Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)EXCLUSIVE By Wendy Williams
BEING paid to travel and sip champagne in some of the world’s most romantic destinations sounds like the world’s best job.
Doing it with the love of your life, you’d be in honeymoon heaven wouldn’t you?
Incredibly, this is exactly what ‘honeymoon testers’ Denise and Mark Duffield-Thomas have been hired to do by Irish wedding specialist Runaway Bride and Groom.
Chosen from 30,000 applicants, they have come to Andalucia to see how it measures up for honeymooning couples.
Part of a year’s contract, they are taking in Sevilla, Marbella and Malaga, as well as the Costa de la Luz.
And the message is, the place measures up favourably both for a wedding and a honeymoon.
Speaking exclusively to the Olive Press, Australian Denise said: “We have just been to the beaches near Barbate and they are some of the best I have seen with beautiful sand and beautiful scenery.
“I just can’t believe I lived in London for eight years and have never been to Spain before.”
She continued: “I didn’t realise how beautiful the scenery is with mountains, beautiful national parks, incredible beaches… you really see the best of both worlds here.”
The couple are writing a blog on their journey with regular updates for the Irish Times.
During their trip they also intend to break the world record for the most amount of nuptials for one couple.
So far they have been married a total of 46 times in the last year, but they still have a long way to go with the current record being 83.
And according to Denise, although they do bicker occasionally spending 24/7 together, the job is every bit as good as it sounds.
She says: “Some days are really busy when you are running around and speaking to different people but then you just have to stop and you realise it is so much better than being in an office. There are some days that are just so fantastic.”
Their job has taken them to Jordan, Malta, Ireland, Zanzibar, Mauritius and New York to name just a few.
Denise admits that her favourite places are anywhere with a beach, which includes the Costa de la Luz and Marbella.
The couple will hold the job until the end of November with the last trip taking them to Queensland.
But they are facing some stiff competition from the current world record holders in their quest to be married the most times.
“The current world record is 83 but we have heard that the couple that hold it have been doing a lot more and now they are at 99 so I think it could be a bit of a fight to the death” Denise explains.
To follow their adventure visit at www.thehoneymoontesters.com
