One of the first steps before walking down the aisle is to decide where your magical day will be. It may be an easy decision—you want to be in your hometown or you have always fantasized about getting married in a fairytale castle. Both are great locations, but there are some basics to consider before making your final decision. With that in mind, we have at least 6 great reasons to have your wedding in Cape May, NJ.
Most people getting married in New Jersey have some sort of connection to the state. It may be that summers were spent near the beach or it was close to a college they attended. Cape May stands out as a perfect location for many reasons. Consider a visit to see for yourself!
Location, Location, Location
That’s what it’s all about—but there are many things to consider with regard to location. If you are looking outside of your hometown here are some questions you need to ask yourself are:
- Will your most important guests be willing and able to travel there?
—Cape May is easily accessible from major airports.
—Cape May is also an easy drive from New York City. - If you want a religious ceremony, is there an appropriate house of worship?
—Cape May has almost every denomination of houses of worship. - Does the location fit with your style?
—Obviously, if you are looking for a beach wedding, there are a number of different spots to have an outside ceremony.
—There are also many choices of venues with varying styles from casual to formal.
The Perfect Venues
Once you know the location of your wedding, the next step is to find the perfect venue. Do you want to have both the ceremony and reception at the venue? Do you want a traditional wedding or an innovative fun party? Daytime or night? What kind of food? What are your must-haves?
There are almost 50 different venues in Cape May, ranging from the intimate Garden Terrace at the Carroll Villa Hotel to wineries to a large beachside hotel. There is sure to be one to fit your vision of the perfect wedding; in fact, it may be hard to choose.
Experts suggest that when visiting to select a venue, don’t overbook yourself! Limit yourself to no more than a maximum of three sites per day. Make sure you have a clear idea of your expected guest count so that you can look at appropriately sized spaces.
The Budget
Before you start anything, you should have a clear idea of what your wedding budget is. Wedding budgets are all about balance. Remember, this may be one of the largest events to plan, let alone create a budget. Especially if you are not using a wedding planner, take the following steps:
- Write down how much you are willing to spend—and stick to that number
- Start a list of wants and needs
- Take into account the venue, catering, attire, photographer, music, and flowers
Cape May has many choices of venues that are not only reasonable but also have years of experience with many events. Take advantage of their expertise.
The Menu
Along with the budget comes the question of what food you want to serve your guests. Food and alcohol count for the largest portion of most wedding budgets, so this is an extremely important decision. Given the amount of money that you will be spending on food and drink, you need to be concerned about the type, quantity, and quality of the items served.
Plan to sample menu options, or visit a site shortly before an event is being held to observe how it is set up. Fortunately, Cape May has fabulous restaurants and dozens of caterers—which will you choose?
Professional Help
If you have read this far, your head may be spinning. It is for just this reason that more and more prospective brides are using professional help to plan their weddings. When you are already busy with work and everything else going on in your life, a professional can certainly save you time and money. A professional event planner may have contacts with vendors that will help save money and be better options than you had anticipated.
You may not need an overall event planner. Many venues have staff that can coordinate details at that site. That may be just the right amount of help you need. For instance, the Carroll Villa Hotel has an event planner that can help with all the details for your special day.
Guest Experience
If your guests are traveling to your wedding site, it is important that there are more things for them to do than solely attend the wedding. Nowadays, many weddings are smaller, with activities that allow the guests and the bride and groom to create great memories of this special occasion.
What more beautiful setting is there than Cape May’s gorgeous beaches and our treasure trove of Victorian architecture. Cape May is America’s oldest seaside resort!
Although we have given you 6 reasons to have your wedding in Cape May, NJ, there are actually many more! Planning this important event is a special and personal time. The staff at the Carroll Villa Hotel would like to talk to you about your dreams and plans. We hope you will consider our very special hometown.
