Maui Wedding Packages #1 The Aloha

The Maui Wedding Package #1, the Aloha Package is by far our most popular Maui wedding package.

This package includes 24 photos in an attractive wedding album, the services of your Maui minister (with your choice of ceremonies), two leis for a lei exchange, a sparkling apple cider toast at your Maui wedding site, your Hawaii wedding license appointment, and on-site coordinating for your wedding.

On site coordinating is important because that means we make sure that everything happens the way its supposed. You want to know that the flower leis will be at the wedding, that the photographer and the minister will both show up (or where they're at if one is late), that the wedding location you've selected is going to work.

That means if the weather is bad (windy or rainy) at your selected beach location, or if the beach is crowded with other weddings or bathers, that your coordinator has a back up plan. This is not only important if their are problems, but it will sure give you peace of mind knowing that your coordinator has everything under control, with a good back-up plan -- just in case.

We've gone over each of the package pages in an attempt to make them look a little cleaner and thought you might like to take a look at the Aloha Package. You can read more about it at:

Aloha Package

Also, if you want to see a comparison between this Maui Wedding Package and our other packages, take a look at our Maui Wedding Package Comparison page

If you want to take a look at the Maui Wedding Packages page, click on the link.

Maui Wedding -- Secluded Bride Tradition

What are the wedding traditions that we see most? Fortunately, in the U.S., wedding ceremonies and wedding customs are among the most flexible in all the world. Whatever your weddings needs are, whatever your ideas of the perfect wedding venue, they all find a welcome home within American wedding traditions. The same is equally true here in Hawaii. Whatever you want to do or wear is acceptable. After all, who are you really trying to please with traditions? Just please yourselves.

Probably the most common American wedding tradition that we encounter, and one of those which creates more problems for a couple, is the secluded bride. It is easy for a bride to be secluded at a chapel or church wedding back home. She has a place to stay out of sight of her fiance and she can make her grand entrance without much effort.

But when your wedding takes place on a Maui beach, that can be much more difficult to achieve. If it is just the two of you, how will the bride get to the wedding site without being seen? Even if the bride takes a limo and the groom drives the couple's rental car, they still have the logistics problem of leaving the rental car at the wedding site (and having to take a cab back later to get it).

Because small wedding ceremonies here in Hawaii seldom have a rehearsal, it is not uncommon for the couple to have to decide at the last minute where they will stand at the Maui wedding site. This is important because it will certainly impact the photography and videography. But this will be difficult for the bride and groom to determine if they are separated. My husband often has to go back and forth between the bride and groom in order to ascertain just exactly how they will want to stand (because their are different choices in how it will be done).

If there is any wedding tradition that you might want to forego for your Maui wedding, our advice is, this one should be on the top of the list.

Maui Wedding Ceremony

My husband John is our default minister. He performs about 95 percent of our weddings. Most of the wedding performers on Maui are not really "ministers" in the sense that they have ever held a position in a church. They are really more like "officiants". But John has a long background as a minister, having been a church planter in both California and Oregon for about 17 years. So his ministrial credentials are the exception rather than the rule for those performing weddings here in Maui.

John doesn't just have one Maui wedding ceremony, he has three. All of his ceremonies were written for those coming to Maui and the spirit of aloha is added to each one. Each ceremony was designed to be given for people from different backgrounds. You can find each of these ceremonies on our website. Let me describe them for you (and then you can read the actual ceremony if you like by following the link provided.

The Christian Ceremony -- This Maui wedding ceremony is designed for those with a stronger church background. Several passages from the Bible are quoted, but always in the fresh translation or paraphrase like the Living Bible. The ceremony concludes with a prayer and is suited for those who want to start their new lives involving God in their new commitment. See this link to read it:
http://www.maui-me.com/achristianwedding.html

The Spiritual Ceremony -- This Maui wedding ceremony is designed for those who are less involved in church, but still want a Christian tone to their wedding. It does include a reading of 1 Corinthians 13 (again, from the fresh Living Bible) as well as a prayer. See this link to read it:
http://www.maui-me.com/aspiritualwedding.html

The Contemporary Ceremony -- This Maui wedding ceremony is a romantic civil ceremony. It does not mention God but it is still has a strong sense of the importance of your commitment to each other. The ceremony has a very romantic appeal and was recently selected by a group of ministers on the mainland as one of their "favorites." John has received requests to share it with other ministers (and have done so). See this link to read it:
http://www.maui-me.com/acontemporarywedding.html

If you desire another minister, you can also have one. We have many different ministers to choose from, ranging in a wide spectrum of approaches.

Maui Air Travel Tips

If you're coming to Maui, you can save a lot of money by doing your travel "right." What do I mean by that? Booking your tickets directly with an airline is probably the most expensive way to buy your airline tickets. The reservationists will almost NEVER tell you if another airline has lower fares.

Tickets are sold on the same airplane at wildly different prices, so you will want to shop around. Believe it or not, the day of the week on which you fly makes a difference in the fare you pay. As a vacation destination, more traffic comes into Maui on weekends. So it's usually less expensive if you fly in and out, mid-week (by that I mean Tuesday through Thursday). When you are checking fares, try several different departure and return days to see how each affects your rates.

Maui Me (R) offers a unique travel service for our wedding couples. Many are surprised that our prices for air/condo and rental car are often much less than they are when purchasing those expenses separately. We've had several mainland travel agents call us to ask how we could beat their prices by so much. Before you make your reservations, be sure and call me to see what deals you can get on your travel.

What I will need to know is what airport you will be leaving from. (If you live in Canada I won't be able to do your travel unless you leave from a US city, like Seattle in you are in Vancouver). You will also want to decide what type of rental vehicle you want (from an economy sedan to a jeep or convertible, etc.), and what kind of accommodations you prefer (hotel or condo). If you call with this information (along with the names and ages of all passengers), I can get you a price quote.

Sometimes our couples will go online and see that a particular flight (that I have not given them) and see that seats are still available and ask me to book them. The airlines sell discount seats to travel suppliers like Blue Skies (our vendor), but they only have so many seats available at those lower prices. Once they are sold, you will pay the normal rates like everyone else. So you want to book as early as you can.

Maui Wedding Planners -- 10 Tips for Selecting the Right Hawaiian Coordinator

If you are thinking about getting married on Maui, or anywhere in Hawaii, you will probably want to read a new article that my husband John Souter wrote and put up on our website. It's called: "Maui Wedding Planner: 10 Tips for Selecting the Right Hawaiian Coordinator."

I think he did an excellent job on the article, giving the kind of insight that only someone who knows Maui weddings inside and out can offer. So many articles (and websites) from people in our business tend to candy coat everything. John has specifically pointed out some of the issues which you should be aware of and how to make sure that you get a good reputable Maui Wedding Planner. Let me quote for you just two of the better points he makes:

"Point 1: Select a wedding planning company located on Maui.

"There are actually wedding coordinating companies who are trying to coordinate weddings on Maui from Oahu or even the mainland. These companies, inevitably, will have to "farm out" the onsite coordination of your wedding to someone here on Maui. That means they act like a middle-man, and generally have to charge higher prices. But most importantly, they will not be able to effectively follow-up with your wedding if anything goes wrong. The larger your wedding, the more likely this will be true. Can you imagine them solving a large problem long distance? Make certain, before you book, that your Maui wedding planner is indeed, on Maui.

Point 2: Make certain your Maui wedding planner will actually be at your wedding.

"There are cut-rate Maui wedding companies who only perform front office services. They book a minister, a photographer and maybe a videographer to do you wedding, but they don't send a coordinator to oversee everything (because that would cut into their competitive edge). If no on-site wedding coordinator will be showing up, who will make certain that everyone knows what they're doing? And if for some reason, one vendor (like the minister) is late or heaven forbid, does not show up at all, who will pull everything together by getting a backup? Unless your wedding only involves a Maui minister, and no one else, you want to be certain that a Maui wedding planner will be in attendance when your ceremony is performed.

Read the whole article for yourself at:
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingPlanner.html/

Maui Me Website Update

My husband John just performed a complete website update yesterday. Most of the changes won't be noticed by the casual observer, but we hope that they search engines will pay a little more attention to our site. John is a self-taught web designer and he has had to learn a lot of new tricks in order to keep up with the competition.

One new page that has been added that might interest you is:
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingPlanner.html/
I'll talk more about that article in a couple of days.

John reverbished the following features pages on the Maui Me website:
http://maui-me.com/features-cakes.html
http://maui-me.com/features-flowers.html
http://maui-me.com/features-limos.html
http://maui-me.com/features-make-up.html
http://maui-me.com/features-music.html
http://maui-me.com/features-photography.html
http://maui-me.com/features-photojournalism.html
http://maui-me.com/features-receptions.html
http://maui-me.com/features-tuxedos.html
http://maui-me.com/features-videography.html
http://maui-me.com/features-weddingsize.html

John's three Maui wedding ceremony pages and the Maui license page were also upgraded:
http://maui-me.com/aspirituawedding.html
http://maui-me.com/achristianwedding.html
http://maui-me.com/acontemporarywedding.html
http://maui-me.com/aweddinglicense.html

Many of the main pages were also refurbished:
http://maui-me.com/Links_Resources.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiFunBenefits.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiMeWeddingStore.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiLocations.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingCeremonies.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingGuarantee.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingPackages.html
http://maui-me.com/MauiWeddingQuestions.html

We don't expect you to look at all the changes on these web pages, but we sure hope the search engines will take a closer look.

Olowalu Plantation House

The Olowalu Plantation House is one of the premiere Maui wedding sites for larger groups. The Olowalu House is located just south of Lahaina.

The beauty of the Olowalu Plantation House is that it is right on the ocean, and it is a great private setting for your larger wedding. Weddings take place on the spacious lawn overlooking the ocean. There is room for dancing and receptions right by the ocean. A cement dance floor is available for after dinner entertainment.

We enjoy doing photography at this location because the Olowalu Plantation House is quaint and offers several really fun old Hawaii style rooms for your pictures. It was originally built as a Plantation House and was beautifully restored to it's 1929 condition in 1998. The house has a room for the bride to get dressed in as well as a kitchen available for catering.

The Olowalu House books up really quickly and well in advance so be sure to call us quickly if you are interested. The house is only available in 2006 on specific dates (which we have). Please call us to see if it is available.

This location can accommodate up to 200 guests with ample parking for all. This is very important because there are very few larger wedding sites available here on Maui. If you want larger locations we have several new sites that we can offer. Give me a ring at 1-800-856-3270.

Maui Wedding Planner

We like to think of ourselves, first and foremost, as Maui Wedding Planners. As a full-service company, we do everything that is part of your Maui wedding experience. By everything, what do I mean?

As a Maui Wedding Planner, we produce our own photography and normally we don't have to search through our list of good quality Maui photographers. We shoot in 35mm, medium format and digital. Our photography is top notched, as our clients will tell you. He is a master of sunset photography. You can find my husband's website at: http://maui-photographer.com

As a Maui Wedding Planner, we also have our own minister in-house. Again, my husband John has been performing weddings for over 30 years (so he knows what he's doing). Because I don't have to call him up (like other wedding ministers) or chase him down to ask about his schedule, I can always be assured that he will be available. This means less coordination for me and more dependability for our clients (along with lower prices because he is in-house).

As a Maui Wedding Planner, we provide all sorts of flowers, including bouquets, bouts, leis, haku leis (head leis), bride's bouquets, flower circles, cake flowers, etc. We also have contacts for you if you want to freeze dry your flowers and take them back to the mainland. We make certain that our bouquets are designed by one of the best florists on Maui and that our leis are fresh daily.

As a Maui Wedding Planner, we do videography and have several great videographers from whom we choose. We have a full line of musicians to provide a little more sound ambiance for your wedding or reception or for your dinner on the beach. We do butterfies and dove releases, limousines and dress pressing, bride's hair and make-up, world-class cakes, catered dinners (both small and large), full receptions including fire-knife and hula dancers. . .

In short, if you want it, we can provided it. We want to be your Maui Wedding Planner. Give us a ring and we'll help you plan your own paradise dream wedding.

Maui Dream Wedding

What is a Maui dream wedding like?

It is a wedding on the beautiful tropical island of Maui (in Hawaii) that feels like a dream. Soft sand under you feet. Beautiful sunset off on the horizon. Swaying palm trees nearby. Fragrant flowers around your necks. Hawaiian music being played in your hears. . . But most of all, the gorgeous face and form of the one you love looking back at you as you say -- "I do!"

Romantic is the word for Maui and a Maui dream wedding is the ultimate of romantic. What's not to like about getting married in paradise? The weather here is usually so awesome, you will just enjoy yourselves so much as you make your lifetime commitment in a simple ceremony on a secluded beach.

Think about all of the things that you've dreamed about having at your Maui destination wedding and you will have a good idea what a Maui dream wedding can be like. Just bringing your lover here and tying the knot in this kind of setting will add so much to the meaning of the ceremony.

Somethings couples think that it will just be too expensive. But when you compare a Maui dream wedding and honeymoon, with the cost of almost any mainland wedding, you end up realizing that it really is cheaper and better to flee from the crowds and do you own romantic dream wedding here in Hawaii.

We've had couples tell us what a mainland wedding would have cost them, especially if they invited all of their friends and relatives, and especially if they had a sit-down dinner, and that price is so much higher than coming here to Hawaii. And when the wedding is over, you don't have to wait one minute to begin your Maui dream honeymoon. You'll already be here!

Maui Nanny

Often couples coming to Maui for their wedding or honeymoon, or just for a vacation, are in need of someone to watch one or more children. Well, we've got just the right service for you. Maui Nanny, is a service that will meet your childcare needs while you are here on the island.

Rebecca Souter (my daughter) has been doing nanny work with children for years. You can read about her and her qualifications at: http://mauinanny.com/aboutus.html

She has an extensive website that you will want to check out.
Her rates are listed at: http://mauinanny.com/rates.html
You can find her philsophy at http://mauinanny.com/philosophy.html and
You can real about her policies at http://mauinanny.com/policy.html
She even does elderly care: http://mauinanny.com/elderlycare.html
Her booking page is located at: http://mauinanny.com/booking.html

Maui Honeymoon

One of the nice things about being married on Maui is that once the wedding is over, your honeymoon begins immediately! There is so much to do here on Maui that you will want to get married in the early part of your stay so that you can have the maximum amount of time to enjoy your stay.

If you're getting married on the mainland and just coming to Maui for your honeymoon, we can still help you. We offer a wide variety of vacation accommodations, air flights, rental cars and activities to serve your every honeymoon need. Before you book your travel, be sure to call me and let me give you a price.

Just this morning, I received a call from a bride who was already planning to use Auto Club for her travel. When she heard our prices on travel and accommodations, she back her Auto Club counselor and canceled her appointment. That just gives you an idea of the money that you will be able to save by going with us with all your travel needs.

And if you're getting married, it makes sense to have us do everything so that you don't have a lot of different companies to touch bases with to keep informed about your reservations. Your Maui honeymoon will be in good hands with Maui Me, Inc.

Hawaiian Wedding Attire

Hawaiian Wedding Attire -- In Hawaii any dress style is appropriate. You may choose to go casual, or you may choose the casual elegance of formal wear here in paradise. Many couples do a tuxedo and formal wedding wear. Others want to get married in casual attire. And some couples choose to get married in what we generally call aloha wear.

If you do not bring your own dress, you may rent or buy one here. If you already have your own dress, you may choose to send it on ahead so that it can be pressed and ready for you when you arrive. Either way, Maui Me can help you get what you want.

Many couples choose to buy a matching dress and aloha shirt from a store like Hilo Haties which has a wide variety of Hawaiian prints.

For men, there are several tuxedo shops to choose from here on the island with a wide variety of styles. We ask that you go to a local tuxedo store where you live and get your measurements taken. Then we will have you will send those measurements to the closest tuxedo store where you will be staying here on Maui so that they will be able to fit you faster after you arrive.

Maui Wedding Site Makena Cove

Makena Cove which has also gone by the name "secret beach" and "wedding cove" is a great spot to get married. We have, quite literally, married hundreds of couples at this site. Until recently, it was our default Maui wedding site.

The cove is located between two houses on the coastal highway. There is a gap in the rock wall fence leading to the beach. Eight years ago, when my husband and I were tourists on Maui for the first time, we drove past that opening and John wanted to stop and take a look at the beach. He went (I waited in the rental car) and came back to tell me that it was this neat little cove. Little did we know that this little beach would be such a major part of our lives in the next few years.

Makena Cove normally has a nice sandy beach. The waves can be pretty big down in that area, and sometimes the beach will get washed away. When this happens it can take anywhere from several days to several months for the sand to be washed back up. During some winter storms, we've seen waves coming in so hight that they hit the wall at the end of the beach.

On the left there is a nice sandy spot hidden up in the rocks (you can't see it from the beach proper). We like to do weddings on that spot (which local wedding coordinators often call "the point"). But we've been up there and have seen big waves come over the top. It is always a spot that can be difficult to reach if the tide is up.

Makena generally doesn't get too much rain (about 10 to 15 inches a year), so it is a great Maui wedding beach. There are palm trees on both sides of the beach and a nice set of concrete stairs that we often have our couples pose on for some of our photography shots. The sunsets are usually great from this location.

The biggest problem with Makena Cove is that it is small and popular with the Maui wedding companies. That means it is likely you will show up at the location and see six or seven weddings going on. Some coordinators have brought larger weddings with 20 to 30 people to this beach, and that can make the beach very crowded.

All in all, this is a great Maui wedding site. You will certainly enough your wedding here (if its not too crowded). When we bring couples here, we always like to be flexible, just in case we need to go to another Maui wedding location.

Romantic Ideas

There is nothing more romantic than standing barefoot on the beach, hand-in-hand and hearing those magic words, "I now pronounce you to be . . . " And how sweet that kiss will be! Maui provides the perfect backdrop to make your wedding fantasy into a reality. Just by taking the step of coming to Hawaii for your special day, you are setting the tone for a marriage "made in paradise."

Your Romantic Maui Wedding -- Every month many couples arrive on Maui for a vacation with no intention of getting married. But the beauty and romantic atmosphere here overwhelms them and they are suddenly compelled to call us, wondering if it is possible to put together a romantic last minute wedding.

Whether your wedding is a last moment affair or a well-planned event, Maui Me knows what you need to tie the knot with your beloved and also those things that will make your experience something you'll remember fondly all your lives.

The more time you give us, the more likely we can get all of the things you really want. But if your wedding is last minute, don't worry, we'll still make certain that you get priority treatment.

Some last-second callers ask us, "can you give us a quick, simple wedding at a low cost?" Yes we can. We can also help you think through all those little decisions that will make your wedding ceremony so much more enjoyable for you both.

Take flowers, for example. Women cherish flowers because those fragrant blossoms tell her how her man feels about her.

Yet many bridegrooms foolishly want to eliminate flowers at their wedding. Bad idea. (If you can't afford to give your bride some flowers, you probably can't afford to come to Maui.) You don't have to be elaborate or overdo it, but you do want to make a romantic STATEMENT to your bride about how much you cherish her. And few things say that better than flowers.

We find that couples who come just by themselves (sometimes even suggesting that the family "stay home") often experience the most romantic union. Whether you are a "runaway bride and groom" or bringing along your family and friends, you deserve to have the most romantic wedding possible.

It is important to build up your relationship. Because you want this union to last the rest of your lives, you want to make certain that you "do it right", allowing lots of time for just the two of you to focus on each other.

Those Little Romantic Touches -- Just being in Maui with its beautiful beaches, tropical breezes and the sounds and sight of the magnificent ocean, provide a romantic ambiance for your wedding celebration. There are so many little things that you might want to think about to enhance that special moment when you are looking into each others eyes.

Dove Release -- Doves mate for life, hence the significance of releasing to of them and allowing them to soar away together, only to have them return to their original nesting place. It might be a beautiful and symbolic enhancement for this your special romantic occasion. Maui Me will supply your doves in beautifully decorated white wicker baskets and you can have two or two dozen if you wish.

Those Butterflies of Love -- Butterflies have long symbolized major life changes. They may be released using a variety of styles. If the wedding is outdoors each guest may hold a butterfly resting in a tiny decorative box, making a wish for the Bride and Groom and releasing them during the kiss.

For more intimate ceremonies just the Bride and Groom may wish to release them. A mass release of two or three dozen butterflies from a hanging aviary at an outdoor reception is spectacular. A butterfly release in any style is sure to delight each guest and is a perfect way to add a touch of magic to this very special day. Many times they will seek out your flowers and stay with you for a few photos as these did in the picture above.

Dinner on the Beach for Two -- If you want to be treated like a king and queen, add this spectacular dining experience to your special day. Imagine your own personal chef cooking your favorite meal, with the table setting fit for royalty. As the sun goes down and tiki torches flicker, the gentle wind blows through your hair as you savor each morsel of the deliciously prepared meal. Romance is truly in the air.

Maui Wedding Coordinators

Let me give you some suggestions about how to choose one of the Maui Wedding Coordinators located here in Hawaii. If you want to get married on Maui, that will be one of your first tasks. (By the way, I highly recommend that you hire a coordinating service; trying to plan a wedding by yourself from the mainland is not only hard, but it will also cost you more money than if you use a local wedding coordinator). So what's the best way for you to go about finding the right Maui wedding planner?

1. First, read over the Maui wedding coordinator's website. Get a feel for what they have to offer and how they present themselves. If you don't like the feel of their company as presented by their website, chances are good that you won't like dealing with them individually.

As you look over the various Maui wedding websites, one of the things you should check on is if there is any personal touch on the site. In other words, do they give you an actual coordinator's name along with their website content information. Some companies seem to want to stay completely anonymous as to who they are on their website. You will be dealing with a person, not a website, so if that person is masked to you in the beginning, it should give rise to a few questions.

2. Do you like the packages and services that the company presents on their website? If you don't like what they've put into their packages, you know that its time to move on to another site. We have placed within our packages the things we find that most of our couples are interested in. And we often get brides telling us, "I really like your packages. You have in them the things that I want, like . . ." A good Maui wedding coordinator will want to please her clients, therefore, she will create packages that meet your needs, not her own.

3. Is the Maui wedding company a member in the Better Business Bureau? This may not seem important to you, but it is a great way to know that this coordinator does not habitually struggle with her clients. Believe me when I say that there are wedding services on this island who have left a tremendous list of unhappy couples in their wake. There are wedding professionals on Maui who can't get along even with other companies, because of their self-focused attitudes. There are also coordinators who have spent a lot of time in court with the County or with neighbors and/or with their unhappy clients. And some of these coordinators have large triving wedding businesses, so you may easily be fooled by their great web presence. Knowing this, you will definitely want to make certain that you do not end up as another of their unhappy clients. And that's where the Better Business Bureau can give you a little piece of mind. Just check up on them and the number of complaints they've received. If they're not a member of the BBB, ask them why.

4. When you nail down one or more companies that sound like they can give you the wedding of your dreams, it's time to call them, one at a time. Do they answer their phone? (We've had brides who called eleven other companies before reaching us, and we were the first to answer the phone.) If you have to leave a message, do they get back to you in a timely manner? Are they friendly and personable on the phone? Do they send you stuff in the mail quickly (assuming you ask for this).

Are they knowledgeable? You want a coordinator who knows what she's doing; one who has some experience. What wedding beaches does she recommend? What ministers is she using? What photographers does she like, and why? What caterer does she use and why? The more knowledgeable she is and the more information she gives to you, the more likely you will have found a reliable Maui wedding coordinator to make certain that your wedding comes off without a hitch.

And of course, our final suggestion is simple: Just call us. ;o)

Maui Wedding Photographer

There are many Maui wedding photographers here in Hawaii. Of course, I'm convinced that my husband John is one of the best. His photography website has been up for years and although the photos are great, it doesn't begin to show what he's done over the last three years. He is now in the process over this next couple of weeks of revising the look of his entire website and putting up some new images.

I've seen so many amazing photographs come across my desk, I know how good he is. John does an excellent job on the sunset. And it is an art to flash a couple just right so that the background does not go too dark or too light. You will want to see the vibrant ski behind you, just like it is when you stand on the beach at sunset (assuming that you have a Maui beach sunset wedding). And after eight years of shooting sunset photography, John knows how to do a great job at that time of day.

When he first started doing photography the owner of the lab where we took our film commented that John put his couples into so many poses. He said the typical Maui wedding photographer had only a few poses, by comparison. Most photographers shoot several shots of the same pose, but John takes a wide variety of poses so that you will look your best. He pays special attention to details like how you're standing, how you interact with each other and what the wind is doing with your hair. He has many different ideas included in his proverbial "bag of trips."

One year we did two wedding services for two couples who were related to each other on the same beach at sunset. Because John couldn't shoot both weddings at the same time, we hired another highly recommended photographer to do the second wedding. As is John's custom, we had him do a two-for-one shooting ratio. We normally have many unique shots left over, but this photographer would fire off three shots of exactly each pose so that it was very difficult to get enough shots to fill their album. Needless to say, John never wastes his shots like that.

Many couples today are asking for digital. John still shoots film, not digital, because most photographers using digital cameras have to spend another couple of hours in front of their computer tweaking their images. That inevitably raises the prices that a couple has to pay. We do make a CDRom available, if you want it, shot from the original film.

Go to John's photography website and take a look for yourself. His website is located at http://maui-photographer.com

Wedding Planners in Maui

Wedding planners in Maui. There are so many different wedding planning services here in on Maui. It is amazing to us sometimes to see how many sites come up when you type in "wedding planners in maui", for instance. We've been talking to various Internet marketing companies about our business and the one thing they always say whenever they look at our search terms, is: "Man, there is a lot of wedding planner competition there in Maui ."

When there are so many people doing wedding planning businesses, it can be very hard for couples to sift through all of those planners who don't know what they're doing to find our Maui wedding coordination service. That's been one of our biggest struggles with the Internet. We have competitors who offer a poor service, barely answering their phone, and giving couples very little wedding planning for their money, but many of those companies have managed to rank very high on the search terms like "wedding planners in Maui."

So what we have decided to do with our business is to concentrate on building our website into a kind of wedding planning super store where we tell couples everything that they want to know. We would rather give you too much information, than not enough. We would rather that couples can see beyond any slick web veneer to the real people inside our business. We know how to give our Maui couples the kind of wedding that they truly want and which they have dreamed about all their lives.

So that's what our website and this blog are all about. Introducing you to wedding planners located right here in Maui (and not somewhere else) so that you can get all of the value that you want and need from your destination wedding. Maui is a great place to get married. If we didn't believe that we wouldn't be here. And we would love to be your planners, because we believe that we can do a better job than any other company doing weddings on Maui. There are a lot of our friends working as wedding planners here in Hawaii. But, to be honest, we still feel that we are the best.

We bend over backwards to take care of your concerns. We'll answer the phone, and get back to you promptly if we do miss your call. Over the last few weeks I've been working with a couple who are planning a large wedding (by Maui standards), and they asked both me and another company for quotes. At first it looked like my quotes came in much higher for a sit-down dinner for the groom's Maui wedding reception. But then he looked at the other wedding planners much lower quote and realized that so many things were left off, like tables and chair rentals, tableclothes, and service settings. So the groom asked the other wedding coordinator to add in all of those same wedding planning details, and guess what -- the prices came out much closer.

When we plan a Maui wedding for you, we won't try to make the price appear to be lower than it really will end up (after you read the fine print). Our goal is to be up-front about our Maui wedding packages right in the beginning so that you will know exactly what your paying.

Believe me, we are working hard at being the best wedding planners in Maui.

Weddings in Las Vegas

Weddings in Las Vegas seem to be the default location for an inexpensive nuptials for many couples. Vegas certainly has a reputation for quick and easy services performed in cheesy chapels (perhaps with Elvis singing "Blue Hawaii" piped into the background).

I think so many people choose a Las Vegas wedding simply because they don't know any better. They've never even considered Hawaii because they think of it more as a honeymoon destination that a wedding destination. They've also never compared prices and value between these two locations. Just on the level of the difference you would see in your photography, it becomes a no brainer to come to Maui to tie the knot.

Not too long ago we performed a wedding for a couple who actually live in Las Vegas; we've done many weddings for couples from "sin city". When he heard where they were from, John kidded them by saying, "I'm surprised that you didn't just have a drive-through wedding." The couple grinned back at him sheepishly. Because that's exactly what they did! They decided to do a "legal" wedding in their home city, then come to Maui to do their "real" wedding with us (even though they were already legally married).

They laughingly told us about their experience. They took their convertible and got in the drive-through line (just like you might do at McDonald's). In front of them was a limo with a couple standing in the open hatch. Our couple sat waiting in their cas as the limousine kids tied the knot in a quick ceremony before rolling off to their honeymoon. Whey followed it to a small window, where the minister hung out the window (as if he might take their order for chicken and a coke). Why would you do such a thing? In their case, I think they just wanted to be able to have some laughs with their family and friends about their "quickie" wedding.

Let me tell you, their "real" Maui wedding was much more magical and meaningful. And I know their photography was also MUCH better compared to the simple photo they got in the drive-through!

If you're thinking about going to Vegas versus coming to Maui, we've prepared a page that compares a Maui wedding experience with Weddings in Las Vegas. It compares the weather and other issues side-by-side. You can find it by clicking here: http://www.affordablemauiweddings.com/lasvegas It's a great page to share with anyone considering a Vegas wedding.

Maui Wedding Packages Price Changes

Our Maui Wedding Package prices have had to go up. With many of our vendors raising their prices to us, we have had to pass this along to our future clients just to remain in the same spot. We have put those new prices up and will be working to increase them across our web presence as quickly as possible.

In particular, our videography prices have increased, and this effects our two largest Maui wedding packages, the Ohana and the Kula. We are not increasing our prices for exactly the same products, we are actually improving the quality of our videos by going with a very professional videography service. So our clients will get more for paying a little more.

Even with these increases, if you check around on the web, you won't find many companies with prices as reasonable as what we offer. Three years ago, one of our competitors (who is now out of business) looked at our website and told us, "You've got great prices!" And we haven't changed them much since then. Because our overhead is lower (because John is our in-house photographer and minister), we are able to be very competitive with other companies. The good news is that we are not changing the price of our two smaller packages, the Mahalo and the Aloha Packages.

If you would like to see the new package prices, please click on the following link: http://www.maui-me.com/MauiWeddingPackages.html

If you would like to see our new video prices, please click on the following link:
http://www.maui-me.com/features-videography.html