Fairmont Wedding at The Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii

“The Fairmont Orchid was perfect and made my dream wedding come true!!”

Congratulations on your wedding! What made you decide on having your wedding with us at Fairmont?

Since I was little I always wanted to get married in Hawaii! After Tim and I got engaged we agreed on the Big Island, since it was our favorite island. We were looking for a place that had it all, catering, a wedding coordinator, and a place in the sand! Our main requirement was having our feet in the sand. We had never actually been to the Fairmont Orchid, but the website was helpful and when talking to MewLaw Seto, our wedding coordinator, I felt excited and right at ease. I didn't need to look any further, our whole wedding would be in the sand and everything was going to be taken care of by the Hotel and wedding services for us, making for easy decisions which was what I wanted most!

How did you plan your day from afar?

Planning from afar was hard, but MewLan Seto put my mind at ease any time I was freaking out. There were a lot of e-mails and conference calls and the day couldn't have been more perfect.

Tell us about what it is like traveling with your dress!

I carried my dress on the plane!! That was crazy but I didn't want it out of my sight! Everyone was excited for us when they noticed the dress and the flight crew took very good care of it.

Do you have any advice for brides planning on having a destination wedding?

My advice is to enjoy every second of the planning process and to find a place that has it all including a dress steaming service, because it gets wrinkled while flying! Also, plan for people coming that you wouldn't expect, because they see it as a vacation for themselves as well! Most of all pick a place that is right for you. The Fairmont Orchid was perfect and made my dream wedding come true!!

Where did you have your ceremony? Did you incorporate any special or cultural traditions?

We had our ceremony at the Coconut Groove location, just beyond the lagoon. We got to watch the ocean as my cousin married us. Our ceremony was simple and non-religious, but very family oriented. We did a hand tying ceremony where our moms came up and tied our hands together before be said our vows.

Tell us about the flowers you chose. Did you go traditional or contemporary?

Our florist was chosen by the Hotel. I wanted locally grown tropical flowers for my bouquet, and it was stunning!! My bridesmaids didn't carry any flowers but each of them had white flower leis that they wore during the ceremony.

What element(s) did you add to make the wedding uniquely ‘yours’?

We had set up lanterns all around the reception area and brought in Bag-O for the children to play with while everyone else danced. We had glow sticks as well for all the children, which went along with the favors we gave to our guests which were glow in the dark beach cups with our wedding date on them!

Another integral part of the day is the wedding dress! Tell us about what you chose to wear. Did you follow the old English saying “something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue”?

My dress was a fit and flare strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline. My something old and blue was my grandmothers necklace, my borrowed was a bracelet from my mom, and my new was my wedding dress.

What was the first song you danced to as newlyweds? Why did you pick that particular song?

We danced to Ray LaMontagne's You Are The Best Thing! We choose that song long before we got engaged when we heard it at his concert a few years before.

Now that you are married and have had time to reflect on your wedding day, what was your favorite moment?

My favorite moment was walking down the aisle on the sand. I didn't even see any of the guests all I could do was look at Tim, who I hadn't seen since the night before at the rehearsal dinner. I couldn't take my eyes off him!!

Vendors & Service Providers:

• DJ Tiger djkonadance.com, was our amazing Dj!! Him and his wife made the reception run smoothly and played all our favorite music!
• Josh and Miho Fletcher fletchphotography.com, was our photographer! and we hit the jackpot on the pictures!! They were amazing!
• And of course the Fairmont Orchid!!

For more information or to start planning your wedding at The Fairmont Orchid:
www.fairmont.com/orchid-hawaii/meetings-weddings/weddings