Tony & Michelle – Aruba Destination Wedding

In January, Tony & Michelle left New York on a chilly 35 degree day and landed in the 80 degree Aruban sunshine. Their dream of friends, family and umbrella drinks had finally come to fruition at Beach Divi Resort Aruba. They kicked off wedding weekend with a white party for their massive entourage from both the States and Brazil poolside at their hotel. The next day held their wedding which was beachside and kept simple and full of fun the way an Aruba wedding should be!

Having an Wedding in Aruba

One of the things we love about destination weddings is the ability to do an post wedding adventure session and really explore the place a couple is saying I Do. We had an amazing one with a wild story around Arikok national park and Baby Beach so if you want to see even more pictures of Tony and Michelle check it out here:

–> Adventure Session <–

Wedding photography: Mike Lemus

Adventure session photography: Cat & Mike Lemus

 

  

In the couples words, the best part of their wedding was:

“Being able to have both our families together in the same place for a whole week getting to know each other.  I have lived away from my family for almost 23 years, and there isn’t a single day that goes by that I didn’t wish they were here with me, or that I was there with them. Having Izzy there, and incorporating her into our wedding, was so special for us.  I wanted her to feel like she was part of the wedding, and she really was.  Having her on the wedding cake, her walk out with us, having her dressed like me, all of those things really made her feel like she was part of the wedding, and the reality is that we weren’t just marrying each other, but Tony was marrying me and becoming a father to Izzy.”

Some advice to future destination brides:

“Having everyone there together for the whole week was also one of the hardest things about the wedding because you’re handling everyone else’s needs, helping them plan travel and dividing attention. Enjoy your trip too and try to stay hands off. Think of it like if you were getting married at home and people who live far away are coming. Let them handle their own stuff.”

“One thing I did that was great from the destination point, was that I told people they could only rsvp once they had their flights, I sent my invitations in June and gave everyone 2 months. If they couldn’t find a good flight chances were they wouldn’t. That kept a lot of people who would say yes and then back out later from saying yes.”
“We did not choose a song list for the dj. You should always give them a list of songs you want.”
“If there is one things I can say to other brides, it’s about their dress. Everyone has an opinion and  you can get caught up in that and what you see on Instagram/Pintrest/Brides magazines. Before our wedding day I came to HATE my dress with a passion but now I know you don’t want the same dress as 1,000 other brides. On wedding day I put on my dress and it was the most beautiful dress I could ever and will ever wear. Look different and unique, not like every other bride, be beautiful in your own way.”

The things you wouldn’t change:

“Tony and I both had things from our grandparents that we used.  Heirlooms that were a real surprise to everyone and made everyone cry. We also purchased a lot of things on Etsy and I am so glad we did, everything we got came out great and saved us some money. As far as the decor, I wanted everything as simple as possible.  I didn’t think there was a need for crazy amounts of flowers because the scenery itself was already so beautiful. I am glad I did it that way.”

“I can’t say enough about the hotel where we had our wedding. Marielle, our wedding coordinator was amazing and she did everything exactly how I wanted it.  Keep in mind that they run on island time so we learned fast that everything needed buffer time.”

“We did a cake tasting, and OMG you should ALWAYS do a cake tasting.  I want to eat the cake right now just thinking about it!!”

“Lastly, the one thing every bride/groom should hear is INVEST IN A GOOD PHOTOGRAPHER!! You forget a lot of what happens on your wedding. You are stressed, some are drunk, but if you have a good photographer you will have those memories in images for the rest of your lives… and you really can’t put a price on that.  If you can only spend money on one thing, do it on what you will take with you forever, what everyone will be talking about.  No one remembers the color of your place setting or how many flowers you had on your table, but a good photographer will capture the most important part of your wedding, YOU!”