Services:

Casa Ybel Resort, along with Thistle Lodge Beachfront Restaraunt, has been hosting weddings and events for over 100 years. Sitting on 23 acres of pristine beach on the Gulf of Mexico, Casa Ybel Resort is the perfect location to plan your destination wedding! Our catering team will assist you every step of the way to create the island wedding of your dreams. Casa Ybel Resort hosts wedddings and events from the Intimate to the Grand, from 10 to 200 guests or more! Give us a call to learn more!

cher hanna photography

Everytime we have photographed weddings at Casa Ybel, they have been perfectly tropical events hosted by very gracious staff. The wedding day coordinators are always smiling and eager to please their clients, the food is fantastic and the venue is completely charming.

You have dreamed about this day your whole life. Getting married outdoors, on the beach or lawn overlooking the beach, can make for a magical and breathtaking affair. As with any outdoor venue, you have to keep in mind certain elements that could come into play and potentially put a damper on your day. This is, after all, Florida and there are certain things you will need to prepare yourself and your guests for. If you do your research and make the proper preparations you can do what you are supposed to do on your wedding day-relax and enjoy the most romantic evening of your life!! In this guide, I will help prepare you for some possible hurdles, and provide you helpful tips for you and your guests.

Predicament
For an outdoor wedding in Florida, the number one thing to prepare for is the possibility of bugs. Mosquitoes and No-Seeums (as the locals call them) are nasty little buggers, and could certainly be an issue! While the City provides mosquito control, there is nothing you can spray to combat the No-seeums. We cannot determine in advance how bad they will be, as factors such as wind, temperature, humidity level, (etc.) come into play.

Solution
While you cannot control completely whether or not your guests will get bit, there are certain things you can do to make it more comfortable for them. The best product that helps with no-seeums is bug spray with DEET in it. Stock up, whether or not you think they will be bad, so you are prepared ahead of time just in case! Some brides have even bought the mini bottles and personalized them for the wedding as little “ceremony favors” for the guests. This is a cute, and constructive gift, and one that your guests will certainly appreciate!!

Predicament
Florida is HOT and SUNNY!!! Depending on the time of year you’ve set your wedding for, the temperature can average anywhere from a gorgeous 70 degrees to the high 90’s; humidity levels can be up to 100%. While we can tell you what weather is typical for the time of year you have reserved, you can never be positive as to what the weather is going to do that day. Be prepared for the heat ahead of time!

Solution
Luckily, there are many cute things you can do to beat the heat in style! Consider adding a water station at the ceremony for your guests. You can even get personalized water bottles, which adds an intimate touch to this very practical idea. Also consider doing program fans, or simply providing little folding fans for your guests. You can tie these into the color scheme of the wedding, and they look great in the wedding photos, as well as keep the guests happy. You may even want to consider parasols for the guests, which add even more of a decorative, yet useful touch. For the bride; if you are having a summer wedding, consider a lightweight dress for the ceremony. You may have always had a big princess dress in mind for your wedding, but those can get heavy and hot.

Predicament
Wind. A breeze is always nice for an outdoor wedding. It helps keeps the bugs away, and cool everyone down! However, this can affect a few things negatively.

Solution
No one wants to be batting at the brides’ veil as it flies all over the place in the wind, or covers the brides face! Consider a veil that can be secured behind your head, or no veil at all, so this is not an issue. Too much wind can also cause your guests to miss some of what is going on in the ceremony. If the wind is rushing in their ears, what else can they hear? If you have a large group, you can rent a microphone through Casa Ybel. This way, you can assure everyone hears the exchange of vows at your ceremony.

Predicament
You have a gorgeous gown, which you spent a great deal of money on, and you are afraid of it getting dirty on the lawn, or dragging in the sand on the beach.

Solution
This is completely understandable, however, the first thing to keep in mind is to be realistic. You are outdoors, and no matter how much you take care to protect the dress, it will in all likelihood, get a little mussed. You can choose to have a runner to help protect it at the ceremony site, however there are several good and bad things about runners to keep in mind. You need to be sure you have a good way to completely secure the runner. You are not on a hard, even surface, and factors such as wind could make the runner a big mess!! Consider a heavy, carpet style runner, or bamboo runner. Either way, I recommend getting it far ahead of time (these styles of runners are not easy to find), and make sure it is going to work. If not using a carpet style runner, or bamboo, take good care to stake it down securely. The light, more commonly found runners don’t work well at all, especially if not staked down. You wouldn’t want it getting wrapped around some ones ankle on the way down the aisle!

Predicament
It is really tough to walk on the sand since it is so uneven.

Solution
First and foremost, I always recommend either going barefoot, or in flip-flops. It is close to impossible to walk gracefully on the beach on heels. Invite your guests to join in the action! Make a sign letting them know that shoes are optional, or have a flip flop station, with a variety of sizes, so guests can kick off there formal shoes and opt for a more practical approach to the beach. Also, keep in mind that if you have elderly guests, you may want to assign someone to help escort them through the sand to their chairs. Once again, these flip-flops can add an intimate touch to the ceremony, and double as favors for the guests!