Wedding on the Sea

The popularity of destination wedding, i.e., wedding in some far away exotic location, has grown tremendously over the last few years. Statistically speaking, destination weddings now form 10 percent of all marriage ceremonies today. In addition to marriage on the beach, or that atop a volcano, the latest attraction is wedding on the high seas, i.e., the shipboard wedding. Young couples are getting increasingly fascinated by this ‘oceanic’ version of on-land wedding.

One cannot really be blamed for succumbing to the temptation of immortalizing such an important occasion amid such a marvelous setting. What a big difference it is to embrace the romance of the ocean atop rippling waves for the wedding ritual! On the more practical side, one hardly needs any self-preparation which has expectedly added to the popularity of shipboard wedding. You can relish all of the traditional embellishments and amenities of an on-land wedding, and sail to ports all over the world at the same time. Rarely do you find such a fascinating mix of wedding and tourism.

Shipboard wedding is a very recent trend first introduced by Princess Cruises (www.princesscruises.com) with the launching of its maritime weddings program. Although the myth that any ship captain was eligible to join couples in matrimony was widely believed, the Princess line turned it into reality by becoming the only cruise company empowered to hold wedding ceremonies in international waters. Weddings began to be held by the captain under the legal authority of the ship’s Bermuda registry.

The line’s first shipboard wedding ceremony was held in 1998 and today, hundreds of couples tie the nuptial knot annually on board Princess Cruises’ 14 vessels in international waters. Among their locations are the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Gulf of Alaska, and other exotic venues around the globe. Maui wedding cruises are also becoming popular.

Customizing choices

In shipboard wedding, couples can also totally customize their wedding according to their tastes. These include many attractive choices such as pre-ceremony spa treatments for the bride, a variety of food and beverages, floral arrangements, video-recording, and post-ceremony onboard reception. Without causing the couple any headache, the ship’s wedding planners and coordinators take care of everything from paperwork to the bridal bouquet, photography to flowers, candles to live music and the wedding cake. If you can give them a photo, Princess Cruises will offer to make the wedding cake of your dreams. Wedding dress should pose no problem either. They can even provide a rental tuxedo for the groom. The newly wed couple receives a keepsake wedding certificate, souvenir champagne glass and a photo package. And if you so desire, you can also share this special day with family and friends onshore with the “wedding cam”, which beams live pictures back home via a special Internet link. So, destination weddings have really gone nautical!

Bride and groom looking to plan your wedding online? Jen Carter, owner of My Wedding Blog, offers free information on wedding planning.