We’ve all been invited to the destination wedding. Why, one especially fertile year we were invited to weddings in Mexico, Israel, and Thailand, not to mention others in Las Vegas, Florida, New York, Indiana, Maryland, and California. But up until now, destination weddings have not been especially known for their focus on the eco-conscious. In fact, one could argue that most venues that offer the typical package destination wedding are not those that fit the mold of ecotourism. They are usually large resorts with full-time wedding planners; they are in very touristy areas: Jamaica, Cancun, etc.

But it may be that smaller eco-conscious lodges are getting in on the action – and that the happy couples are even happier to have these diverse options. Mother Nature Network reports that more brides and grooms are incorporating eco-friendly aspects into their weddings, and that some are going that extra step and holding a destination wedding in a responsible tourist type of way.

Lori Johnston writes:

Denver couple Jeff and Bonnie Smith’s 2007 outdoor wedding at Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge in Nicaragua, near the Costa Rican border, was that venue’s first wedding.

“It is a ground-up eco-friendly experience, from growing all the food to 5,000 acres of conservation,” says Jeff Smith, president of GRI Studios, a fine art reproduction company.

“We loved the fact that it was an eco-friendly destination,” adds Bonnie, a speech therapist in the public school system.

They had stayed at the lodge the year before their wedding, and decided that the flowers and food, such as mangoes, dragon fruit, shrimp and lobster, grown and caught on site, and other environmentally friendly touches would be perfect for their big day.

Their 20-plus guests gained an ecological education while touring the property. The bungalows where they stayed and the furniture inside were made from indigenous hardwoods.

Now, if you’re a regular reader you would probably guess that we’re not all that big into weddings at all. Well, Captain Frugal, you’re not wrong. We think they’re a waste of (a lot of) money and we especially get irked when we go to one and then hear about the happy couple having to split up our beautiful gift of midnight blue and forest green towel sets when they decide they can no longer stand each other. (Bitter much?) So if you stumbled upon this blog post and are planning a wedding, think again: go for the courthouse wedding and save the dough and stress for something bigger, better, and longer-lasting – get your mind out of the gutter, people.

Buuuuuuuuttt, if you do decide to go the wedding route, definitely consider the eco-friendly destination wedding! You and your guests have a unique and amazing vacation while stimulating the local economy and (un)paving the way for others to do the same. As with most eco-conscious trips, you’ll have to do a little more legwork to find the places and ensure they’re what you want. As with vacations, weddings, and yes, life, there will be bumps and it may not end up being as perfect as in your mind’s eye, but do you want to take the chance and have it be epic? I do.

Tags: costa rica weddings, destination weddings, eco-conscious weddings, green weddings, lori johnston, morgan's rock hacienda and ecolodge, mother nature network, wedding in nicaragua

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 at 11:25 am and is filed under Ecotourism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.