gresley

We have a large family (100+ invitations), but since a wedding+vacation (wedcation? can we call it that?) is a lot of commitment, and we already know from trying to plan the wedding in CA originally that a lot of people can't commit. So our guess is 20-40. If more people come, that's fine, but I'm not counting on it by any means. We already have 15 who we're sure will come, and that's fine with us

So far, looking at 3-5 days. I'd love to do something like a 7 day cruise, but I think most people can't take that much time off of work.

The legal question of residency is interesting... maybe we'll opt for getting the licence beforehand, and have the on-the-beach wedding be symbolic. I noticed some people on other threads talking about that.

Congrats! We're all routing for you

Welcome to the forums

Originally Posted by CAKnight 

 

You're welcome! It feels nice to be welcomed esp since there is so much going on here! 

Just to clarify, are you referring to Dec 2013-March 2014? 

Do you have an idea of which island/country you would like to be married in/on? (certain places are tricky to get married in)

Have you ever been on a cruise before? 

Yep, referring to Dec 2013-Mar 2014.  

Haven't figured out an island yet, but either Nassau or Grand Cayman would be super cool. (My parents actually had their honeymoon in the Caymans)

I've been on a cruise before, and my FH and his family LOVE to cruise. His grandparents cruise 3 to 4 times a year. We're hoping a cruise will be much easier on the older family than a cross-country flight would be.

How many people are you expecting? Congrats again!!!

So pretty! Looks like you have a lot of great options! Congrats!

Hi Liz,

It's not a traditional vineyard, but I almost went with Farmstead/Long Meadow Ranch. http://www.longmeadowranch.com/Visit/Weddings

It's a farm-to-table restaurant that hosts events -- you can still get photos in front of the vines, or in their garden / on the patio. It has some of the best food I've ever had, and it was gorgeous!

Here's an example of a reception they had there, but they also do small ceremonies: http://www.weddingchicks.com/2012/07/12/farm-to-table-wedding/

I loved it because the food was so much tastier for the price, and (at the time, I think it's still that way), there was no extra venue fee, just for catering. They also do non-traditional meals, like luau style or pig roats.

In the end, we decided CA was close for us but too far for our family in FL. If we had decided on Napa, though, it would have definitely been there!

Originally Posted by julie83 

 

Hello !

 

Oct 22 !

 

Did you find a venue?

 

I live in New Zealand so im planning from very far too but my parents live there...and im going in March to see and try to plan few things

 

J

Hi Julie,

This thread is kind of old, but I might be able to help. We did a bunch of venue walkthroughs through along Ft Lauderdale beach. I was planning remote too, so I was looking for all-inclusive places for 100 people.

Our favorites were:

B Ocean (hotel not on the sand, but beautiful overlook of the whole beach) 

     http://www.bhotelsandresorts.com/b-ocean-fort-lauderdale/

Lago Mar (beach country club with toes-in-the-sand, very classic / traditional venue feel)

     http://www.lagomar.com/

Ft Lauderdale Harbor beach Marriot (toes in the sand and huge/gorgeous venue, but evening weddings started at $40k! no thank you!)

    http://www.marriott.com/hotels/event-planning/wedding-planning/fllsb-harbor-beach-marriott-resort-and-spa/

Westin Beach Resort (not on the beach, but very cool patio/lounge area outside upstairs for ceremonies)

    http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin/property/meetings/index.html?propertyID=3328

I think still have the info-packets if you'd like me to send them to you.

In the end we decided we wanted a smaller wedding (20ish), so we decided to go for a cruise wedding leaving from Ft Lauderdale, instead of going with these more traditional venues.

Good luck!

For a beach wedding, I love this idea:

Also, I LOVE these, even though they're engagement photos and not wedding photos:

http://www.bridalguide.com/planning/engagement/themed-engagement-photos

Agreed, these are great ideas!!!

For the fans -- don't they get fairly expensive? Or are they only expensive if you get the folding type?

This thread is so informative, thanks!

It's very cultural -- in an asian wedding, you wouldn't be caught dead wearing white at wedding! (pun intended )

I've heard an idea where they give the kids an "iSpy" game. They print out a pretty list of things/people for them around the event space. If she's old enough, you could give her a camera to photograph all the things she finds.

Also, if all else fails, you could set her up with a comfy chair, some cocoa, and an iPad with a good movie 

Ooh, awesome! Thanks for the ideas, and being super helpful, as always

They're lovely, but it's totally up to you -- if you'll regret not re-doing it, then that's what you should do.

Congrats,Carla! please post pics!

I'm always skeptical of something so cheap, but it looks like the quality is actually okay. Did anyone use them as the suit for their wedding?

I've heard that sometimes travel agents can get courtesy extensions -- did any of you guys have that experience?

Hi all,

We've been engaged for 2+ years, but planning has been difficult. Between moves and jobs and just life happening, the wedding was on the back burner for a long time. Now that we're actually starting to make plan, set dates, does anyone have any tips on how to share this with family? Specifically, a lot of the family who doesn't live near by has long since assumed that either a) we called it off and were too ashamed to tell anyone or we eloped and were too ashamed to tell anyone. 

I wanted to tell everyone that it's happening in a fun and exciting way. I thought of sending out a newsletter-style STD, where we not only shared the details of the wedding, but also some more backstory about what's been going on and why it hasn't happened yet.

Did anyone do anything similar like that? Is it inappropriate to make a STD into a newsletter?

Any tips?

So, I'm new at this... I've heard mixed things. Do people traditionally pay for the bridesmaids / groomsmens' attire? Or do they pay for that on their own? What about hair/makeup/salon?

So, once people TTD, what do you do with it? Do people still try and keep it? Or do they discard it after the shoot?

BTW, CAKnight, where/when/how are you having your cruise wedding? You're so on top of things

Great ideas!!

Thanks for the welcome, and the help on the cruise forums

Right now the plan is to cruise from FT Lauderdale (where most of the family is), and have a small ceremony on island. We're looking at between dec-march, either Royal Caribbean or Princess, but still in the early stages...I was taking it slow, but then I found this forum and can't contain my excitement anymore, lol!

Once I get further into the planning process, I'll definitely DM you with questions!

Thanks again!

Brides married at home -- how did you find officiants?