It was 1962, when lovebirds Harvey and Cindy Butler decided to venture to the Island for their honeymoon.Mr Butler was researching different vacation spots and had his mind set on a tropical destination like the Bahamas or Puerto Rico. His travel agent suggested he give Bermuda a try instead.Mrs Butler said she was just coming along for the ride. “Back 50 years ago you did what your husband told you to do,” she said with a laugh. “He told me where we were going and that was where we went.”The couple, from Upper State New York, were greeted by intense heat, but said the beauty of the Island instantly captured their hearts.They recently returned to Bermuda to celebrate a milestone their 50th anniversary. As they did on their honeymoon, they stayed at Elbow Beach and got to relive some of the memories from that first trip although this time, their daughter Kris joined in on the fun.Mr Butler said: “We can look back and it was such a memorable time for us, not just a honeymoon, but the ambience of the Island and the people. It was just wonderful.“Obviously you are going to see changes after 50 years. As you will recognise there is a lot more construction and the roads are a lot more busy than they were, but the appeal of the Island and the courtesy we were shown from everyone was still there.”The biggest difference was the price of staying on the Island. A hotel bill kept as a souvenir from their original stay came to a total of $45; today their room at the hotel cost somewhere around $600 a night. Mrs Butler said the “average person in the US” wouldn’t be able to afford those prices today.The Butlers, both age 72, were married on July 21, 1962.The giddy honeymooners spent eight days at the Elbow Beach Hotel, visiting Somerset Bridge, Gibbs Hill Lighthouse and St James Church while here.Mrs Butler said: “It was interesting because we had pictures from our honeymoon and our daughter wanted us to send snapshots important to our experience and said ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to do a before and after [of the same sights]?’“We would get in a cab to drive around the Island and we would say where we wanted to go and describe what we remembered from 50 years ago.”The driver took to the locations that matched the description and memories would start flooding back. “We would say ‘Yes, that’s it!’,” she explained.One of their favourite memories from their latest trip was getting to meet a young Bermudian couple married on the grounds of Elbow Beach.Mr Butler said: “The executive chef came up to us and said there was a tradition for the bride and groom, if they had met someone that had been married for 50 years it was good luck.“So they came over and we introduced ourselves and hugged them both and wished them the best of luck and that was a great experience.”They also got the chance to meet with the hotel’s general manager, Edward Shapard, and tell him about what the hotel was like in the 1960s. A hotel spokeswoman said Mr Shapard “thoroughly enjoyed hearing their stories”.Though the appearance of the hotel had changed significantly, Mrs Butler said staff treated them like special guests.Once they arrived to their “absolutely gorgeous” room, champagne and strawberries dipped in chocolate were waiting for them. They were also presented with a coffee-table book, ‘Bermuda: Then and Now’.“The treatment was just superb,” she recalled. “One of the things they said when my husband was working with a travel agent all those years ago, they commented on the Elbow Beach and 50 years ago there weren’t that many places to stay. The hotel was perfect, but entirely different atmosphere [back then].”The trip was an anniversary present from their daughter Kris. Mrs Butler said: “We were both surprised and thought ‘do you go somewhere on your anniversary with your 45-year-old daughter?’ But then we thought what a wonderful place to share the memories we have.”While they were “living in a bubble” and focused almost entirely on each other the first time around, they were able to experience the Island a little more on their recent trip.She said: “Both experiences were wonderful and I can’t say enough about Bermuda and hope it continues to grow and becomes the kind of place that people enjoy going to.”When it comes to how the couple was able to keep their marriage going all these years, the Butlers agreed it came down to a strong commitment to each other.Mrs Butler said: “It’s patience, tolerance, independence and just caring about each other and the commitment. There’s no question in 50 years you have good times and bad times, but I think the commitment was so strong.“I am not saying the young people today don’t have commitment, but it seems so much easier to get out of commitments today. In our time you persevered and tried to get through all the difficult times.“I could be all gushy and say it’s love, and that plays a part in it, but I think you have got to be committed to each other and the relationship that allows it to progress and regress.”Mr Butler said compatibility was also important. “Cindy and I respect each other. She has her opinion and I respect that and what she wants to do.”