If you’re tired of the same old cookie-cutter weddings, then you are in great company. Non-traditional weddings are trending! From coloured wedding gowns to micro/ minimalist weddings. From green (environmentally friendly) weddings, virtual weddings, edible floral arrangements, hilarious wedding invitations and inspiring venues! Brides are trying to be inclusive and ensure that their day is beautiful, engaging and an experience not just for the bride and groom but for everyone to remember.
Destination weddings are a tempting offer to the engaged couple looking to escape the structure and expense of a traditional venue and best of all, your honeymoon starts as soon as you kiss the bride!
Just by nature of its location, a wedding in the Caribbean holds the promise of an extraordinary, exotic experience. Further, a wedding in Barbados offers a plethora of exciting venues to meet a range of needs. They are all just a plane ride away.
How deep is your love? Is it as deep as the Ocean?
Get married underwater in the Atlantis Submarine.
Your wedding ceremony will certainly be one of a kind, if it takes place at a depth of 130ft below sea level, it's one of the most beautiful places to get married, in an intimate setting that’s sure never to be forgotten. As you submerge enveloping the wedding party in the island's turquoise waters, everything becomes perfectly still, as you descend into the depths to reveal a wondrous underwater world. When you re-emerge, from this baptism, what was two has now become one. Just remember to add sea turtles, beautiful fish and other marine life to the list of wedding invitees.
- Make it a cliffhanger! At Animal Flower Cave
Walk down “the aisle” on a cliff overlooking the stunning Atlantic ocean. Clifftop weddings are becoming more common; after all, they look like scenes out of a movie! There is no better vista than the breathtaking views from atop our rocky terrain and the unbelievable blues of the surrounding seas.
Nautical Nuptials at sea!
Always been a water baby? Numerous catamarans & yachts offer weddings onboard their vessels. They can take care of the decorations, catering, photography, floral arrangements, entertainment, and more depending on the package you choose.
- Tie the knot down under! No, not in Australia, but in a cave. Harrison’s Cave!
We told you that Barbados had something for everyone! Descend hundreds of feet to the heart of the island where underwater waterfalls, crystal clear pools and beautiful rock formations create the scene for a romantic wedding adventure or intimate reception.
- Say I do on a white sandy beach
Leave your footprints and your single life behind in the sand as you and your loved one form your union. Perfect for couples who can appreciate some degree of non-conformity, beach wedding venues guarantee a relaxed ambiance. It’s the promise of a wedding day augmented by the gentle sound of waves and the anticipation of a beautiful sunset vista. Much freedom is afforded to brides in particular, as the setting means that make-up can be minimal and heels can be switched out for sandals.
Barbados has roughly 57 named white sandy beaches to choose from. Select from the calm lullaby of the gentle waves found on the west coast of the island or the rush of the wind and the crashing of waves on the East coast, where the Atlantic ocean meets the shore. Add a twist by saying your vows on a jetty overlooking the crystal clear waters. Several viable options are dotted across the island including the picturesque Boatyard Jetty.
What better way to celebrate your nuptials than in a magnificent garden. It’s hard not to appreciate the natural splendour of such a venue. Open gardens, surrounded by well-maintained flora and fauna like Hunte’s Gardens & Flower Forest in St. Joseph, which both provide excellent locales for any pending nuptials and provide a creative license to be used on the natural aesthetic. Notably, the Flower Forest can accommodate up to 120 people within their pristine garden setting. Many gardens also have on-site wedding decor ‘preferentials’, such as gazebos and arches, eliminating the need to rent expensive structural embellishments.
Other popular garden venues include Orchid World (said to boast thousands of blooming orchids each year) & Andromeda Botanical Gardens a beautiful 6-acre garden found on the outskirts of St. Joseph - perfect for a country styled wedding.
- Write your name on History’s Page
Barbados Boasts a bevvy of historic locations all aged to perfection, built in the 16th & 17th Century ( I.e more than 400 years ago in some instances). The Barbados National Museum & Historical Society was once one of the island's original military installations and is now an excellent and central location for weddings & events, other military outposts such as Gun Hill and Harrisons Point at the Hilton are also well known as elegant locations. The Nidhe Israel Synagogue was the 1st synagogue built in the Western Hemisphere. St. Nicholas Abbey is one of only three original Jacobean mansions still standing within the western hemisphere and Codrington College is the oldest Theological College in the Western hemisphere as well. So there is no shortage of historic locations for brides and grooms to arrange their nuptials.
Countless stories have been told of the history of traditional plantation homes within the Caribbean and around the world. Though numerous plantations have been destroyed over the years, today many still stand as sprawling estates, reminders of our colonial past and now prime destination wedding locations. These iconic landmarks represent some of the most romantic local destinations for weddings or events.
Across the island, the extensive inventory of traditional plantation homes is impressive each one unique in its own right, offering a white range of options to each visiting bride lush, tranquil garden weddings, roof decks for dancing under the stars, barn styled wedding, grand gazebos, old windmills and epic views of undulating hills and dales are all options on the table. You name it, you"ll find it. Top it off with vintage accessories, a horse-drawn buggy or vintage cars to act as the perfect accents to a beautiful wedding.
Sites available for the event include Sunbury Plantation House, Guinea Plantation, Golden Grove Plantation House, Bellevue Plantation, Fisherpond Great House, George Washington House & Bagatelle Great House.