I know destination weddings are a big trend these days, but with the economy in the shape it’s in, it may not be affordable to have your wedding in a tropical location. So, I was thinking: why not stay at home and create your own destination wedding? With enough creativity and helpful wedding vendors, you could “design” your own tropical wedding without actually going there.

Whether it’s Hawaii, Jamaica, or the Bahamas, you could create the feel of a tropical paradise for your wedding day. For a more casual fell wear the same strapless wedding gown you would wear on the beach and let your groom wear an easy, open collar shirt and lightweight slacks. Even go barefoot for a beach-y feel.

Your wedding decorations could be large tropical plants and flower arrangements with birds of paradise, orchids, any flower you would find in a tropical locale. If a Hawaiian wedding is your dream, you could wear leis instead of carrying bouquets and wearing boutonnieres. Instead of traditional candelabras, use candles covered by glass lanterns or hurricane lamps. I think you could really come up with some great ways to decorate for your wedding using this idea, and save a lot of money, too.

Carry the tropical destination wedding theme over into your wedding reception.  Have your caterer serving tropical fruit platters, pulled pork, Hawaiian Chicken with rice, and pina coladas. Who says you have to spend a small fortune to get married on an island when you can create your own paradise right at home?

A special thanks goes to:

Blue Pagoda & Evolution Orchids LLC, an Englewood FL wedding bouquet florist, for their lovely Cymbidium orchid bouquet picture.

Ann's Bridal & Etcetera, a wedding caterer from Searcy AR, for their scrumptious looking fruit platter photo.

With summer right around the corner, it’s hard for me not to daydream about the romantic possibilities that the quixotic destination wedding holds. It almost seems as if a movie is taking place around your life; a movie that is embedded in your mind for the rest of your life. Destination weddings have become even more popular over the past few years. Which has in turn resulted in a demand for more destination wedding options from travel providers and wedding coordinators.

A popular option for destination weddings are Cruise Weddings. (And no, I don’t mean you have to get married on the cruise ship.) Many couples are taking the cruise opportunity as a means of transportation to their favorite island. While the boat is docked, they take this time to exchange vows and celebrate on the beach, or a venue on the island. When the day is done, everyone heads back to the boat to enjoy more all-inclusive meals and drinks. This is a great way to minimize costs to guests, keep things simple, and have a good time in the process.

With any destination wedding, legal documents can be a bit of a hassle. Make sure that if you are getting married out of country you have all of the correct paperwork and certificates required or you might not be legally wed when you return home. Most travel agencies or cruise lines can help you with this paper work if you let them know your plans. Travel agents are very useful in this type of situation also. If you have a travel agent helping you plan your destination wedding, they can help you get your marriage documents together to ensure a smooth process.

Be sure to look into making your destination wedding and honeymoon smooth sailin’ this summer with a destination wedding cruise. Whether just the bride and groom or the entire family, destination wedding cruises have something for all ages to enjoy. Your guests will be thrilled!

Ask The Wedding Guide: I am from Kentucky, and am getting married on Mexico Beach in June and am having trouble locating a florist to make the bouquets for my bridal party.  I need bouquets for 4 bridesmaids, 2 jr bridemaids, and 3 flower girls. I would like white daisies and hot pink gerbera daisies.  Greenery is ok but i hate babies breath, and I would like them tied with white ribbon.  I would like the bouquets to increase in sz from a small nosegay with 1 gerber and a few daisies for the flower girls, to 2 gerbers and more daisies for jrs, and 3 gerbers and more daisies for bridesmaids. I also need 2 corsages for our moms in the same flowers.  If anyone knows a good florist I would appreciate the help! Thanks Nicole

Guide's Reply:

If you are using a wedding package provider for the wedding ceremony and reception, contact them and ask them where you can get wedding flowers. They often work with other wedding vendors who provide the services that they don't.  If you are coordinating your own wedding, contact the hotel in Mexico where you will be staying and ask for the concierge desk or guest relations agent who can recommend  a local and reputable florist.  If you are not fluent in spanish, be sure to ask for an email address.  This way you can communicate via email and by using babelfish as a translator.  Babel fish isn't the best translator but it will help to get the point across.

Where are in Mexico are you getting married?  Someone who has been there might have a suggestion.

Congratulations and good luck.

Ask the Celebration Advisor: I am planning a destination wedding that will be in Miami Florida where I met my fiance’ while on vacation. Neither of us lives in Florida but we really want a beach wedding. Do you have any wedding tips suggestions for planning a beach wedding in Florida? Thanks, Tanya

The Celebration Advisor: A Miami beach wedding … how exciting! Well Tanya, planning a beach wedding in a city that you are not familiar with can be somewhat of a task. I think the most important and the most resourceful asset to have is a destination wedding planner. It will save you so time and stress to have someone in the area who takes care of getting everything like the wedding flowers, caterers for the reception and rental supplies organized and on time. There are several companies or individuals, especially in beach cities, which offer these services. Some wedding coordinators or beach wedding planners even have a package service, where you can customize all of the parts of your wedding the way you want them, but the price is all inclusive. This makes it easy to not go over budget.

Often you can communicate via internet and phone, sending the coordinator pictures of what you want, songs that you want played, and food that you want served. I would advise that you arrive in Miami a few days before the ceremony to meet with the coordinator and look over the final details.

Also make sure you plan your Florida beach wedding and festivities at a time of year that is ideal for Miami weather. For instance, you would not want to plan the ceremony at peak hurricane season. Your chances of good weather during those couple of months are very slim.

Destination weddings are very popular these days. After all, who wouldn’t want to tie the knot on a beach at sunset in Maui, Jamaica or Bermuda? There are many great destinations for your nuptials but, deciding which destination is only a small part of the wedding planning.  When considering a destination wedding you are faced with who to invite and who pays for what. Here are some destination wedding etiquette tips that should help planning your destination wedding easier.

Read the rest of Consideration Is Key When Planning a Destination Wedding »

CAPTURE ROMANTIC FANTASIES WITH UNIQUE WEDDING IDEAS

You’ve dreamed of this day ever since you were a little girl—your wedding day. You’ve imagined wearing a magnificent gown and being the glowing bride carrying a beautiful flower bouquet. You’ve dreamed of the music, the lighting, the bridesmaids dresses, and of course, walking down the aisle toward the groom—the man of your dreams. Your wedding day is a day of dreams coming true and celebrating your love for each other. It should be a dream day wedding that you remember forever. Why not make it truly memorable by going above and beyond with one of these unique wedding ideas inspired by nature? Read the rest of Unique Wedding Ideas »

The Ease Of Destination Weddings

The average traditional wedding can take over 200 hours to coordinate and plan. That is not even including the wedding reception. Planning a destination wedding is not only less time consuming than planning a traditional wedding, but could keep you from going insane during the planning process. Whether it’s 500 or 5,000 miles away, your destination wedding, if done right, could be the most effortless and trouble-free planning experience of your life. This is why destination weddings are becoming so popular. Who wants to spend their entire engagement running around like a chicken with their head cut off, trying to figure out who has RSVP’d or who wants chicken or steak? An engagement is supposed to be a joyous time for you and your fiancé, and the wedding process is expected to be the same.

Why Use Destination Wedding Planners?

The number one suggestion in planning your destination wedding is to find Read the rest of Planning A Destination Wedding »

Naturally Beautiful Destination Weddings

Destination weddings are becoming a popular way to tie the knot in the 21st century. With all of the beautifully diverse places the world has to offer it can be hard to choose the right place for your wedding. There is so much that goes into planning a destination wedding: climate, season, budget, how many guests, and the list could go on and on. Then, right when you think you’ve got your mind made up, you think of somewhere else, and the process starts all over again. Below are three great places in the United States with totally different climates that are beautiful venues for destination weddings. Read the rest of Naturally Beautiful Wedding Destinations »

Outdoor Wedding Ideas

For many brides, an outdoor wedding is the dream of a lifetime. So, when planning an outdoor wedding, choosing the right location is critical. And, of course, no outdoor wedding is complete without "A Bad Weather Plan B". Even though you picture a perfect day, the weather may not co-operate and last minute plans may have to be put in place.

When considering a location for an outdoor wedding, you may also want to think about the reception. Do you plan to have only the wedding outdoors, or do you plan to have both the wedding ceremony and the reception outdoors? What are your outdoor wedding ideas? Do you picture your wedding on a beach, by a stream, in a park, a garden, a country inn, a golf course, a historic estate, a scenic landmark, or in the backyard?

Before planning an outdoor wedding discuss the advantages and disadvantages with your wedding planner. Great sources for outdoor wedding ideas are Read the rest of OUTDOOR WEDDING IDEAS »