Caribbean theme wedding

When you look into his eyes, you see beautiful blue waters and your heart beats out a delightful sound the makes you think of steel drums. A Caribbean wedding might be just the thing to celebrate your special day!

There are two ways to celebrate a wedding Caribbean style. The first way is to consider a destination wedding to one of the beautiful Caribbean islands. Before you go running off, contact one of the many local wedding planners on the island of your choice. Having someone there who is familiar with the documentation that you will need, the local customs, and the local vendors will be of unlimited value to you in the long run. It will save you hours of time on the computer and on the telephone, trying to track down reputable vendors on your own. Most wedding planners specializing in Caribbean destination weddings will have packages that you can choose from that include everything from flowers and invitations to the fee for the minister, a taxi from the airport, and a traditional West Indies Black cake. They will be able to help you secure accommodations to fit any price range, from low cost local apartments to luxury suites at hot tropical resorts. To maximize attendance at a destination wedding, as soon as you set the date, send “Save the Date” cards to your guests, letting them know the wedding will be held in the Caribbean. This will give them enough time to arrange vacation time and plan for the expenses they will incur. Once you have established your location and your accommodations, prepare the information your guests will need – for example, a group discount code for the hotel. Send your invitations out a little earlier than you would for a local wedding, and include with the invitation all of the pertinent information for your guests who may want to travel to celebrate with you.

A Caribbean destination may not be in the cards for every couple, but you can certainly bring a Caribbean flair to your wedding no matter where you are. Plan your color scheme around the cool blue waters, the white sandy beaches, and the bright tropical colors of the Caribbean flowers. Go with the colors of the Jamaican flag, using red, gold, and green. You can opt to go with warm, tropical hues like orange, yellow, and red; or choose a crystal clear blue color scheme.

The bridesmaid dresses can reflect your color choices, but you could also opt to dress each one in a color that conjures up feelings of the Caribbean. Dress one in ocean blue, another in coral, and yet another in lush green. You can find accessories for your groomsmen in tropical colors, and they also have tropical printed vests, cummerbunds and ties.

Your flowers should be bold and beautiful, right out of the gardens of the Caribbean. Choose brightly colored dendrobium orchids, birds of paradise, and anthuriums. You can carry over your floral selection to use as brightly colored tropical centerpieces by placing pots of dendrobium orchids at each table, wrapped in gold foil and surrounded by flowers.

Set the scene at your reception with palm trees – artificial ones are readily available; tiki torches; and lush tropical greenery. For an evening wedding, use white twinkle lights throughout the greenery, and drape the ceiling with brightly colored or gold fabric, entwined with twinkle lights, to remind you of the sparkling Caribbean sky.

The guests will delight in being welcomed to your reception with steel drum music, or hire a reggae band to play into the night to give the celebration a real Caribbean beat. If you choose to go with a disc jockey, convey the tone of your wedding to him so he knows to bring the right kind of music to transport your guests to a Caribbean hot spot.

Work with your caterer to provide an authentic Caribbean menu. Jerk pork or chicken, coconut shrimp; red snapper; conch fritters; fried plantains all give a true Caribbean flavor to your wedding menu. In addition to your wedding cake, offer bite sized samplings of Caribbean rum cake, orange cake, and gizada (a coconut tart). Make sure the bar is equipped to make some popular Caribbean drinks to cool the guests off after dancing to the reggae beat all night long. Ones to have on hand are traditional rum punch, ginger beer, or sorrel drink. Tropical fruit punch is a good thing to have on hand as well.

A traditional Caribbean wedding cake is a Black cake, an island version of the fruit cake. Consider having that as your wedding cake, or as a groom’s cake, for an authentic taste of a Caribbean wedding.

Whether you can transport your party to the islands or you have to bring the islands to you, the sun is sure to set on this Caribbean theme wedding leaving only good memories.