Islamorada, Florida

[jcarvale]

Does anyone know anything about Islamorada? We are thinking about getting married somewhere in the Keys but I don't want a big touristy area like Key West. Any advice or things you could point about Islamorada or other islands would be awesome.

 

Places we've looked into include...

Casa Morada but they can't accommodate a larger wedding

Cheeca Lodge and Spa but it's too expensive for our guests

Coconut Cove....read good things online about weddings there but don't know anything about it

Pierhouse but apparently their private beach is "top-optional" which is not exactly what I had in mind for my wedding day

[inanna]

I got married in Islamorada in November. For us, it was the perfect option. At first we considered Key West, but that involved either a very expensive flight to Key West or flying into Miami and driving 4+ hours all the way down the Keys. Our guests loved Islamorada because its still in the Keys but only a 1.5 hour drive from Miami and 2 hours from Ft. Lauderdale.

 

We ended up booking a private estate (2 beach houses) on the Atlantic side of Islamorada for 4 days. This estate provided lodging for 23 people and all of our events were at the estate. Our other guests stayed at a resort down the road called The Islander, which you might also want to add to your list of potential venues (also look into Pierre's restaurant, but I've heard they're on the the expensive side). If you're interested in booking a private beach house or estate, here are some links to real estate companies who manage properties in Islamorada.

 

Vacation Rentals Florida Keys (this is who we booked through)

 

Florida Keys Vacation Rentals | Imagine Rentals

 

View Florida Keys real estate, Islamorada rentals & Key Largo rentals with Island Villa

 

Some other resort/villa options:

 

http://www.islanderfloridakeys.com/

 

The Moorings Village, Pearl of Florida Keys Resorts

 

The Caribbean Resort, Islamorada, Florida: Sport Fishing and Diving Rental Homes and Villas

 

Our caterer was by far our most helpful vendor - Florida Keys weddings & Islamorada wedding catering starts with Caribbean Catering. Debbie at Caribbean Catering can also help you with finding a location. For our wedding she handled SO MUCH - all of the rentals (tables chairs, etc), decor, set-up, coordination, and food.

 

Another local Islamorada vendor I loved was our florist, Floral Fantasy Weddings

 

Had I hired a local photographer, I would have absolutely booked Michelle Young (Endearing Studios Just another WordPress weblog). She is one of my favorite photographers and I often wish I'd coughed up the extra money to book her. She's worth it.

 

You can also view my wedding page on Wedding Mapper for some more photos and you can see other couples' weddings in Islamorada on that site: http://www.weddingmapper.com/plan_we...amorada/0yi2as

[juliepfeif]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

 

We're getting married at the Pier House June 26. We went down this past November to check out a few hotels and make our decision. They do have a small, private, topless private beach, but that is the area that is where the wedding ceremonies are held, so when there is a wedding, it is closed to sunbathers. They do have an additional adjoining private beach that is not topless, so there may be people on that during afternoon weddings.

 

Pier House is in Key West, but when we were there in November, the Pier House, itself, was very quiet and relaxing (even though it is on Duval Street), but the craziness/touristiness of Duval starts about a block away for anyone who wants it.

[jcarvale]

Both of you are absolutely wonderful. Thank you for helping. I really liked everything I saw about the Pierhouse until I read about their "top-optional" beach. That made me really nervous that we'd be saying "I do" next to some half naked lady, not exactly how I've been picturing my wedding. I will definitely contact them again then.

 

Juliepfief, Are you planning on staying at the Pierhouse or could you offer suggestions on places to stay in Key West? I don't really want to spend the days leading up to my wedding around half naked people either. I think I'll just be uncomfortable.

 

Inanna, the private beach house or estate actually sounds really nice. We would like to have our wedding New Year's Eve and finding somewhere that will carry the reception past 11 or into the New Year has been a pain so far. I will definitely look through everything you suggested. Which estate did you end up using?

 

Thank you both again!

[inanna]

Jcarvale - The property is called the Island Palms Estate. There is also a website exclusively for the estate so you can get more information: Island Palm Estates | Home. The pictures on that site are not completely up to date though. There is a new second pool in front of one of the houses and there is also new porch furniture.

 

If you'd like to see pictures of our wedding weekend and the houses/setup, just PM me with your email address and I'll send you a link to my wedding album. We really loved Islamorada! Its such a nice, laid back, "Keysy" community with unique shops and restaurants as well as plenty of outdoor activities to keep guests entertained. Our vendors from Islamorada were also incredibly helpful and professional.

 

Edit: I just also wanted to mention that we honeymooned in Key West after our wedding in Islamorada. We stayed at the Mermaid and the Alligator B&B (http://www.kwmermaid.com). We tend to like small "boutique" type places when we're vacationing so this was perfect for us... and it was also within easy walking distance to Duval and of all the action of Key West.

[juliepfeif]

jcarvale - We are staying at the Pier House and we loved it when we stayed this past November. Every time we went by the beach, there was no one on the topless beach, and it is separated from the resort's other beach by a hedge. We decided on the Pier House because we'll have about 50 people coming with us and figured it would be easier to keep everything in one spot.

 

I've also stayed at the Paradise Inn, which is heavenly. Small, boutique inn/cottages, but very upscale and lovely. And for a more cost-effective place to stay, the Westwinds Inn is very sweet. I stayed there a few years ago. Clean and comfortable with friendly staff. Both of those are also an easy walk to Duval.

[jcarvale]

Does anyone know typically how warm it is in Key West that time of year? We want to have an outdoor ceremony and outdoor reception but we're not sure if it will be warm enough for people to sit outside the entire night.

[inanna]

Take a look at the monthly temperature and precipitation averages: Average Weather for Key West, FL - Temperature and Precipitation

 

I also found Wunderground's trip planner very helpful when deciding on dates: Trip Planner : Weather Underground

[juliepfeif]

When we were there in late November, it was warm enough to be outside in skirt and flip flops, but I did need a sweater (then again, I'm always cold).

[Nikki777]

Hello and congratulations. I would recommend Islamorada Fish Company resturaunt. Was there at a freiends wedding and it was beautiful.

Thet helped them out with everything.

Photographer was from Miami. www.frankpanarophotography.com

 

Another great place is Hawks Caye and Cheeca Lodge.

 

Best of luck always !!!!

 

 

Nikki