How to Have a Cruise Ship Wedding

Cruise ship weddings and cruise elopements are popular for a reason. So if you’ve been considering one for yourselves we’re giving you every step for planning one.

Step 1. Pick and book your cruise
Step 2. Choose a team to join you
Step 3. Invite your people
Step 4. Pick a spot for your ceremony
Step 5. Build an itinerary
Step 6. Work out the details
Step 7. Embark!

Step 1. Pick and Book Your Cruise

There are plenty of cruises and companies to pick from. For one thing, some cruise ships are domestic, some are international. In addition, you can even fly elsewhere to do a cruise ship in places like Europe or Asia. While you consider your options here are a few considerations to make when you’re choosing a cruise:

Port Locations. Likely you’ll have to travel to your embarkation location so make sure you know where that will be. Then you can identify the closest airport.
Destinations. Where would you like to go? Are you into tropical beaches and crystal clear waters? Or do you want to see glaciers or maybe even Antartica?
Duration. How long would you like your wedding celebration to be? Remember that it doesn’t just have to last a day, you can spread your celebration out to spend with different people.
Ship Culture. Are you looking for a family friendly environment or an adults only party?
Amenities. Are you looking for a ship with great dining, relaxing environments, or maybe certain adventures?
Passages. Some seas are rougher than others. If you’re susceptible to motion sickness, maybe choose destinations that have passages through calmer waters. You can easily google this information.

Step 2. Choose a Team to Join You

We are The Drinis – Las Vegas and destination elopement specialists. I’m, Mari, an adventure elopement photographer and planner, and that’s my dashing husband, Pop, logistical specialist and officiant extraordinaire.

Cruise weddings are something we love because they give couples, like you, the freedom of having a good time without having to worry about much. Everything you need is on the ship. Also if your sense of adventure seeks more, then we’re happy to coordinate and plan all of your excursions, which will help you get away from the crowds doing the typical touristy stuff coming off of your cruise.

We’ll make your cruise ship wedding exceptional because we provide an all-inclusive experience with photographs not just on the day of your wedding, but on all days of your cruise so that we can cover every part of your celebration. Furthermore, our pricing includes our travel, stay, and of course all of our services – photography, ceremony, and planning – you won’t have to worry about a thing. We can’t wait to meet you!

Step 3. Invite Your People

Destination etiquette doesn’t require you to pay anyone’s way to join you for your wedding. Therefore, you could invite anyone and everyone to join you without having to worry about costs for any other day other than your wedding day (If you want to do something extra off ship or not included in the cruise cost already). I’ll get to more of that later. However, here are a few rules of thumb when approaching the subject of invitations:

Save the Dates (Approx. 1 year before your embarkation date). Put out an informal, informational Save the Date to everyone you intend on inviting. In effect, you’ll get some feedback on whether your people will be able to make it.
Create a Wedding Website. Destination weddings require a lot of coordination and preparation especially for your guests, so it’s best to give them all the details of cruise lines, port of embarkation, destinations, inclusions, everything mentioned in Step 1 really. The best way to communicate all of this info is by creating a wedding website. You can even include a rough itinerary on your website to help your guests make their own plans.
Formal Invitations (3-6 months prior to your embarkation date). Whether you decide that you’d want paper or digital invitations, these are the invites that will be going out to all the people who told you they would be able to make it from your Save the Dates. The invitations will refer to your wedding website so that everyone can start booking out their staterooms.

Step 4. Pick a Spot for Your Ceremony

There are a couple ways to approach this.

1. Have your ceremony on the ship.
You’ll need to coordinate with the ship’s wedding planning/coordinator. You will incur additional fees for this request, but if you love the ship, want to have a decorated space for your ceremony, and a place for all of your guests to sit and enjoy it then you’d reach out to cruise line’s planner to find out next steps for this venture.

2. Have your ceremony on one of your stops.
For eloping couples or couples who want a private ceremony this might be an easier alternative. Our services include your personalized ceremony, so we could easily head out to a beautiful location and deliver a completely bespoke ceremony experience. I.e. can rent a car and go to the prettiest place to elope on a remote beach. In contrast, for microwedding or bigger wedding couples this would mean booking a space or a resort that will seat your guests and maybe even feed your guests at the same location. You’ll also have to consider transportation to and from the port so that your guests can make it back on time. Of course, this will all entail additional fees unrelated to your cruise.

Step 5. Build an Itinerary

The great thing about having your wedding or elopement on a cruise ship is that almost all of the amenities are built in and included for your to have an amazing reception. When I say reception, I don’t necessarily mean dinner and dancing, I just mean time well spent with the people you love most. For example, your itinerary can include Day 2 at the piano bar with all of your guests, everyone requesting a song that reminds them of the both of you. Day 3 could be excursions with your family. Day 1 could be a spa day with your “bridesmaids” or “groomsmen” to prepare for the big day. Here are our tips for building an incredible cruise wedding itinerary:

- You don’t necessarily have to have everyone together at once to enjoy time together. For those with social anxiety having a perfect reception might mean having intentional, scheduled time with smaller groups of people.

- Build in alone time. You don’t have to spend every minute of the day with guests, but you did come here to marry the love of your life so make sure to spend intentional, quality time with them too. This is YOUR cruise.

- Take advantage of the cruise ship’s many amenities. Go for dinner and a show with your guests. Make use of the adults only pool. Do some yoga with just the ladies or just the guys. The ship’s amenities are a great reason to get married on a cruise because they’re all inclusive.

- Make sure you and your guests are all aware of when you need to be back on the ship. You can and WILL get left.

Step 6. Work Out the Details For Your Cruise Ship Wedding

For things not included on your cruise like flowers, itineraries, invitations, excursions, car rentals, flights, etc., make sure to work out a timeline to take care of those things. Flowers, make-up and hair, etc. might be able to be handled by your cruise ship but inquire in advance to find out. Here’s a few things to think about when working out your details.

- Dresses/Suits. Whether you’re renting or buying, make sure this gets done between 8-12 months of your embarkation. Also make sure you can get everything steamed on board, as well, since they’ll probably be packed up in your luggages.

- Heirloom items and ceremony details. Make sure to keep these in carry ons if you’re flying so they don’t get lost in check-in luggage. Put them all in one place.

- Decor. Try to pack as light as possible, but if you really want to decorate your rooms or your guests’ rooms then you check an extra luggage which you can probably use as a souvenir luggage when going home.

- Hair and make-up. Do you have a trusted friend or vendor that will be doing this for you? Hire them and take them on your adventure as well. You may even be able to hire them at an all-inclusive price for all days. You’ve gotta be camera ready, of course!

- Flowers. Some ships have florists and floral designers, but depending on your destination you probably don’t want to bring your own flowers because of international customs laws.

- Flights. *Cruise tip* Get into your port location a day or two prior to your embarkation day. That way, if your flight is delayed you’re not stressing getting there on time.

- Guest goodie bags. On one of our cruise ship weddings we had the pleasure of serving a couple who provided every guest a goodie/prep bag for their trip which also included an itinerary. The bags included aloe vera for sun burns, sunscreen, lotion, shots, a shot glass, bandaids, dramamine, chapstick, tylenol and all the necessary stuff for getting over a hangover. It came in handy when I was nursing a sunburn.

- Itinerary. You don’t have to have your guests engaged the entire time, which is one of the reasons why it’s such a good idea to have a cruise wedding, but provide them with times that you’ll want them to be engaged with you or an activity you’re having. Let them know what days are mandatory and which are not. Or have separate itineraries or cards for people who you’ll be spending time with personally. The rest of the time your guests will just be able to enjoy the amenities.

Step 7. Embark!

So you’re ready to board your ship for your cruise wedding or cruise elopement. Here’s what to expect:

- A scheduled boarding time. No need to be early to the dock, for instance. You won’t be missing anything.

- Check-in. You’ll need your passport and tickets and all important documents, so make sure you have them within reach when you get to the ship.

- You won’t be able to access your room right away. You’ll check in your big luggage and take your carry on with you. The big luggage will magically appear in your room when it’s ready.

- Everyone heading to the buffet. Go anywhere else but the buffet if you’re hungry as soon as you get on the ship. Everyone will be at the buffet, best to get something elsewhere.

- Attending the safety meeting. Yes, it will be crowded. Yes, it’s not that fun. But for safety, it’s worth it.

- The Sailaway Party. Yup! Being on a cruise ship is just like being at a 24/7 party. There’s entertainment everywhere, but on the sailaway day, everyone comes together to get the party started!

Cruise Wedding Photography Package Information

Planning & Guidance

– Full elopement/wedding planning. Personalized cruise wedding guide. Questionnaires, vendor recommendations, permitting, and client portal access. Unlimited planning and access to your elopement team. Everything above.

-Travel expenses ALWAYS included.

Ceremony Services
– Officiant services by Pop Andrini.
– Marriage license guidance.
– Custom ceremony.

Photography
– From 8-16 hours of professional photography coverage by Mari Andrini.
– Drone footage (location and weather permitting).
– Sneak peeks within 48 hours.
– Final images on a secure online gallery.

From $7000-$13000

There are so many good reasons to have a cruise wedding and if we haven’t outlined them all here, take a look at R + R’s cruise wedding where they got married on Cozumel after spending 3 days on a cruise with their entire families.

If you’d like to chat about your own cruise wedding, fill out the form below and we’ll get you started planning a wedding unlike any other.