Weird Hilton Head Island Question

[DisneyStarWisher]

In a couple of weeks, my DH and I will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary with a very informal vow renewal (just the two of us) on the beach at Hilton Head. We are planning on going to the Disney Beach House between 4:30 and 5:00 (weather permitting) and heading to a quieter spot on the beach. Then reservations at Alexander's at 5:30. So my question is will it be possible to find a quieter spot on the beach at that time? Also, would it be better to walk north or south (which direction would be quieter with pretty scenery?) I know there are less busy beaches on the island, but we want to do this near the Disney beach. Thanks!

 

[Simba's Mom]

The only thing I can answer is that to me, the south walk is prettier. However, I'd like to hear answers. A vow renewal at HHI with just the two of us has always been on my radar. However, I'm looking at the pier right at the resort, and the only ones invited would be the CMs.

 

[Dean]

We just did a vow renewal in HH a week ago (35). It shouldn't be too difficult at that time depending on how much privacy you want. If you go dressed up expect some onlookers regardless. It will still be plenty hot at that time of day. South is likely better than North but just feel it out when you get there. If you have enough time, you might make a dry run the day before just to get a feel for options. Have a backup plan in place though.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Thanks for the replies. Congratulations, Dean, on your 35th. I will have a couple of days beforehand to check it all out. Just wanted some ideas before we arrived, so I would know what to expect. We go to HHI every year/every other year, and I've never really paid attention to the overall scenery of the beach, I guess I was more focused on the ocean. I do want some privacy as this renewal will be pretty emotional for the both of us, but I don't expect there to be zero people on the beach. I will be wearing a white knee-length sundress, and DH will be in a white linen shirt and tan linen drawstring pants. Pretty casual, but maybe pretty dressy for the beach. I'm hoping most people will be leaving to get ready for dinner about that time. I know it will be hot, hope for some ocean breezes though. This was just the best time of day to plan it since we have the dinner reservations at 5:30 and pictures at 7:30. I would like to do the renewal before we enjoy dinner. I do have a backup plan in case of weather. I'm fine with standing on our balcony at the resort and doing it there if it's raining, but of course, the beach would be a nicer.

 

[Dean]

Thanks for the replies. Congratulations, Dean, on your 35th. I will have a couple of days beforehand to check it all out. Just wanted some ideas before we arrived, so I would know what to expect. We go to HHI every year/every other year, and I've never really paid attention to the overall scenery of the beach, I guess I was more focused on the ocean. I do want some privacy as this renewal will be pretty emotional for the both of us, but I don't expect there to be zero people on the beach. I will be wearing a white knee-length sundress, and DH will be in a white linen shirt and tan linen drawstring pants. Pretty casual, but maybe pretty dressy for the beach. I'm hoping most people will be leaving to get ready for dinner about that time. I know it will be hot, hope for some ocean breezes though. This was just the best time of day to plan it since we have the dinner reservations at 5:30 and pictures at 7:30. I would like to do the renewal before we enjoy dinner. I do have a backup plan in case of weather. I'm fine with standing on our balcony at the resort and doing it there if it's raining, but of course, the beach would be a nicer.

Thank you. There are some pretty spots around the resort as well. I know there are some gorgeous spots at some of the hotels and at several of the Marriott Timeshares. We've done pictures at Grande Ocean a couple of times though while staying there.

 

[jerseygal]

CONGRATULATIONS to ALL on a beautiful ow renewal! A WONDERFUL thing in today's times.What a BEAUTIFUL place for a vow renew

 

[mort1331]

We just did a vow renewal in HH a week ago (35). It shouldn't be too difficult at that time depending on how much privacy you want. If you go dressed up expect some onlookers regardless. It will still be plenty hot at that time of day. South is likely better than North but just feel it out when you get there. If you have enough time, you might make a dry run the day before just to get a feel for options. Have a backup plan in place though.

Congrats Dean(and your wife) it must be a nice spot for you to use it. With the knowledge and amount of timeshares your family has and you pick there. Well let me say this gives me more fuel to get my family down there. Ive been pushing for the last couple and hopefully next march.
Once again congrats and thanks for giving the rest of us hope to make it as long as you have.

 

[Dean]

Congrats Dean(and your wife) it must be a nice spot for you to use it. With the knowledge and amount of timeshares your family has and you pick there. Well let me say this gives me more fuel to get my family down there. Ive been pushing for the last couple and hopefully next march.
Once again congrats and thanks for giving the rest of us hope to make it as long as you have.

Thanks, we used a service, the Gatlinburg area has a ton of wedding chapels and scenic locations. We made an advanced trip to actually see the chapels and picked the one we liked best that would accommodate the party size anticipated. We thought 40 would be enough but had the possibility of being close to 50. That size left out many of the chapels. We also knew the feel we wanted, more traditional preferring white over stone or gray. We looked at 3, drove by 2 or 3 more and found the perfect one. We took one of their packages and made some adjustments to fit our situation. We then had a reception at Calhoun's restaurant. We were very pleased overall but both options. The chapel we chose (chapel at the park) fit our preferences to a tee. It was a little larger than most, traditional white with stained glass with both indoor and outdoor settings. Video and stills pictures were included (they gave us all of the digitals on a disc rather than getting a limited number of prints). The people are very nice and responsive. For the reception, we chose Calhoun's downtown. They had a separate room, didn't charge a room charge, were extremely nice and easy to deal with and gave us the option of off the menu or limiting the menu. They didn't even ask for a deposit even when I offered. I have to say they really were great. We had 37 people on the trip, 35 at the ceremony and 33 at the reception. Out total OOP was roughly $3K between the ceremony and the reception. While we could have likely gotten it down to half that by not doing Sunday and opting for a few less options, it worked out perfectly for us as Sunday was our anniversary. It rained the entire time except for Sunday so I guess we're destined for another 35 yrs.

The one thing I found trying to research the chapels online is there was VERY little info about the chapels themselves. Basically no one had a photo tour of their chapel, if it wasn't for a few pictures here and there and google images, I couldn't have done much research online about the chapels, just the packages. As it turns out, the one I would have chosen without visiting was the one we did choose. There was one other we saw that was close and another that was workable. We didn't see them all of course but had already narrowed things down a little based on my online investigation.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Ok, Dean. I now feel old not only because I've been married 25 years but because I'm having trouble following you here. Did you have a vow renewal in Hilton Head or Garlinburg?

 

[Dean]

Ok, Dean. I now feel old not only because I've been married 25 years but because I'm having trouble following you here. Did you have a vow renewal in Hilton Head or Garlinburg?

Gatlinburg. We've done formal pictures in HH several times.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Gatlinburg. We've done formal pictures in HH several times.

We just did a vow renewal in HH a week ago (35). It shouldn't be too difficult at that time depending on how much privacy you want. If you go dressed up expect some onlookers regardless. It will still be plenty hot at that time of day. South is likely better than North but just feel it out when you get there. If you have enough time, you might make a dry run the day before just to get a feel for options. Have a backup plan in place though.

Gotcha. What confused me was your first post.