Where to stay....

I get a lot of questions on where to stay while here on the Emerald Coast.  My usual response is ... it depends.  It depends on what you want to do while you are here, how many people you have with you and whether you have an adult party or you have children with you.
Most of the condos/houses require a min of 3-7 night stay.  The chain hotels do rent for one or two nights though. 
Some suggestions ....
If you have a large group of people that are going to be here with you usually renting a house is the best deal.  It costs more per night but when you break it down by the bedroom or person, it is usually quite reasonable.  By doing this, you are able to take advantage of cooking onsite as well, which can save quite a bit of money.  If you have children, you can usually have a floor that is child friendly and then an adult floor for those that don't want to be woken up by the kiddies in the morning.  A lot of the wedding parties that I do go this route with everyone staying at the house and then they have a reception at the house as well.  You can check out www.vrbo.com for rentals by owner.
If you have a smaller group or people would like their own space, there a lots of condos on the beach.  The condos on Miramar Beach (although the listing says Destin) are across from the beach, but it is an easy walk.   There are quite a few townhouses on the beach for rent in Miramar Beach as well.
If you have children or want a quieter time, usually Miramar Beach is where you would want to stay or Holiday Isle in Destin.  Destin condos are closer to the restaurants, bars and other activities.
http://www.emeraldcoastfl.com/the-beaches/destin.aspx
If you are not familiar with the area... there are three basic areas in the Destin area.  Destin East (Miramar Beach, Crystal Beach, Henderson Beach), Destin Central (Destin, Holiday Isle) and then Destin West (Okaloosa Island, Fort Walton Beach).   There are restaurants and activities all along these areas and with the exception of Fort Walton Beach (which actually is not on the beach) they all have the beautiful white sand and gorgeous water.  When people (from out of town) refer to Destin they could be talking about any of these areas. 
Destin Harbor is where the fishing boats and charters are, there are also rentals for pontoon boats, jet skis.  This is also where you will find the parasailing and snorkling activities.  But that is for another blog post.
If you have any questions, you can either submit a comment here or shoot me an email at jfrasernotary@yahoo.com. 
No matter where you stay, I am sure you will enjoy your time here!

Sand ceremony ideas

I just wanted to share a few ideas for the sand ceremony.  Some folks are intimidated on what kind of keepsake vase to get.  There are many types of vases out there and you can get many types.  My first suggestion to think about is if you are travelling here for the wedding, then you will want to get a vase with a stopper or top.  This will make it easier to travel without worrying about it spilling. 
Another thing to think about is how many people are participating in the ceremony.  If it is for two people you don't know a really big vase, but if you are including your children then you might want something a little bigger so that all the colors will show. 
Some folks get the vase engraved with their names and the date and others don't.  It is another personalized decision that you will make for the ceremony.
Below are some samples of ones that we have used at the ceremonies that I have done.