Advice for a destination wedding?
Sarah asked:
My boyfriend and I recently got engaged, and would like to have a beach destination wedding. This will be my second wedding, so we will invite anyone who would like to go with us to do so (particularly our parents, siblings, etc.), but will have a big reception/party for all other friends and family when we return.
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My boyfriend and I recently got engaged, and would like to have a beach destination wedding. This will be my second wedding, so we will invite anyone who would like to go with us to do so (particularly our parents, siblings, etc.), but will have a big reception/party for all other friends and family when we return.
Does anyone have any suggestions for locations? I have looked into Sanibel Island, Florida, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as we would prefer not to make everyone get passports to make the trip. Cost will be a big factor because we will be paying for the majority of the wedding ourselves (being my second wedding, I don’t expect my parents to pay for much).
I would love any advice from someone who has actually had a successful destination wedding. Locations, wedding planners, cheapest times of year… whatever you can offer! Thanks!
February 3rd, 2009 at 10:22 pm
congrats- if you’re seriously wanting a wedding like that- go beyond the limits- try thinking bigger- HAWAII- AUSTRAILIA has beaches- Costa Rica- Brazil- GO BIG BABY GIRL! ITS YOUR MOMENT TO SHINE SO START GLOWING GORGEOUS.
February 6th, 2009 at 3:22 am
DESTIN FLORIDA!!
The beaches are absolutely breath taking and you don’t need a passport!
Call the Hilton. The have wedding packages that are really inexpensive. You can even get married right on the beach. It’s incredible!!
February 6th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Go to Honolulu.
February 8th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
Try Key West, Florida. You don’t need a passport and you will still have that tropical environment.
February 9th, 2009 at 12:17 am
FYI….the U.S. virgin islands are still requiring passports with the exception of St. Thomas.
The cheapest time of the year would be hurricane season..late summer.
I would go to Hawaii. It’s in the US. It is expensive but I have been to many places and would go back in a heartbeat.
If you live on the west coast, you’re much closer. Southwest has great deals to Hawaii.
February 9th, 2009 at 4:22 am
Look into going to Biloxi if you would like a beach wedding. It is beautiful with great weather almost all year long. Some of the casinos like The Beau Rivage have beautiful grounds with private beaches and I’m sure offer a wedding package.
Also, though it isn’t as ‘fun in the sun’ as Biloxi there are some beautiful spots on the Cheasapeake Bay. Here you have the option to charter a boat and be married by the captain.
New Orleans is also a beautiful place for a destination wedding. I’ve listed a few links for you to check out. The very bottom one specializes in destination weddings. Congrats and good luck.
February 9th, 2009 at 8:04 am
We are planning a destingation wedding for February 08. We chose St Thomas, because it is in the Caribbean, but because it is a part of the US Virgin Islands, no passports are required…we found a wedding planning company called who have been just wonderful to deal with. Their prices are very reasonable compared to others, and they will marry you just about anywhere. We selected winter due to my fiance’s business being less busy at that time, but we were there last month, and it was beautiful then, also. Many hotels there also had their own wedding planners, but we found many of them to be more elaborate that what we are going for.
Good luck, hope this helps.
February 12th, 2009 at 2:54 am
I had a destination wedding this past June. We were intending on having children come with us (under 14), so we booked a family resort. We went to the Starfish Trelawny in Jamaica. For being a “family” resort, it was absolutely gorgeous & the other kids didn’t bother me. There was a total of 16 of us that went (my immediate family, best friend, and part of his immediate family). We are planning on having a reception later this year. The cheapest times of year will be during non-holiday season (like Jan-March/April or the Fall). See if you can get flights out during the week, because those tend to be cheaper.
February 12th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
We had a VERY successful destination wedding at a beach in Georgia, near Savannah. It was gorgeous! We were married right on the beach (which was free & is free so long as you do not block off any area, set up tents or anything like that). We were married in February, and the weather was PERFECT. I am all about a destination wedding! It’s so much easier and you can make it more personal, more you. I was my own wedding planner (with the help of family and friends), which also saved money, and I got to be in charge of everything.
And the scenery…… you can’t find any scenery as pretty as the ocean, the sky, the sun, the sand…. the best “church” around!!
and of course, you get to do a beachy theme. I wore flip flops under my dress (I did have a real wedding dress, though, not a destination dress).
congratulations!!!!
February 15th, 2009 at 3:40 am
I got married in St. Tomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, although I lived there at the time. I had my wedding at a vacation villa…this works well because if you get a big enough one you can have up to five or so couples stay there too, this really cuts down on cost. McLaughlin-Anderson(sp?) was the company I used and they had a really great website with virtual tours of all the properties. Then you can have the wedding and the party right there. Get it catered if you want and theres not much else to worry about. The only problem: not much privacy for the wedding night. There are a lot of hotels though that can take care of everything for you, location, food, rooms, the whole package, and since you’ll be planning from afar that can be really helpful. The Marriott on St. Thomas is beautiful and they do a lot of weddings. It is very popular to have weddings in St. Thomas because of the reasons you stated so you have a lot to choose from there. The summer months are much cheaper if you can stand the heat. Its probably only a few degrees warmer than in the winter though but keep the heat in mind esp. if you want to get married outside. But my wedding was in June and it was fine. Another thing: Summer is also hurricane season and although they’re rare that can be an issue. Congrats and good luck! Let me know if I can help any more
February 17th, 2009 at 9:56 am
The Outer Banks of NC!
February 18th, 2009 at 1:26 am
try uniquedestinationweddings.com to start. Florida weddings are not as costly as going to an island like Hawaii or the Bahamas. Don’t do the summer months as they are beastly hot…I would go with March, April, May, and then Sept or Oct. November. in the southern part of Florida. Try to avoid school and college break weeks..find out before booking anything as anyplace is terribly crowded with college kids and school kids. Sanibel Island is gorgeous, also there are so many areas of Florida on the Eastcoast that are beautiful. Also look into Key West, Florida and Isleamorada destination weddings. Key West is just beautiful and not as commercial as the southern part of Florida. It is a peninsular off the coast of Miami and you can drive there. They cater to destination weddings. try aweddingforyou.com and keywest.com. Good Luck
February 18th, 2009 at 8:52 pm
Sanibel is nice and it’s affordable getting air to Ft. Myers. Try avoiding school holidays: x-mas, mid february, easter, and november. Book ahead. I think there’s a small chapel on Sanibel Island.