^TM

Barefoot in Paradise

Consider Key West for A Memorable Wedding

By Murray D. Laurie

We’ve all heard of those off-beat weddings that you wish you’d get invited to: he and she drifting down in twin parachutes, streams of kissing bubbles rising from an undersea grotto, toasts to the happy pair from the gondola of a balloon, throngs in sarongs tossing rice or releasing butterflies on a tropical island, everyone blasting off across the dessert on motorcycles after the vows are said.  Why not delight your family and friends, as well as your special selves, with a really memorable wedding in Key West, one of the most outrageous (dare we say kinky?) places in the country.

Is there a bride who hasn’t carefully considered the impact of the setting on her precious album or wedding video?  Fancy a scarlet sun setting in the background, palms bending in the breeze, and a happy glow all around? For another effect, a starlit sail on a tall ship with billowing canvas sails and the champagne flowing as the guests join the newlyweds in casting flowered wreaths onto the dancing waves. If your nearest and dearest number in the hundreds, hotels such as the luscious Grand Key Resort welcome expansive wedding parties with a grand staircase for the bride’s entrance and bouquet tossing and a sumptuous pool set in a tropical garden.

Key West abounds in pretty and historically interesting churches, for those with a more traditional taste. To add a jaunty note, transport your guests to and from the church on time on the open air Conch Tour Train and polish off the evening with a reception at the East Martello Tower, an art and history museum set in a romantically crumbling seaside fortress.

For the literary minded, book the Hemingway Home Gardens and expect lots of feline attendants as the descendents of Ernest Hemingway’s cats mingle with your guests. The lush tangle of vines and the aura of Papa’s flamboyant legacy will make it a memorable occasion. Some say his shade still prowls the neighborhood, a short distance from his favorite bar.

President Harry Truman slipped of to a secluded retreat on the Navy Base in Key West when he wanted to get away from steamy Washington, DC.  What fun to invite your guests to join you at the “Little White House” as you splice the knot and launch your life together.  Or, for another military flavor, do it among the cannons that once protected Florida’s shores at historic Fort Zachary Taylor.

Spread your family and friends among the quaint little historic inns and posh bed and breakfast complexes or keep them all together at one of the larger resort hotels, but do give them a list of things to keep them busy while you get a head start on your honeymoon. They can choose from a menu of sport fishing, windsurfing, dive tours, bicycle treks through the historic district and the old Key West Cemetery, or serious pub-crawling and bar-hopping on foot down the length of Duval Street. Attendance is obligatory, at least once, at the Sunset Celebration held each evening at Mallory Square.

It’s so much fun getting married in Key West that some folks do it over and over again….

Links to get your started: www.keywest.com  and  www.fla-keys.com

Back to TravelLady Magazine