Wedding in Grand Cayman

[dewcrew1912]

Just to let anyone who might be thinking of getting married in Grand Cayman that we just had our wedding at the Grand Old House on April 26th and it was amazing! We were aboard the Miracle, and the day could not have gone smoother. The setting was beautiful and the food was great (the tropical fruit cake was the best I have ever had). We had 20 people on the cruise with us, and there was no problem getting everyone there, having the ceremony, eating lunch, and then getting back to the ship in plenty of time. Our only fear was that we were not going to be able to tender for some reason, but the weather was perfect. I would be happy to answer any questions, since I know we had a lot before we booked. Good luck to everyone.

[luvjftffc]

I am planning the Grand Caymens on the Freedom in November of 2006. Did you have a beach setting? Did you use the cruise line? i think the cruise lines are expensive and since im paying for it myself i dont want to have it too crazy. was there somewhere to change prior to the wedding? was in fancy formal lunch? the cruise lines are about 25.00 per person. sorry for all the questions.

 

Chrissy

[dewcrew1912]

I am planning the Grand Caymens on the Freedom in November of 2006. Did you have a beach setting? Did you use the cruise line? i think the cruise lines are expensive and since im paying for it myself i dont want to have it too crazy. was there somewhere to change prior to the wedding? was in fancy formal lunch? the cruise lines are about 25.00 per person. sorry for all the questions.

 

No problem on all the questions, I'm happy to answer. First of all, we had the gazebo setting. It was right on the water with a dock right there. A perfect place for pictures. While taking pictures they set up a formal sitting for lunch outside under the gazebo. It was fancy and really nice. There is the flat fee for the wedding and then you can add extras. The cost of your license is not included which is $200. As for the meal, they have a buffet at around $45/ person, but they suggested we just order off the menu being that it was lunch and this would save us money. It really did. We had 22 people, and with lunch, wedding cake and open bar, it only ended up costing us about $35 per person including tip. Transportation was about $11/person (this includes there and back). We also got a photographer, flowers, ect, which adds on, but the overall price was very reasonable. We did not go through the cruise ship, and saved a ton of money (I think the ship charges more than double for the basic package and photography). I think you can go to the website grandoldhouse.com to set it up, or through shoretrips.com. There is a place for changing. We had to meet on the dock at around 9am to sign the papers. Then my wife, her maid of honor, and our two mothers went with her to change at the wedding site. I went back to the ship to change and then went over with everyone else at 10:30. We got married around 11:30 and then did lunch and pictures. The only question I would ask if I were you is about the weather there in November. Since it is a tender, if it's bad weather then the ship will sometimes skip grand cayman. But this would effect you either way, since they tender the wedding official from the island to the ship to do a ship wedding. Good luck, and if you have anymore questions just ask.

 

Joe

[luvjftffc]

The place is absolutely gorgeous. Do you have pics of your wedding? the prices are very reasonable and they are willing to work with you.

[dewcrew1912]

We have not gotten our pictures yet (we missed the fed-ex) guy last night. But as soon as we do I can post some. There are pictures on the web site, so you can get an idea of what it looks like.

[ShowMeTheBoat]

Hi, and thanks for all the information so far....we have requested the earliest possible wedding on Grand Cayman...we also requested "Toes in the Sand" which means we'll marry on the beach..we are bringing just my parents and our 2 boys both age 11...my question is this, did you have any time to do anything else that day? If this were my first wedding, I would not be asking to do anything else but since my fiance' and the boys have never been to GC, I really want to take them to the turtle farm and Hell...just for the t-shirt!! haha...I'm just afraid that there won't be any time since most of the excursions leave very early.....I hate trusting independent cab drivers on islands...my desires are that we all go to the beach area, get married, do the cake/pictures, change clothes and do the island...sounds kinda rush rush but since there are not many guests, we are not planning any kind of reception...we'll do lunch on the island somewhere...I am hoping to put my dress in a bag and just carry it for the day having the cruise line steam it out again so I can wear it for a formal night..it's just an island destination wedding dress so it's very lightweight without a bunch of beads and stuff..the more we think about it, we're paying a nice fee to have a 20 minute ceremony and pictures done with our toes in the sand, but that is what we want..so the cost is not an issue...but again, I want to make sure we have time to do something other than the wedding...heck, we'll celebrate when we get back onboard that nite!! Thanks again for the info..can't wait to see the pics!

[Jeanne B]

First of all, congratulations to all of you who recently got married or are planning your wedding!! But I have to say I would be concerned about choosing GC as the port to get married in only because it's a tender port and if the seas are rough you may miss that port...maybe I'm just being negative?!! :) My DH and I missed Grand Cayman on our cruise in January and we were SO disappointed - I can't imagine having my heart set on a beach wedding and missing it!!

[dewcrew1912]

I would think you would have time to do something else if you are getting married right away. We met our contact at around 9am, but did not end up starting the ceremony till around 11:30 and then still had time for lunch and pictures. I would try to plan something near where you are having the wedding. The tender is not a problem since they have large boats, and it is a very short ride (maybe 5 minutes if that long).

 

As for the weather warning, I agree. The last thing you would want is to not be able to get on the island. This was our biggest worry. But we knew we were going in the dry season, and we also kept a close eye on the ten day forcast (which was sun, sun, and more sun). I would talk with the company you are going through. If they do weddings all over I would ask about a backup plan in Cozumel (if you are going there after) or another port that does weddings for cruises. Also look into when you are going. I think the storm season starts around the middle to end of June (I once flew out of Cozumel in June on the heels of a Hurricane). If you are going during the wet season, you might want to consider the backup plan or a port you dock at. Hope this helps, and have a great time.

[dcdiva]

We sailed on the Jewel in February and were married onboard ship. However, there was another bride who was married on shore in Grand Cayman. Fortunately, the weather was fine, but there were many ships in port the day we were in GC. The early tenders had no problems, but as the morning wore on the back up grew and grew. A couple of her guests, including one of her groomsmen, got stuck in the back up and missed the ceremony. So get on an early tender -- and keep your wedding party close at hand.

[CrystalTom]

We just got married in Grand Cayman the same day as you. We were also on the Miracle!! It was awesome that day in Grand Cayman! We went through www.heartofcayman.com and it was an awesome experience! Just wanted to say hi cause we were on the same cruise and married the same day. I think we got off the boat with your groomsmen, there was like 10 of them if i remember correctly!

[Stellaluna22]

I am getting married next month by heart of Cayman and I was thrilled to see you had a great experience. Can you please give me a step by step acount of how it went? I am so nervous.

[cruiseindiva]

Help!!! We need some advice about booking a wedding in Grand Cayman. My brother was married there last summer at Grand Old House. It was very nice except that there were 3 other weddings there at almost the same time. We have only been that one time...does anyone have suggestions on locations other than Grand Old House? Maybe feedback on some of the hotels?

[ShowMeTheBoat]

Hey everyone, we just got married in Grand Cayman on June 30, 2005..we opted to use Carnival for their price protection policy in case of bad weather...we could have saved about $800 doing it ourself but we are very satisfied...we had a toes in the sand wedding; apparently the only place on the island that is used for such an event...we were the only ones that day so we had all the time we needed...here's a link to our online picture album...if you need more info, feel free to email me at CCugle@aol.com...

Enjoy the pictures everyone and best wishes to those weddings yet to come!

 

Cheryl

Our "Toes in the Sand" Wedding June 30, 2005

or type in this http://cuglejames.myphotoalbum.com/albums.php