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Amber Dangerfield was over the moon about her mid-July wedding.
However, the chaos of orchestrating the $100,000 fête — overseeing vendors, deciding on décor and gently reminding invitees to RSVP — quickly brought the blushing bride and her hubby-to-be, Christopher, back down to earth.
But rather than letting stress get the best of them, the lovebirds ditched the drama — and treated each other to a pre-big day getaway.
“A few weeks before our wedding, we took an earlymoon,” Dangerfield, 28, a beauty influencer living in Battery Park, told The Post. “We caught the ferry to Rockaway Beach and just tanned, talked and laughed.”
“We needed that time to relax and reconnect,” she said.
If you haven’t heard of an “earlymoon” before, you will — the restorative retreats are trending with overburdened brides and grooms worldwide.
Unlike post-“I Do” honeymoons, these are mini-escapes that sweethearts plan before taking the plunge.
And earlymoons are just one measure soon-to-weds have begun adopting in an effort to eliminate stress ahead of the ceremony, along with enlisting AI instead of a pricey human coordinator and enrolling in specialized therapy.
“Consider it a pre-wedding honeymoon or a trip that allows couples to further savor the engagement period,” the nuptial know-it-alls at TheKnot explained of the earlymoon movement.
“It’s the perfect opportunity to catch some snooze, enjoy a romantic getaway and come back with that still-engaged glow,” the experts said.
That radiance appears to be what a growing number of fiancés prefer over the flop sweat that often comes with the pressures of wedding planning.
In fact, a February survey from the matrimony experts at Zola found that over 69% of couples find the process “overwhelming.”
A staggering 50% of the pairs blame “budget management” for their added mental strain, while just about 40% cite “family drama” as a top cause of the chaos.
Allison Cullman, Zola’s wedding and registry savant, told The Post that too much premarital mayhem can easily create a chasm between the two once-happy honeys.
“Pre-wedding stress can negatively impact a bride and groom’s relationship by creating a sense of isolation and pressure that may overshadow the joy,” she warned.
“An earlymoon is a great way to sit back, relax and connect with your partner, and remember why you’re spending so much time planning,” advised the insider, “to celebrate the rest of your lives together.”
To avoid further financial pressures, Cullman suggests keeping the trip cost-friendly — rather than first-class.
“Earlymoons definitely do not have to be extravagant or long,” she said. “A quick summer getaway to a nearby beach town or cozy winter cabin will help alleviate any unnecessary stress before the big day.”
Here’s how nearly-weds are flying the coop for fun — in the midst of wedding prep frenzy.
Woods you be mine
Immediately after saying “yes” to then-fiancé Marco’s proposal, Katy Escalera found herself neck-deep in wedding planning problems.
The Florida-based bride had dreamed of saying “I do” in scenic Sedona, Arizona — but she quickly realized it would be too expensive. But even settling on Tampa for her October 2023 nuptials came with a price tag of approximately $70,000.
“The budget was so tight, we didn’t think we’d be able to go on an actual honeymoon,” Escalera, 33, a finance project manager, told The Post. “But, that March, we were able to afford a short earlymoon to a log cabin in Blue Ridge, Georgia.”
The four-day vacay gave her and Marco, 43 — who, together, created a blended family with their three children from previously relationships — a brief respite from parenting and planning to romantically reconnect.
While in the mountains, the darling duo took nature hikes, wrote their vows and devised a strategy that would help them realize their dream of a luxe European honeymoon cruise in July 2025.
“Our earlymoon was so necessary,” she said. “It helped us recharge and remember that we were planning the wedding for us.”
A homey holiday
Rather than dipping deeper into their wallets to expense an out-of-town jaunt, Amber and Christopher Dangerfield spent the week leading up to their summer nuptials taking advantage of local delights right here in the Big Apple.
“We rode bikes around the city, went to [the beach], ate our favorite foods,” bragged the bride. “We just chose fun activities that meant something special to us as a couple.”
“It was so sweet and wholesome — and just about us.”
The in-town adventure culminated in a day at the QC NY Spa on Governor’s Island.
“We got all-day passes to their saunas and pool,” said the new Mrs. “We swam, tanned and watched the sunset.”
“It gave us the space to have meaningful conversations about how we planned to prioritize celebrating our love on the wedding day,” Dangerfield continued. “It was honestly the best day.”
They’re a shore thing
For Shrestha Maharaj, arranging her three-day fête — a celebratory tradition in Indian culture — felt like planning three consecutive weddings. Juggling guest lists, DIY projects and family needs quickly became a “hectic” load for the 28-year-old and then-groom-to-be Sumeeth Suthurgam, 31, to bear.
So, a month before joining in holy matrimony in July 2023, Maharaj and her man jetted off to Umdloti, a beach resort village near their hometown of Johannesburg, South Africa, for some earlymoon easiness.
“We really needed a break and a change of scenery, and we knew if we didn’t go on vacation we wouldn’t rest,” Maharaj, an analytics manager, told The Post, crediting Sumeeth with suggesting the quickie retreat.
“We walked along the beach having ice cream, did some fishing, rode electric scooters, played table tennis, practiced our wedding dance and just took time out to relax,” she said of their weekend trip, which only cost around $165.
“The earlymoon allowed us to have fun, which you forget to do amidst the chaos,” the newlywed said.
After tying the knot, she and Summeth enjoyed a lavish honeymoon in Phuket, Thailand.
“For someone that stresses a lot, I was very calm on my wedding week and wedding day,” added Maharaj. “Having the earlymoon contributed to that.”
