Your adventurous, avid travelers, and are seekers of moments, not things.  You yearned for an EXPERIENCE, not just a wedding day, right?

< Enter in the idea for a destination wedding >

Then the brainstorming began of where would have endless adventures, dynamic landscape for wedding photos, and be affordable for the majority of your wedding guests…

< Enter in Iceland >

Then you stumbled upon the idea of having an adventure wedding in Iceland… BRILLIANT. DONE. SOLD.  Woohoo!  Now that you’re planning a wedding in Iceland  with guests (and not eloping in Iceland), you need to devise a plan so that your Iceland wedding day is going to go down as: THE WEDDING OF THE YEAR.  So how do you do that successfully with or without an Iceland Wedding Planner?

Step 1:

Create a wedding website with useful information that makes it easy for your guests to make the decision to come (IE, Why you chose Iceland for your destination wedding location, Accommodation Room Block Information, Rental Car Info, Things to Do, How to Drive in Iceland, What to Pack, What to Wear to an Iceland Wedding Day, Best Hot Springs, Your Iceland Wedding Day Schedule, Pre/Post Wedding Itinerary, Gift Registry, etc).

Step 2: 

Get Your Guests EXCITED to come!  How?  Send a little “gift” with your invitation (like a map of the island, Icelandic candy, etc).

Step 3:

Send a newsletter update via email at the 9, 6, 3 and 1 month away marks to formally connect with your guests (also helps you track your room block information, meal choices, and reminds your guests that you care about them having an unforgettable time when they come to your Iceland wedding!).

Step 4:

Take your honeymoon 3-6 months after your wedding in Iceland so that you can design an epic pre and post wedding adventures WITH your guests in tow.  After all, you CHOSE Iceland for some fantastic reasons, so show them the best of the island (your way)!  Even if many your guests are not as adventurous as the two of you, they will live vicariously through you and feel honored to participate at different points.

Step 5:

When your guests check in to your Iceland wedding hotel, have welcome bags for them (either have the front desk give to each guest at time of check-in OR ask your fabulous Iceland Wedding Planner or Hotel if they can put them into each guests room).  Iceland Wedding Welcome Bags can have things in it like… Water, Tissues, Antacids, Tylenol/Advil, Hangover Kit, Hand Lotion (check out Soley products), Hand Sanitizer, Pepto-Bismol, Breath Mints, Shout Wipes, Chapstick, Eye Mask and Earplugs (if getting married in Iceland during summer solstice), Snacks (peanuts, cliff bars), Umbrella / Rain Poncho, Local Icelandic things like (dried fish jerky, licorice, chocolate, a wool item, map, or other awesome party favors).

Step 6:

Hold a “Welcome” Dinner or Cocktail Hour the day before your Iceland wedding day.  It gathers and focuses people.  Plus, it builds the anticipation of embarking on your adventure wedding day in Iceland!  Have a signature drink, either Icelandic (or American) appetizers OR a full sit-down 3 course meal.  If doing appetizers and drinks only, I suggest a 5-6pm timeframe.  If doing dinner, then start at 7pm (30 minutes per course).  NOTE: It’s important for people to GET SLEEP, so be mindful of this.

Step 7:

At the beginning or end of the welcome event pass out a physical Timeline Card/Schedule to each guest.  This is critical so that everyone is fully aware (no excuses) of when and where they need to be.  No one wants to be “that guy/gal” who shows up late, holds everyone up, or ruins an itinerary.  Set your guests up for success (and less stress) by communicating the schedule to them.  See here or here for an example Iceland wedding timeline card.

Step 8:

Allow us to design a full day adventure for your Iceland wedding day.  The landscape is unforgettable and being able to explore it with your guests is unlike anything they will EVER experience.  Imagine yourself saying “I do” at a private waterfall with zero tourists, discovering secret caves, marveling over massive glaciers, green mountains, trekking through canyons, and secluded black sand beaches with stunning rock formations!  Say what?!  Um yeah, seriously.  Your guests will be left speechless by the end of the day.

Step 9:

Seat your wedding guests during your Iceland wedding ceremony.  Nothing worse for a guest than having to stand through a ceremony in the cold/wind/rain, etc.  So be kind and courteous to their needs since they came all that way!  See HERE for more information on that topic.

Step 10:

Have an Unplugged Wedding Ceremony.  Why?  See our previous blog post HERE to understand better.  It encourages your guests to be PRESENT and in the moment WITH YOU.  Your guests may be miffed for a hot second but in the end, it will prove to have a larger impact on them, I promise.

 Step 11: 

Keep Guests Comfortable.  If going forward with an adventure wedding in Iceland, then you need to make sure (if you haven’t hired us as your Iceland Wedding Planner) there are scheduled bathroom breaks, a bathroom on the bus, or you have porta potties in tow.  Also be sure to have lunch and/or snacks available to your guests throughout the day (IE, fruit, snack sized chips, cliff bars, waters, sodas, etc).  This will avoid anyone getting “hangry.”

Step 12:

Have a scheduled “bail out” point if needed during the day (if your guest list includes any children under 10, over 70 years old or just in general less adventurous fair weather folks) AND a designated “rest” time between the adventure portion and the reception dinner.  At least an hour is needed for guests to be able to rest, refresh, and catch a second wind.  They will thank you later for this!

Step 13:

Introduce your Iceland wedding guests to some cultural elements!  Craft your wedding menu to have some local delicacies such as the following: Mushroom Soup, Icelandic Meat Soup, Langoustine, Scallops, Arctic Char, Reindeer, Lamb, or Skyr Cake.  Adding in an Icelandic Wedding Cake is a fun option as well!

Step 14:

Save any speeches or toasts for after the main course.  Toasts are best enjoyed by everyone on a full belly.

Step 15:

Have an open bar (unless there are sensitive circumstances as to why you cannot).  It’s not very pleasant for a guest to have travelled thousands of miles to find out their “friends” cannot buy them a glass of wine or a beer.  But know it’s okay to have curved limits like stating on the bottom of your menu “Beverages: Sodas, Coffee, Tea, Beer, and Wine” which implies cocktails or hard liquors are on the guests’ dime.  Or telling the hotel it’s okay to have an “open bar” if bottles or 30-year-old whiskies, etc are not included.  Just be tactful about it and not tacky to save a few bucks.

Step 16:

Be sure (if you have not hired us as your Iceland wedding photographer) you specifically ask your Iceland wedding photographer to take candid and posed photos (of the couples).  It’s a nice keepsake for you and the couples to have and remember later!

Step 17:

Schedule some post wedding day awesomeness for you and your Iceland wedding guests.  Maybe an activity like Inside the Volcano? Glacier Ice Climbing or Hiking? Horseback Riding? Scuba or Snorkeling between the famed tectonic plates?  Or how fun would it be for you all to caravan with walkie talkies throughout the Golden Circle and end the day in some secret hot springs?!  It would be an unforgettable end to your wedding events!

Step 18:

Send “thank you” notes to your guests regardless of them sending you a gift or not.  That simple.  If they came to your Iceland destination wedding, they deserve to be “thanked”  for coming formally.  Do it within 6 weeks after your Iceland wedding day.

Following these easy straightforward steps will ensure your guests are happy during your wedding day in Iceland and them remembering yours as THE BEST DAY EVER!

With a smile, Ann Peters + Team (Iceland Wedding Photographers + Planners)

© 2016, Iceland Wedding Planner /  Photos by Miss Ann, All Rights Reserved.

The post 18 Steps to Planning an Iceland Wedding Your Guests Will Never Forget appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

Do you ever get those?

Living in Iceland, I get them a lot when I ice climb, hike, SUP, and of course while scouting secret Iceland wedding locations.  But on Iceland wedding days, it’s somehow amplified.  No joke!  I almost hyperventilated in excitement over the below image.  Right light, right mountain, and what an amazing couple!  When all of those elements come together my mind is blown!

Cross those fabulous things with adding in some epic Icelandic wildlife and this Iceland elopement went off the charts!  Do you see the sneaky little seal who photo-bombed the Iceland wedding ceremony?

Another thing that makes me smile during an Iceland wedding photo adventures, is surprising my clients with new super secret waterfalls.  These two didn’t even bat an eyelash when I told them the hike time!  ? ? ?

When you have an early April wedding in Iceland (which this fab couple did) you can usually expect some snow still lingering (unless we’ve had a more wet than snowy winter).  This often times adds to the dramatic landscape giving you the vibrant greens, browns, and whites like the beautiful below Iceland elopement wedding portrait!

Weddings in Iceland with us equal adventure, that simple.

Ideal for couples who love the outdoors (and will run around in them rain or shine), enjoy hiking, crave wedding photos in dynamic locations, and are wanderlust addicts.  Imagine yourself discovering uniquely shaped glaciers like this couple did!

Here at Iceland Wedding Planner, we are providers of EXPERIENCES, not just a “wedding day”  We stay away from  churches and the usually flooded tourist locations, so that there are not 100+ people Instagram-ing your wedding.

We prefer to have our clients totally immersed and connected to TRUE and PURE Iceland.  The unknown. The untouched. The places that will leave you in utter “Awe” and get you totally addicted to this island!  If adventuring to secret waterfalls, caves, cliffs, glaciers, private beaches and rock formations sound like fun to experience on your wedding day in Iceland… Contact us to get that exciting conversation started! ?

With a smile, Ann Peters + Team (Iceland Adventure Wedding Planners + Photographers)

© 2016, Iceland Wedding Planner /  Photos by Miss Ann, All Rights Reserved.

The post Iceland Elopement | Adventure Wedding Photography appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

During their last few days of their journey through the land of fire and ice, they spent a day with us exploring the dynamic and colorful Icelandic wintry landscape!

They hiked.  They climbed.  They even said “yes” to my request for them to repel down into cave through a snow tunnel!

True adventurers who were after an unforgettable honeymoon!  …and they got it! ?

Thank you Maegan and Jesse for choosing us and Your Adventure Wedding to plan and photograph such a gorgeous honeymoon session in Iceland!

With a smile, Ann Peters (Iceland Wedding and Honeymoon Photography)

© 2016, Iceland Wedding Planner /  Photos by Miss Ann, All Rights Reserved.

The post Iceland Honeymoon Adventure | Maegan + Jesse appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

I am firm believer in being in the right place at the right time.  I’m also always fascinated by the fact that is exactly how the best love stories begin.  …and our clients, for some reason, always seem to have this theme in common and especially since adventurous folks tend to find each other.  This week’s fabulous featured destination wedding couple, is no exception.  Sarah and Alex met in Sydney, Australia’s market square one random Saturday morning, which then led into several years adventuring together conquering, discovering, pushing their limits and comfort zones through travel and unforgettable experiences!  This pair was also lucky enough to win our/Brides Without Borders 2015 Nordic Elopement Contest.  Please check out their super fun video entry and love story below to understand why they won!

Sarah and Alex began planning their Nordic Elopement with us, shortly after the contest close, in March 2015 and were open to being married in all of the Arctic countries and wholeheartedly embraced the adventure wedding concept, the unique challenges and scenes each country presented!  Our team at Your Adventure Wedding, presented many unforgettably unique itinerary options in the following countries: Lapland (Northern Finland), Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Lofoten Islands (Northern Norway), and the Faroe Islands.  In the end, Sarah and Alex craved the extreme snow, Northern Lights, and the very distinct activities the Lapland route held.

So it was then, that Alex and Sarah very enthusiastically decided, they would elope on Tuesday, December 1^st 2015 in Lapland!  This timing also coincided to be at the beginning of their month long holiday to discover Europe!  Neither one of their families knew about their secret entry to the Nordic Elopement Contest or their plans to take their relationship to the next level, but were thrilled to see the stunning images our sister company, Photos by Miss Ann captured afterwards!

The trek to Lapland begins in Helsinki, Finland and then you take a Finnair flight to Ivalo (approx. 2 hours).  The magnificent Kakslauttanen Igloo Village was chosen as the Lapland adventure wedding host hotel and resides an easy 40 minute drive from the Ivalo airport.

The morning of the wedding began at 6:30am with Sarah and Alex getting ready in their comfy Kelo-Glass Igloo Cabin and by 8:15am they were in route to their romantic wedding ceremony!  …and boy were they surprised when they arrived!  A beautifully lit glass teepee stood out in the early morning darkness!  (Side Note: There was only 1.5 hour of daylight during this specific day so time was needed to be planned and used wisely).  As they walked towards the teepee, candles and rose petals summoned them to come inside. The dreaminess doubled as they opened the door… Thousands of multicolored rose petals (compliments of Flyboy Naturals) and tea lights overtook the floor.  Your Adventure Wedding, honestly made it look like a romantic scene from a movie!  Sarah glided over them all smiles as she met Alex at the end!  They were married by a Scandinavian Civil Authority in a sweet little elopement ceremony and continued on with their epic adventure in Lapland!

We whisked them away to a path that led down to the famed glass igloos we have all had on our token “bucket list” and then onto a snowy quite cabin area nearby the national park and had a passionate toast to their newly wedded bliss!  They trekked around hand in hand in the knee high snow after for the perfect winter wedding portraits!  As the sun set and the darkness crept in, it was time for their afternoon adventure wedding activity, dog sledding!  Sarah and Alex bundled up and savored every second of their intoxicating journey mushing the dogs through the Lappish wilderness!  The action packed schedule, still allowed for a little break to warm up, relax, and catch their second wind too.  5 o’clock brought a visit to Santa’s Village, because after all how can you visit Lapland, the origin of Santa without paying the man a visit, right?!

Nighttime wedding portraits officially began and Photos by Miss Ann was fully equipped to create some amazing images that night.  A gorgeous bridge outside of Santa’s home provided the essence of the snowy backdrop that Sarah and Alex yearned for as you’ll see below.   They ran around together laughing and exploring the Igloo Village for about another hour then it was time for their sweetly styled (by us, Your Adventure Wedding) reception for two!

As they entered into their private luxury elopement reception space, they noticed the beautiful rose petals from Flyboy Naturals accented the table and transformed the floor into a magical space!  Finnish handmade reindeer His & Hers scarves served not only as their party favors for the night but also their chair ties!  A “Love” marque sign set the background of their sweetheart table.  Other Nordic wedding reception details they found where Mr. + Mrs. Burlap accented glasses, and slate colored napkins which were tied with a triangle mountain “bride” and groom” napkin ring.  Swoon-worthy details!

During their last course of their delicious 4 course dinner and conversation, the Northern Lights faintly appeared!  Perfect timing too as it was time for the last portion of their 16 hour wedding adventure through Lapland… a horse drawn sleigh ride through the fresh snow that fell throughout the day’s expedition!  Nothing like ending your whimsical Nordic elopement snuggled up in a sleigh together!  Half way through the ride we were able to stop the horse for some snowy and faint Northern Lights wedding photos!  What a grand way to end such a magical unforgettable day in Lapland!  Please enjoy Sarah + Alex’s Finland wedding portraits at the Igloo Hotel & Village below (compliments of  Photos by Miss Ann)!

See Sarah & Alex’s video entry and love story adventures here!

PS- Make sure you check out the beautiful feature (and more photos) Huffington Post and Brides Without Borders did on this gorgeous wedding!

With a smile, Ann Peters + Team (Adventure Wedding Planners & Photographers)

© 2016, Your Aventure Wedding / Photos by Miss Ann, All Rights Reserved

The post Wedding Adventure at Kakslauttanen Igloo Hotel appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

Dearest Clients, Fans, and Friends:

I want to take this post to be very candid with you.  You, my fabulous readers might have noticed a bit of a change in my Iceland Wedding Planner posts beginning in June of last year to now.  IE: The tone, my team changes, the direction my blog was heading, and the very big announcement at New Years that I would be officially splitting my time between the USA, Iceland and the other amazing Nordic Countries.

Well, everyone loves a good story, right?  This past year for me personally, has been filled with some pretty life changing ones.  Honestly, I have debated for months on whether or not to share this very personal side of my life…  But as a public blogger, international wedding planner, and a destination wedding photographer I believe it’s important to connect personally and professionally.  So that being said, I want you to understand something about me, I’m authentic.  At no point will you see me pretending to be something I’m not, nor will I apologize for being who I am.  …so that being said, please buckle your seat-belts and read on if I’ve peaked your curiosity =)

My Story:

If you read my early Iceland Wedding Planner blog posts you know a little history about me… Like that I have always been a businesswoman, avid traveler, adventurer (fervent extreme sports enthusiast – climbing/skydiving, etc) and was a serial dater before I met the man I would marry in Iceland in April of 2012.  Over the last 2.5 years of writing this wonderful Iceland Wedding Planning blog, life shifted into perspective for me, passions emerged, and big decisions needed to be made in order to move forward, be happy, and to do what I ultimately love for the rest of my life.  It’s always been a mantra of mine to ensure I live life fully and never have regrets.  I don’t ever want to be sitting on the sidelines wishing I would have made that leap to take that risk that would change the course of my life or even the world, I’d rather JUST DO IT.  Life doesn’t wait for you to be ready and time passes too quickly to say “one day I will” because let’s be honest, you probably won’t.

As you can probably tell, I’m an entrepreneur to the core and have been since I was 12 years old (what, I’m over 30 now, lol?!).  People either love or hate this about me, but that’s just it – that’s me and you cannot change it, it’s in my bones.  If I don’t challenge myself to come up with new/expand business ventures or fill up a page a week in my “Brilliant Ideas” book I’m disappointed in myself.

Always being an independent woman (huge props to my single mom), having to create my successes on my own, and accomplishments from nothing – I found marriage to be really tough for me.  Especially since I married someone who didn’t understand the notion of having to struggle in life, ever.  Everyone kept telling me that the first year is the “hardest” but then year two came and it felt even harder.  Feelings of never being “good enough” were constant, along with an endless amount of criticism that was unwarranted.  …and who in their first year of marriage, slaps their well-traveled audacious spouse with a “no travel” mandate (unless it was for business)?  Hence the start of the Iceland Wedding Planner business in October of 2012 =) As soon as I said “I do” I felt like my adventures, decisions, and future were being trapped, tamed, and held back.  Awful, awful feeling for an entrepreneur.

As my businesses grew and my enthusiasm increased, my husband sadly did not share the same excitement for me, the growth, nor was he on board with my Nordic adventure wedding concept.  In fact, he would downplay the value and potential to our friends, family, and anyone we would meet.  It’s called respect and every marriage needs it.  I’m not trying to play saint here either folks- I’ve made a lot of mistakes, but I’ve owned up to them, and allowed them to build my character.  In the end, the most important thing is that: I tried.  Uttering the word “divorce” is not easy to someone (like me) who respects, values, and appreciates the hell out of love, romance, and the solemn institute of marriage.  But it sadly was a subject that had to be faced in my world.  FACT: You only have 1 life and it is far too short to spend it unhappy, unfulfilled, or walking around on eggshells.  This past year has revived me back to my fabulous sparkly self as I emerged from the fire.  So who is that?  Outside of what you read on my “about” page I am…

ME:

Endlessly energetic, optimistic, smile to no end, laugh a lot, bold, thrive on adventure, I love love, people, and challenges.  I have a crazy attention to detail, awesome with logistics on anything anywhere, have a serious passion for wedding planning, wedding photography and Iceland.

Fun Facts About Me:

• Firm believer in seeking experiences, not things.
• I’ll push your adventure limits… You’ll say “uncle” before I do =)
• I believe the best stories in the world are the pages in your passport!
• I write blog posts on boarding passes.
• Just about every sentence I write ends with an exclamation point (so you can feel my enthusiasm)!
• I curse in excitement, don’t be offended.
• I am really good at extreme sports (but suck at organized sports, except hockey).
• Somehow over the last 15 years, I have photographed over 500 weddings all over the world.
• I own more dresses than pants (200 vs. 2 pairs, lol), yes seriously.
• I have skydived on almost every continent.
• Climbed on over 30 glaciers.
• Have a serious shoe collection and it consists mostly of Sorel boots, Badgley Mischkas, or Betsey Johnson polka dot heels.
• I have a crazy sweet exotic Bengal cat named, Oliver. He plays fetch.
• Huge fan of Instagram, connect with me lets share cool stuff!
• Own several fun business ventures: Your Adventure Wedding, Photos by Miss Ann, Iceland Wedding Planner, and Nordic Wedding Planner.
• It’s likely I’ll have pink hair when we meet.
• My clients always end up being my friends!
• I dare you to tell me something I “can’t” do.

To celebrate the kick off of my new life endeavors, I took a trip to the mecca of champagne.  After all, marriages begin with toasts, champagne, and smiles so they shall end with those things as well, right?  I spent several magical days with my closest friends in Paris and Reims France.  We shared more laughs, inside jokes, and bubbles than we could handle, it was epic!  Then came the most shocking thing… I dared to get in FRONT of the camera!  A huge thanks to the super sweet Erika Gerdemark Photography, for documenting!  She has been kind enough to allow me to share these tremendously fun images with you below.  Also check out the Offbeat Empire Blog for a feature of my Freedom Session!

Thank you followers, for reading, supporting, and sharing this very exciting time in my life!  Now back to planning and photographing your incredibly awesome adventurous Iceland weddings…

With a smile, Ann Peters (Iceland Wedding Photographer and Planner)

The post Getting Married in Iceland to New Beginnings in Paris appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

Well here we are again at the close of another unforgettable year!  Our hearts are gratefully overflowing here at Iceland Wedding Planner and Photos by Miss Ann!  Big amazing changes, exceptional opportunities, partnerships, and we were blessed with so many incredible couples that chose us to be a part of their Iceland wedding day adventures!  Thank you!

As we look into the new year… We are off the charts excited about 2015!  The designs, styling, Iceland wedding locations we have coming up for our 2015 couples are EPIC in every way, and not to mention every single couple we have on our books next year is frankly the definition of ADVENTUROUS!

Instead of wishing you Happy Holidays… I want to wish you a legendary start and countless adventures in 2015!  My advice: Make 2015 be the year of YOU, filled with unforgettable experiences that push your limits!  Do it, I dare you.

On that note, I’d like to share a super fun Iceland wedding video I shot while traversing my way around the country, exploring new and exciting locations for YOUR Iceland wedding (Note: The new super secret locales didn’t make the cut as those spots are reserved for our clients eyes only)!  But in the meantime, please come with me to Iceland and Get Married!  I can help you =)

With a smile, Ann + Team (Iceland Wedding Photography & Planning)

Note: The amazing song is called “The Road” by the fabulous Frank Turner

© 2012-2015, Iceland Wedding Planner, All Rights Reserved

The post Iceland Wedding Planner: 2014 Rocked! appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.

There you are… You have fallen in love with Iceland as your destination wedding location and cannot imagine getting married anywhere else.  Now you are in the process of listing all of the “must have” wedding details that need to get packed and happen. But…You are very specific about your wedding details and just are not sure if the obscure destination wedding location will be able to match every detail you are envisioning.

What to do? 

Answer: Import your wedding day items to your Iceland (or other) destination wedding location!

You may cringe at the thought of having to take the time to package and ship your wedding details to Iceland or elsewhere but here are the pros of doing so:

1.)   You will get exactly what you stylistically envisioned (and what you want) regardless of where your ceremony or reception are located.

2.)   In countries like Iceland you can bring in the standard 2 liters of wine/champagne per person for free, take advantage of it!

3.)   You’re guaranteed to have your items arrive on time.  If your checked bag doesn’t make it to your destination wedding location you could be without on your wedding day.

4.)   You’ll have more room for last minute items to put in your checked bag.

5.)   You will save money! Do your research, buy online, and have it drop shipped directly to your wedding hotel (let them know in advance).

Easy-Peasy Directions to Importing Your Wedding Day Goods:

• Prepay Duty to your vendor (if possible) so the vendor is responsible for the importation.
• If gathering the items and packing the box yourself use lightweight materials and wrap well for potential breakage.
• Have the post office mark as “Fragile.”
• Fill out the custom forms accurately with contents and cost.
• Get a tracking number if possible and track all the way through to its end delivery.
• If prepaying duty was not an option have your hotel add it to your bill upon arrival (Iceland hotels will do this if you have prepaid and reserved your location for a few days).
• Ship a minimum of 3-4 weeks before your wedding date (depending on your destination wedding location).
• Confirm with the vendor who shipped and the receiving location that it was received and put for safe keeping until your arrival (Or ship to your Iceland Wedding Planner for her to bring).
• If there are any light or heat sensitive items communicate that to all parties so your items stay 100% perfect.
• Make sure your destination wedding hotel clearly marks the packages and they only release to you or your wedding planner.

Real life examples from our Iceland Destination Wedding:

My husband and I planned our Iceland destination wedding in less than 6 months- from October to April 2011-2012.  We’re super planners and experienced Iceland wedding photographers  so we had a very good idea of what we liked and didn’t.  We chose the most dynamic place in Iceland to get married: Seljalandsfoss Waterfall in 2012. With a champagne toast at Vik Beach, a pit stop at the infamous wool shop and a final stop at Skogafoss Waterfall before heading back to Hotel Ranga for our reception.

Our biggest and most important detail hurdle was that we wanted over a 30 x 4 foot rose petal isle that was very dense with a very specific shade of pink (In my opinion, wedding colors are uber important for photographs!).  So that means I had to order 8 cups per square foot of my isle (see a helpful petal calculator here).  The Icelandic florists quoted me over $2,000 USD and they could only promise white petals and not my shade of pink.   It was not in our budget to have that additional cost no matter how much I wanted it.  But my Iceland wedding photographs absolutely needed colorful a rose petal walk way so I needed a thrifty way to make this happen.

So!  After lots of research and 20 samples later I found an amazing vendor called Flyboy Naturals who offers eco-friendly freeze dried rose petals.  Not only were they the best deal, but they were gorgeous, AND they would ship directly to Iceland!  I had our freeze dried rose petals stored for 1 month in a cool dark place and they were perfect at the waterfall!  See our Iceland waterfall wedding isle way here.  They are one of our preferred vendors so feel free to check them out or contact us to assist in your amazing aisle way creation!

Next big challenge was champagne for our wedding toast at Vik Beach.  We bought from favorite winery Domaine Chandon 20 Bottles of their Yountville Vintage Brut 2007.  Iceland has an importing rule of 2 liters per person so between my husband, myself, and 8 of our guests we got it handled in the middle of the Toronto Airport on the way to Iceland!

Linens were another item on our list we had a specific vision for and decided to bring in all of our own for our welcome dinner and actual wedding reception.  The Iceland welcome dinner (or some call it an Iceland Wedding Rehearsal Dinner) we chose a pin tuck design.  Silver pin tucked place mats and white napkins.  For our wedding reception at Hotel Ranga we purchased and packed chocolate rosette table runners and chocolate pin tuck napkins.  They made awesome packing for our favors, welcome bags, love letter ceremony box, wedding weekend attire, and our fragile Mr. and Mrs. champagne glasses.  It’s safe to say by purchasing our own items and importing them in for our Iceland destination wedding it saved us $1,000’s of dollars that we could put to our honeymoon in Bali!

I hope this article has provided you with more destination wedding confidence!

Yours in Iceland destination wedding planning and Iceland wedding photography,  Ann Peters, Owner of Photos by Miss Ann proudly photographing the best Michigan weddings and crazy awesome destination weddings!

Please stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts on the following topics:

• Destination Wedding Timelines
• Advice to your destination guests!
• Things to do in Iceland!

© 2002-2013, Photos by Miss Ann, All Rights Reserved

The post Importing Your Destination Wedding Details appeared first on Iceland Wedding Planner.