Set at a grand estate, this Cairnwood Estate wedding inspiration weaves together antique gold and soft pink hues to create an ambiance that exudes timeless elegance. With its intricate details and lush garden, the venue inspired every carefully chosen element. A group of skilled experts collaborated to bring this vision to life.
A true highlight of this celebration is the enchanting blend of garden blooms and luxurious, antique details that graced each moment. As the ceremony unfolded, breathtaking floral pillars transformed the entrance into a majestic altar. Transitioning to the terrace for the reception, guests were greeted by a sight of elegance—towering arrangements and gilded settings adorn the tables. Completing the scene was the ornate wedding cake, adding that perfect touch of vintage charm to the elevated atmosphere.
As you scroll through the stunning photos captured by Tiffany Longeway, the meticulous attention to detail and creativity are impossible to ignore. Keep scrolling to see how old traditions and new ideas can come together to make something that never goes out of style.
It’s easy to see why Mexico is a popular wedding destination. The picturesque scenery, charming culture, accessible travel, and cost-effective pricing are just a few of the country’s alluring features. But thanks to the countless gorgeous venues the country holds, choosing which one is right for you can be a bit trickier.
First, you need to choose what part of Mexico’s large and diverse landscape is right for you. Do you envision exchanging vows on a pristine beach? Or maybe tropical jungle vibes better suit your taste? Fortunately, the Junebug team found a Mexican venue that seamlessly combines both settings within one unbelievably luxurious and sophisticated resort. We spent four days exploring this stunning property and can confidently say it would make one breathtaking wedding venue.
The Perfect Venue for Your Mexico Wedding
Grand Velas Riviera Maya is the ultimate Mexico wedding venue, no matter the size of your wedding. Situated along the shores of the Caribbean Sea, this property provides everything for a memorable Mexico wedding. After touring the 206 acres of lush jungle and sparkling beaches, it was easy to envision every size wedding–from intimate elopements to multi-day celebrations–coming to life at this one-of-a-kind Mexico resort.
To sweeten the deal even more, each wedding is in the hands of the talented and experienced Velas wedding team. All wedding services and vendors are included in one fee, including the essentials like catering, décor, photography, and floral design. This allows you to dream up the vision, and Grand Velas will take care of the rest.
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Small Elopements in Mexico
A large resort may not be an obvious choice for an elopement. But after seeing the property ourselves, we feel the need to urge you to think outside the box. Consider it–why not elope to a place where your wedding getaway doubles as a honeymoon? At Grand Velas Riviera Maya, the days and nights surrounding your elopement will be full of absolute luxury and serenity.
Cenote Ceremony
For your elopement ceremony, we have a truly unique option that we adore and highly recommend. Surprisingly, the resort has its very own cenote nestled in its Zen Grand section. Secluded and peaceful, this mystical swimming hole makes for one unforgettable elopement ceremony spot. Keep the wedding quaint and simple, and focus on the significant moment between you and your partner. All you would need is a bouquet, and the natural surroundings will take care of the rest.
Romantic Getaway
Stay in the Grand Class section of the resort, which is an adults-only experience with oceanfront views. You’ll get an impeccable suite, a 24/7 concierge, spa access, and exquisite dining experiences, just to name a few. And the SE Spa isn’t just any typical spa you’d find in a hotel. It’s the largest in the region, spanning over 90,000 square feet while offering authentic Mexican treatments and a signature seven-step water journey. It’s the ideal place to kick off or wrap up your elopement experience.
Grand Velas Riviera Maya’s private cenote
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Midsize Mexico Weddings
Weddings with small to medium guest lists can take just about any shape imaginable. During our property tour, we viewed terraces, ballrooms, gardens, lawns, pools, and coastline–each offering the potential to transform into an idyllic ceremony and reception space.
Beach Wedding
Beach ceremonies are a classic choice for Mexican weddings for good reason, and Grand Velas Riviera Maya’s private beach holds up to the hype. We’re talking white sands and turquoise waters dotted with lofty palm trees all along the shore. It’s hard to think of a more tranquil setting for your wedding ceremony. Next, the reception can be held on the Ocean Terrace. This balcony offers a mix of outdoor and indoor space for when you just can’t choose. Take in the ocean views in this charming space, which can accommodate up to 100 guests.
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Tropical Wedding
Choose the Zen Pool Terrace if you’re drawn to the idea of lush greenery and a tropical atmosphere for your wedding. This was by far one of our favorite spots within the resort. From the moment you walk into the Zen pool area, you’re engulfed in rainforest vibes. This spot is for couples who love what Mexico has to offer but want a ceremony that’s a little out of the ordinary.
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Large Mexico Wedding Celebrations
Lastly, Grand Velas Riviera Maya was practically built for large wedding celebrations. With 539 suites and eight restaurants across three distinctive sections, your guests will not only fit comfortably but will have plenty of activities to keep them entertained.
Ballroom Wedding
For a wedding that’s truly grand and spectacular–and expecting 200+ guests–the Grand Velas Convention Center stands out as the right choice. When we say this space is large, we mean it. There are over 30,000 square feet to tailor and personalize. Unlike most ballrooms, here you’ll find floor-to-ceiling windows that display the tropical jungle all around the property.
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Photo courtesy of Velas Resorts
Garden Wedding
Don’t assume that a large guest list means you’re limited to convention centers or ballrooms for your wedding. If you want to say “I do” outdoors, the Zen Garden is tailor-made for your celebration. Located adjacent to the Zen Grand lobby, this expansive, open-air lawn also has a reflective pool and a beautiful ceiba tree that create a one-of-a-kind landscape. Its nearly 20,000 square feet of space can be utilized and decorated for a ceremony, cocktail hour, reception dinner, or dancing.
But don’t just take our word for it. Grand Velas Riviera Maya has also won several awards across multiple publications, including Travel + Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, and USA Today. We know you’ll love this impressive resort as much as we did.
Darrick and James selected Hawaii as their wedding destination, finding it to be the perfect midpoint between their hometowns in Australia and New York. Their decision was solidified when they discovered their stunning venue with its epic mountain backdrop. In planning their Kualoa Ranch wedding, they focused on reflecting their personal styles, drawing inspiration from the colors and themes prominent in their apartment and photography work. Opting for a combination of dark and moody wood tones–highlighted by contrasting dark and gilded accents and adorned with lush greenery and white florals–they crafted a vision that felt uniquely theirs. Fortunately, their team of vendors grasped this vision and exceeded expectations by going above and beyond to bring it all to life.
The beginning of the couple’s special day was marked by heartfelt “I do’s” shared amid nature and with their closest loved ones. Enhancing the breathtaking surroundings, they adorned the space with a unique display of greenery pillars, creating a beautiful frame around the mountain views. As touching as these moments were, the couple aimed to surpass them with their tented reception. They welcomed guests to the celebration with long banquet-style tables awaited, adorned with elegant black and gold settings and a warm glow from numerous candles.
The two grooms made a beautiful and inviting setting to enjoy and soak in all the special moments together. They mixed in parts of their traditions thoughtfully, showing off their personalities. To see more, take a look at these incredible photos by Keani Bakula and enjoy all the details of their lush and romantic celebration.
We chose Hawaii because it is the midpoint between Australia and New York, where we are from. We also knew we wanted something other than a beach or hotel wedding, which further narrowed down venue options. When we saw the photos of Kualoa Ranch and the epic mountain backdrop, we were sold. How could we pass on an opportunity to get married where Jurassic Park was filmed? This was a more complex venue as everything from the chairs and utensils to the tent and bathrooms had to be brought in, but we had confidence knowing that our planner was a seasoned professional who had planned many weddings at that spot.
Infusing Hawaiian Flair and Their Moody Personalities Into Their Wedding Design
We wanted the wedding to reflect our styles. Drawing upon colors and themes we like to use in our apartment and photography. We settled on dark and moody wood tones, contrasting gold and black accents, and lush greenery with white orchids. To embrace our wedding destination, we mixed custom Hawaiian motifs subtly in our stationery and asked our florist to incorporate tropical greenery into her design. Finally, we used a mix of candles and different styles of chandeliers to create a warm but elevated atmosphere for the guests after the sun went down.
Intentional Moments to Soak and Enjoy Their Kualoa Ranch Wedding
We snuck away from dinner for a few minutes to spend time with one another and fully take in the evening and our surroundings. Seeing the moon rising over the majestic Kualoa mountain range was surreal. As we looked back at our guests and the wedding tent lit up. We are glad we made a conscious effort to stay present throughout the wedding day and cherish the moment together as a couple. The evening flew by so quickly, but we’ll always have these special memories to think back on.
Advice: Hire Help From Professional Vendors (Especially Wedding Planners)
First, hire a wedding planner if your budget allows for it. Given our venue’s complexity and carte blanche nature, it would have been impossible to plan this wedding on our own. Our rockstar planner Angelica had a lot of experience with this venue. And brought up things we would have needed to consider. Like where to position the tent vs. the ceremony set-up to maximize views, number of generators required, etc. Second, trust your wedding planner and your vendors. They know what they are doing and have great advice from the other weddings they have worked on before. Finally, feel free to have open conversations with your wedding team about what you really want and use your vision and their experience to create something unique for you as a couple.
Boarding Passes and Hand-Written Notes: Personalized Moments at Their Wedding
We’re proud that our wedding felt authentic to both our personalities. We skipped traditions or customs that did not resonate with us and focused instead on injecting our personalities and stories into the details throughout the day. We had a lot of fun with this part. For instance, because James is a pilot, we created boarding passes for the escort cards and used airport codes for table numbers. We also had personalized notes on the boarding passes to thank guests for coming to Hawaii to celebrate our wedding.
Crafting a Personal Soundtrack That Defined Their Wedding Moments
Music is a big part of our relationship, and we have many artists that we love listening to together, such as Rufus Du Sol and Odesza. We carefully picked songs for big moments throughout the night (e.g., champagne pour, ceremony recessional). And it felt like we were living in a movie with our soundtrack. In addition, our DJ Toshi of Spectrum Entertainment created a lit dance floor by mixing in songs and artists that we love while also playing crowd-pleasers that had people out of their seats.
Congratulations to Darrick and James on their black and gold moody Kualoa Ranch wedding. And huge thanks to Keani Bakula for capturing every magical moment and stunning detail.
Choosing a bold color scheme is an excellent move if you want your wedding to stand out. Keep in mind that bold doesn’t always have to be bright. Using deep, moody tones like black is a unique and daring way to make your wedding distinctive. To make your wedding truly unique, explore our guide for creative ways to subtly and not-so-subtly bring black into your celebration.
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