There are a few places on this planet that seem to be the ones we dream about when we think of the idyllic. Wailea Bay on Hawaii Island tends to fit into that mind niche. It is an out of the way beach where storm washed keawe trees serve to carve out intimate spaces on the sand, places where you and your friends will be somewhat apart from others who have discovered this special spot. There are no signs pointing it out, just a parking lot off a winding road. It is not a total secret, but enough of a one that you can have a sense of owning the place late in the day.
As wedding providers in Hawaii, we are asked about beach weddings. There are many ways to go about having a beachfront wedding. The least expensive is to do it Las Vegas style - get an officiant, show up, exchange vows and maybe lei, have a couple photos taken, and go on into your day.
We suggest that you rent yourself a beachfront house on Wailea Bay. There is one we know of that will allow the wedding party to happen there. At the rest, you will have the house as your pied a terre, or that cottage you go to after the beach gets dark. If your wedding is small enough, you can rent the house and everyone who will be at your wedding is already there. After the party, you may wish to sneak off down the beach to some other little hideaway you have tucked away, your secret.
The Hawaii beach wedding is the ultimate in casual. You and your friends get out on the sand early and stake out your spot. Hang up a hammock. Invite a ukulele player to join you. Carry your feast out in picnic baskets, and spread striped Turkish linens on the sand. If you want this casual and photogenic look, we can arrange it for you. It will be as if it simply happened.
If we designed your wedding, we would build a ceremony space on the sand, a circle of flowers and coral. Some lava. Or, your wedding circle can be all flowers and shells. The ceremony circle defines your wedding place, now and always. The tides bring daily changes to the beach, but your circle is forever. It's nice to bring along lei for your guests. Have an ice chest with bubbly for your toast. Make it honestly beachy. Have plenty of photographs by a real photographer. We do that. Persuade your guests to let the photos be by others, so when they are in the pictures, they are not holding up their cameras and phones. They can sleep over and take plenty of photos another day. Photobombs will be out of style soon, and you will be happier with wedding pictures of friends having a beach day instead of a gear fest.There would be strings of the tiniest lights wound into the trees so as the sky grows dark, the way back is lit in the most romantic way.
When it comes to the end of the day, darkness falls quickly after this showy sky. If you have rented that beach house that says yes to weddings, or if all your guests are beach house guests, the party can continue at the house. Poke served in shells with a bit of sea salad, taro chips, imu smoked pork, island fruits, easily arranged at minimal costs. Add a Hawaiian cake with orchids, champagne in hollow stems, your favorite music - this is magic.
If you want to go late and noisy, there are other options. We can just as easily make that happen, with a beach wedding in Kona and after party at a local club where the dancing can be wild into the night.
Here's how to connect with us: gail@mahinui.com
