restaurant inside the Rosewood. The theme for the evening was florals and bright colors. “That night went to another level,” Ally says. “Everyone was dancing, playing the bongos, having an incredible time, and it really just set the vibe for the whole weekend ahead.”

When planning her wedding wardrobe for the five day itinerary, Ally had a very clear vision—all of her looks throughout the weekend were designed by BIPOC and women-owned businesses. Taking things a step further than most on the style front, Ally also started a weekly wedding newsletter which she began circulating eight weeks ahead of the wedding. Every event had a color theme, and its corresponding style deck outlined the theme as well as a mood board with style suggestions. “One of the reasons why I did that is because I wanted to use my platform to help highlight BIPOC and female-owned businesses and vendors in the wedding space throughout our festivities,” Ally explains. “I also know that wedding guests often stress over what to wear, and since we were having five days’ worth of events, I wanted to streamline that information. It was pretty detailed so that our guests knew what to expect—even down to the type of surface the event would be on, whether it was grass or sand, etc., so people would know what kind of shoes they might feel comfortable in.”

On Thursday, there was a Trinidadian Carnival party on the beach. “We had a barbecue with Caribbean-inspired food stations, signature drinks, a Cuban-inspired band, Brazilian and Argentinian dancers—it was very cool,” Ally remembers. Friday night was a Miami-inspired all-white party. It started with cocktails in the garden followed by a seated dinner. “We did a ring ceremony that evening,” Ally says. “I had rings made by a female designer who is a friend of mine, and Andrew and I presented rings to both of our moms. Andrew’s mom is a widow, and my mom is single/divorced, so we presented these rings to them as symbol to also honor and acknowledge all of the hard work they put into us and our commitment to carrying out their legacies.”

On her wedding day, Ally wanted a classic look. “[I was thinking] Princess Diana and vintage, which is why I picked my dress designed by Berta, and then we had another designer create an overskirt to give it some drama,” she says. “I slicked my hair back and made it all about the dress.”

The morning of the wedding, the bride’s friends gathered in the presidential suite at the Rosewood for a luncheon filled with support and intention. “They gave me advice, they shared their thoughts and energy, and it was incredible,” Ally says.

Just before the 4:00 p.m. service, violinist Andre Song played “Hallelujah” as Andrew arrived by boat. Making her own grand entrance, Ally descended stairs that had been constructed specifically for the ceremony to the tune of “Forever Young.”

“As I walked down the stairs, I took in everything: Andrew’s tux, shoes, hand placement, hair cut, and his beautiful eyes and warm smile,” Ally says. “I noticed the smell of the trees and made eye contact and smiled at as many friends and family as I scanned them from the top of the staircase. During the ceremony, I had this feeling, almost like when you put the last piece in a now-finished puzzle—but times one million.”

After the couple was pronounced husband and wife, they boarded the small white boat that Andrew had arrived in and drove off onto the lagoon, stopping to take photos along the way.

Guests then got on bigger boats and were transported across the lagoon to the wedding reception, which took place at Aqui Me Quiero. The newlyweds walked into the party to “Higher Love,” and then surprised their guests with a drone show. “We had 200 drones in the sky that spelled out words and phrases like ‘Love You,’ our wedding date, and our logo,” Ally says. “The drone show was amazing and was followed by fireworks on the beach. Then, we danced all night to DJ Dolce.” A taco truck set up shop so that those still dancing could refuel with Mexican food and tequila at an after-party that went until 4:00 a.m.

“The after-party was absolutely legendary,” Ally says. “We served mini tacos including vegan, vegetarian, meat, and fish options, and we kept dancing as the DJ moved out onto the beach and into the sand.”

The next day, everyone recovered from the night before at a purple-themed brunch. “It was called ‘Sundays With Loves,’ which is a play off of my ‘Sundays With Love’ series on the bike. Everyone wore purple, and we had a band. At the end of it all, we’re just grateful that we got to lend our group of friends to each other and they were were able to create bonds and make connections that will last a lifetime. Everyone in our New York crew is already trying to get together back in New York. The following Tuesday after the wedding The Rosewood was doing something at Employees Only, and everyone was like ‘You know what, let’s have an event just to ease back into real life post-Ally and Andrew’s wedding weekend.”