In part 1 of this series you discovered several of the numerous island getaways available without a passport for U. S. citizens. In this segment, you’ll learn about other excellent destination wedding and honeymoon choices that are a located in the continental United States. Many you’ll be able to reach by car or just a short airplane ride away.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Whether you’re a city slicker with a yen for wide open spaces or a genuine cowgirl and cowboy, Texas offers an enormous range of destination wedding sites. Want to combine star style with upscale yet rustic charm? Head over to the Southfork Ranch not far from Dallas. The ranch was the setting for the popular “Dallas” TV series (1978-1991) and home of the fictional Ewing family of oil and land barons.

Or get married along San Antonio’s picturesque Riverwalk. “Urban Cowboy” fans will delight in having their wedding at Houston’s Gilley’s or their Dallas location. Horses, hoe-downs, honky tonks and more are all available in the Lone Star State.

Mountain’s Majesty

From high up the Northeast Coast, to the Smoky Mountains to the Rocky Mountains, there are dozens of elegant or rustic resorts that would be the perfect location for a winter wonderland wedding. Or go in the off-season and the hills will come alive with colorful wildflowers or autumnal glory and dazzling vistas. And if you plan your wedding in the off-season, you and your guests will be able to enjoy huge savings while still reveling in stunning settings.

Waterfall Weddings

Hawaii is known for their spectacular waterfalls and, of course, one of the most popular honeymoon and wedding destinations in the world – Niagara Falls – is located on the New York and Canadian borders. But you’ll be happy to know that many states offer gorgeous natural waterfalls that would be a wonderful backdrop for your waterfall wedding. Man-made waterfalls also abound in numerous states as well.

Everglades Environment

Located between the east and west coasts of Florida, the spectacular scenery of sea grass and wildlife is unmatched when you hold your wedding in and around the Everglades National Park. Arrive by airboat to your natural nuptials.

Its untouched splendor remains the same as it did thousands of years ago but you’ll find modern-day conveniences and gorgeous venues within minutes of this most breathtaking spectacle. And, of course, don’t be surprised to find a few uninvited guests – alligators, egrets, hawks and a variety of water fowl – which’ve come to check out your wedding.

Winery Weddings

You don’t have to travel to Napa Valley for a winery wedding. You’ll find vineyards in New York, Florida, New Hampshire, Kentucky, Georgia, Idaho, New Mexico, Michigan, Colorado, and many more states.

Desirable destination wedding sites are located throughout the U.S. and all can be visited without a passport. Browse throught someof our other destination wedding planning ideas.

In Part 1 of this series, we discussed budgets and the selection of planners, vendors and suppliers. Here are some additional items to consider when deciding whether or not to use of our destination wedding planning guide.

Go with the Flow

If you are used to the hustle, bustle and options available in a major metropolitan city, you may find that there is a different mindset at your destination wedding locale. Not only may the locals move at a much slower pace, but you may find that their resources are considerably more limited than what would be available back home.

Missing the Action

Depending on your chosen location, you may find that people you want to have at your wedding may not be able to attend. It can be that they can’t afford it, can’t take that much time away from home, family or work, or it simply can be that elderly relatives cannot comfortably make the long trip or can’t trek up to your mountain retreat.

While you may be able to have someone transmit the ceremony and reception to loved ones back home through real-time services like Skype or invite everyone to see the video when you return, it may not be as meaningful to you or them if they’re not with you in person. So you may have to re-evaluate the “if” or the “where” or your wedding destination.

On the other hand, choosing a destination wedding might be the perfect way to whittle down your guest list to only those people who are the most important to you.

Your Dress or Distressed?

If you’ve always pictured yourself wearing an opulent ball gown style wedding dress or being covered head to toe in heavy satin, consider if your dream dress is appropriate or practical for your destination wedding locale. Will your dress work on a sandy beach? Will you be able to scale that mountain top with a long train? Will you wilt under the weight and fabric of your wedding gown on your island retreat?

How will you transport your gown when it takes a jet and two small planes to get to your location? It’s essential to decide whether your dream dress or dream location is more important to your overall happiness.

But I Only Have a Week

Some destinations require that you establish “residency” in their country or on their island before qualifying for a marriage license. This residency time can be from a few days to a week or more depending on the location.

If your vacation time or funds are limited, you may find that you will have to either shorten your honeymoon or have it before your wedding.

Honeymoon for Two…or Twenty

You may naturally assume that once the wedding is over, your guests will magically disappear and you and your spouse can enjoy a romantic, solitary honeymoon. Unfortunately, some guests may decide that since they spent so much money to get to your destination wedding, they may just extend their stay for a few more days. That will make it awkward for the two of you to escape for some much desired one-on-one time when people you know are staying at the same hotel as you.

However, if you’re less concerned with a solo honeymoon, this may be the perfect opportunity to spend time with family and friends you don’t get to see often. After all, most wedding receptions only last a few hours. A destination wedding may give you the chance to spend several days with people who don’t live close to you.

Planning a destination wedding is considerably different than planning a wedding in your own home town. Therefore, if you are thinking about a destination wedding, you should take into consideration some potential challenges and benefits of getting married away.

Plan on a Planner

Unless you want to make multiple trips to your preferred destination to locate potential vendors and then stay in touch with them in person to assess their ideas, products and progress, finding an experienced wedding planner will go a long way toward making your destination wedding planning experience considerably less stressful. You can choose a planner who resides in your destination, one who is based stateside but who specializes in planning weddings in your chosen location or, if you choose to marry at a large resort, chances are they’ll have an on-staff coordinator to walk you through the planning process.

Budget Realities

Since fewer people are likely to be joining you at your destination than might attend a local wedding, your wedding budget can stretch much further. However, depending on the location and your wedding plans, you can quickly go over budget if you’re not careful.

And while your guest list may be smaller, you are responsible for paying for transportation costs, accommodations and meals for your wedding party. You also will likely have to plan to pay for several gatherings of all of your guests in addition to your wedding reception.

However, since popular wedding destination resorts are looking for your business, most will offer all-in-one wedding packages that can be very budget-friendly. And you (or an outside planner) may be able to negotiate even greater incentives to hold your wedding and house your guests at a particular location.

Scouting Locations and Return Engagements

If you’ve previously visited your planned wedding destination and are familiar with the venue and the locale, you’re ahead of the game. However, if you have a dream location but you’ve never been there before, plan to visit your destination before making any final decisions so that you can evaluate several potential wedding venues.

This isn’t a vacation. You’re on a mission to find the right venue, planner and/or vendors. You can’t rely solely on photos, websites and brochures because they might not tell the entire story. The location might be too far from the airport, or perhaps it’s in a busy flight path making an outdoor celebration undesirable. You also have no way of knowing how old the photos you’re looking at are or to judge things like the quality of food, service or décor.

Perhaps you may have a language barrier with a planner or vendors or your personalities or ideas don’t mesh. If you want your wedding to run smoothly, you have to have ever confidence in the people who are essential to your wedding’s success and that may mean that you need to scout out your planned wedding destination early in your wedding process.

When in Doubt, Check Them Out

As you would with any vendor or supplier, you want to check with past clients to get recommendations. However, since they likely won’t give you the contact information of anyone who might not have had a satisfactory experience with them, you also may want to use the power of the Internet and search or post on wedding website chat rooms or message boards to discuss your potential location, vendors and suppliers with other brides who held their wedding at your desired destination. Then you can gauge their reactions to the people or places you are considering. These sites may also be invaluable to help you to narrow down your search for potential venues, vendors and suppliers when you read posts by brides who were happy (or unhappy) with their decisions.

Bring Them Along

If your budget allows and you’re unsure of your destination’s vendors, you may choose to bring along your planner, décor designer, photographer, hair stylist, makeup artist or anyone else you feel you need by your side to have your dream wedding. Of course, their fees will likely be higher than if they were working for you locally since they are unable to take on any other business while they’re accompanying you, but if you can afford to pay their fee, housing, transportation, and food, the additional cost may well be worth your peace of mind.

This series covers the critical issues of your planning a romantic get away location. Look for other tips for your destination wedding planning in top right column of our blog categories.

If you have some spare time, browse our best travel gift ideas: luxury monogrammed bags. There is a selection of stylishly monogrammed and useful travel accessories for the bride, bridesmaids or mothers of the bridal couple.