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1. Pick the date and time of day for your island wedding. Selecting dates that are NOT on the weekends or holidays is best if possible. If this isn't possible--for instance, if you're coming on a cruise ship--it's best to have your wedding as early as you can to avoid the crowds. It generally takes about 45 minutes to an hour to go from the cruise ship to the courthouse to most of the wedding locations on St. Thomas. So, if your cruise ship drops you off on the island at 9:00AM, you can plan for a 10:00AM wedding. NOTE: St. Thomas is on Atlantic Standard Time, and SOME cruise ships do not update their clocks when they come into our time zone. Please check on this from the beginning of November to the middle of March, because this is when the USVI is one hour ahead of EST. (In the spring to fall, the USVI is the same as EST.) 2. Pick the location of your island wedding. Your preferences for anything from a casual, barefoot beach wedding to a gorgeous gazebo overlooking a vast Caribbean vista to a luxurious villa setting can be fulfilled in the US Virgin Islands. There are some great locations for your island wedding on both St. Thomas and St. John, as well as sailboat weddings available. You can even rent a helicopter and go to your own private island for a wedding. 3. Check availability and make reservations. Check availability for what you need for your ceremony: photographer, videographer, helicopter, boats, villa. Or, let your local wedding planner know your preferred wedding location, and they can handle all the details for coordinating the vendors on the date of your choosing. 4. Fill out the necessary marriage license paperwork. Search online or ask your local USVI wedding planner for the necessary documents to file with the local court. If you work with a wedding planner, they can take care of the filing for you - you do not need to be on the island before your wedding. Once you are on island, you will need to make a brief trip to the courthouse to pick up your license. (Please note that you will need to dress appropriately for the courthouse - no swim wear, short shorts, bare midriffs or bare feet.) Both you and your partner need to be present and have photo IDs. 5. Customized options. From accompanying music to arches and aisles to flowers and cakes, a wedding planner can help you coordinate any extras for your ceremony. Many of the local wedding planners have websites listing various customization options. 6. Determine your transportation. There are several options available on St. Thomas for your island wedding transportation: car, safari taxi, chauffeured sedan or limo. A wedding planner can help you arrange for transportation, whether you're coming off a cruise ship or staying at a hotel or resort. 7. Go to the ceremony! This is the best step! You'll arrive to your island wedding location with your rings and meet the officiant and witness (often your wedding planner will attend as your witness and to make sure all is smooth). If you're having a ceremony on the beach... it gets hot, so full tuxedos are usually not a comfortable idea. Also, it can be breezy, so a veil can be an nuisance to control if the wind starts whipping it. (Flowers in the hair are easier to work with.) Savor the moment, enjoy the location, bask in the sun and start your life together in a world-class setting. Submitted by Erica Hebert of Weddings the Island Way, a wedding planning company based on St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. With 25 years of experience planning; island weddings, she loves what she does and sharing the joy of the island to the new people she meets in her work. For more about St Thomas weddings, visit http://www.weddingstheislandway.com.
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