It's official, you're getting married, and you and your mate decided it would be a lovely idea to have your dream wedding in Hawaii. As much of a dream as that sounds, organizing your destination Hawaiian wedding can be quite a task especially since you are not able to physically visit and see venues, or meet with possible vendors. This article will help guide you in organizing your destination Hawaiian wedding with ease.
No matter what type of wedding you want, or where you want your wedding to be, the first thing you should always ask yourself is, "what can we really afford?" You have to be realistic about your budget. Once you've figured that out, you can move on to actually planning by making reservations and orders.
The largest decision in planning a wedding is usually where to host the wedding. Will the ceremony and reception take place at the same venue, or will there be a location change? Will the ceremony be on the beach, and the reception to follow at a swanky hotel? There are many all-in-one type venues to choose from in Hawaii that can accommodate both the wedding ceremony and reception. Many of the hotels themselves offer an in-house wedding planner to help you work out every detail. Here are some common hotels in which both the ceremony and reception can be held within the same venue:
1) Turtle Bay Resort
2) The Hilton Hawaiian Village
3) Hilton Hawaiian Village
4) The Ihilani At Ko'olina
5) Turtle Bay Resort
The above mentioned hotels are on the higher end, and can cost you a pretty penny, however there are many other less expensive options that offer an all-in-one package. The Waikiki Beach Marriott offers wedding ceremonies starting at $900. The Outrigger Reef on the Beach and Outrigger Waikiki On The Beach offer a complete wedding package starting at $2900. This package includes an officiator, photographer, musicians, flowers, seating for up to 30 guests, plus they take care of all applications and filing fees. When you think about a destination wedding you might feel that 30 guests is not enough, however, it is likely that only so many people can actually take off from work, pay for airfare and hotels and travel afar to make it to your wedding. Realistically 30 guests is probably enough, and you always have the option to "rent" more chairs, tables or seating.
Once the venue is taken care of you can move on to the next step. Realistically, your hotel wedding planner may be able to take care of all the vendors for you, but in case they don't offer that service, you will want to look in hiring the services of three or possibly four vendors, they are:
1) Florist
2) Photographer
3) Florist
4) Videographer
Most weddings in Hawaii use a lot of flowers and lei. Every Bride needs a bouquet, and most Hawaiian weddings the man also wears a maile lei. Since Hawaii is home to so many weddings each year, most florist can make arrangements for all of your flower needs with a simple phone call.
If by chance your hotel does not include a cake in the package, or you simply wish to try something different than what your hotel offers, you can hire a local bakery to help meet your wedding cake needs. Many bakeries in Hawaii have been featured in magazines and on television shows for their masterful works of art. One such bakery is the Hokulani Bakery which specializes in cupcakes and has been featured on TV Food Network's Cupcake Wars television show. Since Hokulani Bakery specializes in cupcakes, they can help you to create a custom tiered cupcake arrangement that will cost less than a traditional tiered fondant cake. Of course there are many bakeries in Hawaii that also specialize in tiered fondant cakes, so if that's what you want, you can surely find it.
Since your wedding day is most likely one of the most memorable and special days to happen in your whole life, it is likely that you will want to employ the services of a reputable photographer or videographer or both to capture the special moments of the day. After the wedding is said and done, the location being a Hawaii destination is not available for you to readily visit, the cake is gone, the party favors are gone, however will remain are photographs. If there's one vendor that you absolutely must have, it should be a photographer.
Planning a wedding from afar can be made simple. If you follow this guide, with a few phone calls you can have the ball rolling and the beginnings of your dream wedding planned.
No matter what type of wedding you want, or where you want your wedding to be, the first thing you should always ask yourself is, "what can we really afford?" You have to be realistic about your budget. Once you've figured that out, you can move on to actually planning by making reservations and orders.
The largest decision in planning a wedding is usually where to host the wedding. Will the ceremony and reception take place at the same venue, or will there be a location change? Will the ceremony be on the beach, and the reception to follow at a swanky hotel? There are many all-in-one type venues to choose from in Hawaii that can accommodate both the wedding ceremony and reception. Many of the hotels themselves offer an in-house wedding planner to help you work out every detail. Here are some common hotels in which both the ceremony and reception can be held within the same venue:
1) Turtle Bay Resort
2) The Hilton Hawaiian Village
3) Hilton Hawaiian Village
4) The Ihilani At Ko'olina
5) Turtle Bay Resort
The above mentioned hotels are on the higher end, and can cost you a pretty penny, however there are many other less expensive options that offer an all-in-one package. The Waikiki Beach Marriott offers wedding ceremonies starting at $900. The Outrigger Reef on the Beach and Outrigger Waikiki On The Beach offer a complete wedding package starting at $2900. This package includes an officiator, photographer, musicians, flowers, seating for up to 30 guests, plus they take care of all applications and filing fees. When you think about a destination wedding you might feel that 30 guests is not enough, however, it is likely that only so many people can actually take off from work, pay for airfare and hotels and travel afar to make it to your wedding. Realistically 30 guests is probably enough, and you always have the option to "rent" more chairs, tables or seating.
Once the venue is taken care of you can move on to the next step. Realistically, your hotel wedding planner may be able to take care of all the vendors for you, but in case they don't offer that service, you will want to look in hiring the services of three or possibly four vendors, they are:
1) Florist
2) Photographer
3) Florist
4) Videographer
Most weddings in Hawaii use a lot of flowers and lei. Every Bride needs a bouquet, and most Hawaiian weddings the man also wears a maile lei. Since Hawaii is home to so many weddings each year, most florist can make arrangements for all of your flower needs with a simple phone call.
If by chance your hotel does not include a cake in the package, or you simply wish to try something different than what your hotel offers, you can hire a local bakery to help meet your wedding cake needs. Many bakeries in Hawaii have been featured in magazines and on television shows for their masterful works of art. One such bakery is the Hokulani Bakery which specializes in cupcakes and has been featured on TV Food Network's Cupcake Wars television show. Since Hokulani Bakery specializes in cupcakes, they can help you to create a custom tiered cupcake arrangement that will cost less than a traditional tiered fondant cake. Of course there are many bakeries in Hawaii that also specialize in tiered fondant cakes, so if that's what you want, you can surely find it.
Since your wedding day is most likely one of the most memorable and special days to happen in your whole life, it is likely that you will want to employ the services of a reputable photographer or videographer or both to capture the special moments of the day. After the wedding is said and done, the location being a Hawaii destination is not available for you to readily visit, the cake is gone, the party favors are gone, however will remain are photographs. If there's one vendor that you absolutely must have, it should be a photographer.
Planning a wedding from afar can be made simple. If you follow this guide, with a few phone calls you can have the ball rolling and the beginnings of your dream wedding planned.
About the Author:
Hawaii wedding photographer Anna Riedel has years experience planning and organizing Hawaiian weddings. Visit her Hawaii photographer website - AbsolutelyLoved.com to learn more about the wedding planning and photographer services she offers.
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