Honeymoons UK

Directory of wedding services offering Honeymoons UK.

Weird and Wonderful Weddings

For whatever reason, couples are increasingly deciding to get married abroad.  For many years, a Caribbean beach setting might have been the chosen destination and possibly one of only a few alternative options available.  A romantic beachside setting, with warm waters and golden sands, plus guaranteed sunshine is certainly an idyllic location for that special day – and virtually every island in the Caribbean can provide that.  Hotels are geared up to organise weddings, with many having a full-time wedding co-ordinator on hand to organise everything.  Unfortunately this can result in a rather conveyor-belt style at some places.

These days, however, the world really is your oyster if you are looking for something more unusual, whether it be a unique destination or a weird and whacky wedding.  Most ceremonies do take a fairly traditional approach with a range of “added touches” to personalise the event.

If you fancy a beach location, but not the Caribbean, the Far East is becoming more popular.  In Langkawi, Malaysia, couples can choose from a sea front terrace in the midst of the rainforest, a Romanesque amphitheatre or a beautiful beach.  Combine these exotic settings with a traditional Malay ‘pelamin’ (platform) for the ceremony and the chance to wear traditional Malay wedding costumes, be accompanied by Malay music or a drum procession and a special gift (not to mention the wonderful food) and you can truly be married in another world.

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In Bali, a Ramayana Wedding Party will include Balinese dress for bride and groom as well as a Gamelan Orchestra, flower shower and flower girls.  Alternatively if you want something less conventional, there’s always the “Elvis Rock and Roll Package” inclusive of photo shoot at the Hard Rock Resort.

Mauritius is another favourite wedding venue.  Boasting some of the finest hotels in the world, any wedding here should be very special.  As many hotels have spa facilities, the few days before and after the weddings can be spent indulging in some wonderful massage and beauty treatments to make bride and groom feel completely pampered.  With its varied mix of races, a Creole Wedding would be a different choice.  How about getting married on-board an exclusive sailing ship with a musical trio and traditional Sega dancing?

Being married at sea is also popular and these days many cruise ships will oblige with the Ship’s Captain marrying the happy couple.  Wedding are often performed in international waters by the Captain.  A range of extras are available, depending on the wedding package chosen, and can include a live string quartet, reception, video, photographs, cake, beauty treatments and preparation for the bride.

If your idea of the perfect wedding venue is the sea, but not on a boat, a scuba wedding is the answer.  And it doesn’t get any better than the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.  As one scuba wedding organiser puts it: “The sea embraces you both. Underneath the waves there are no distractions, you hear each other’s breaths and the beating of your hearts.  The majesty of the marine world becomes a witness to your commitment”!  And if anyone in your wedding party doesn’t dive, they can watch from a boat, hearing the entire ceremony via the surface communications unit.

Following on from a water theme but (as Monty Python used to say), now for something completely different.  Hovver over the precipice of Niagara Falls in a helicopter while a priest marries you, and as you are declared “man and wife” the helicopter continues to fly across the Falls.  Some may say that getting married is a bit like looking into deep precipice, but this is one way to give the occasion a happy lift. 

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Just south of the border, of course, lies the USA where anything goes and getting married can be as wild as your imagination.  Las Vegas has to be the wedding capital of the world, offering anything from a quickie drive-up ceremony where you pull up to the hatch, ring the bell and the minister will marry you through the window – or you can really go overboard with the full-blown ceremonial extravaganza.   Over 100,000 couples get married in Las Vegas with about 12% of them from foreign countries.

But weddings are not confined to one of the dedicated wedding chapels.  Couples can pledge their troths together on the 1,149-foot Stratosphere Tower, just before being catapulted upward 160-feet at 45 miles per hour.  Equally you could share your wedding with any number of celebrity lookalikes, with Elvis being the most popular.

With the Grand Canyon not far away from Las Vegas, the options are endless here.  There’s hot air ballooning, flying over the Canyon, marrying at the rim or on the floor of the Canyon.  The setting is certainly unique whichever way you choose to do it.

If none of this is exciting enough, there’s always sky diving – yes you will be married as you descend from umpteen thousand feet! – or bungy jumping.  As well as being able to do these things in Vegas, New Zealand is another popular spot for the adventurous couple.  Whilst you might not be able to actually be married as you leap off the specified bridge in your tandem bungy, it makes a symbolic jump into married life.

New Zealand does offer some more sedate alternatives.  Some places will arrange a traditional Maori wedding or you could even try a very English wedding, the only difference being that you are the other side of the world. 

Returning to the States, the big cities have much to offer.  There’s the Empire State Building in New York or a “Golden Gate” wedding in San Francisco.  A limousine will transfer you to the ceremony held at the famous bridge, with champagne on your return journey.  I think that one of the other famous San Francisco landmarks, Alcatraz, is possibly off limits for weddings, although it is a fascinating place to visit otherwise.  (I will avoid some of the obvious jokes.)

For those looking for a truly escapist wedding, maybe the Walt Disney World experience is the answer.  You can arrive in Cinderella’s glass coach and have your Disney Wedding Certificate signed by Minnie and Mickey (with photographs).  A dove release may complete the picture.

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If you want something more down-to-earth, that can be arranged too.  One minister even lists past services as including a ceremony with coffee at Starbucks.  Or alternatively you could try a skate wedding, whether ice or blades, with guests choosing whether to skate or not, but replacing the usual dance with skate dancing.

A wedding at the luxury Elephant Tent Camp at Addo Elephant Park, near Port Elizabeth, includes two guided game drives per day as well as all the wedding arrangements.  The “Out of Africa” setting, with the wonderful peace and colours of the landscape, not to mention the company of some of the most fascinating creatures on the planet would make any African wedding a magical experience.

Of course, you don’t need to travel far afield for a wedding with a difference.  Europe has much to offer. The Amsterdam Hilton will let you tie the knot in the room where John and Yoko staged their infamous love-in for peace in 1969. 

A Venetian wedding would not be complete without a romantic gondola ride with musical accompaniment.  One company will organise a “Sound of Music Wedding” with a beautiful lakeside hotel, horse drawn coach for the wedding transfers and the ceremony in the Prince’s room of the Mondsee Castle.  The package includes an exclusive “Sound of Music” tour visiting the most important places in the movie.

We tend to think that most weddings are geared around sunny, warm weather, but there are plenty of cooler alternatives.  Get married at the top of America’s Heavenly Mountain and ski down the slopes as husband and wife to your reception.  

For something truly original, how about a wedding in Lapland.  Accommodation in a log cabin with romantic open fireplace and a private sauna.  Take a husky drawn sleigh ride to the ceremony, held at a reindeer farm or in a traditional wooden church.  Music can be provided by a Joiku choir in native costume, followed by a festive wedding meal back at the hotel.  Another up-and-coming alternative is the Ice Hotel in Sweden.  The chapel is properly consecrated and there is never more than one wedding a day – so you really do feel it is a special occasion, albeit a cold one.

If all of this sounds wonderful, but you have already been married for some time, consider renewing your vows in a unique and unusual setting.  It can all be arranged!

Article by The Travel Centre.  Travel Centre offer a weddings/honeymoons “By Appointment” service to discuss all your travel arrangements at their offices

www.travel-centre.co.uk

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