Unique Wedding Venues - Wet, Wild & Wacky

By Shari Hearn

Want to get married in a unique wedding location that is as unique as the two of you? Forget the same-ol'-same-'ol venue and go for something wet, wild or wacky.

Wet

You have many choices when it comes to water weddings. You can have a submarine wedding in Hawaii, a snorkeling wedding in the Caribbean, or a wedding on a tall ship in Chicago. Or, you can push the envelope just a little bit further and go for something truly unique - a wedding in the world’s only underwater hotel.

The Jules’ Undersea Lodge in Key Largo, Florida is truly underwater, with guests having to scuba dive 21 feet beneath the surface of the sea and enter through an opening in the bottom of the lodge. Wedding ceremonies are held inside the lodge, which consists of a wet room entrance area, two bedrooms and a common room, which is a combination kitchen, dining and living room area. Imagine having your honeymoon underwater, snuggled in your bed while watching the fish pass by your window.

Your wedding ceremony is conducted by a notary public, who dives down for the service, followed by a toast and the cutting of the cake, which, yes, has remained dry. For dinner you are offered a caviar appetizer and choice of two entrees, either lobster or steak and a hearts of palm salad and dessert. Your meal is prepared by a chef who scuba dives to the lodge. The chef will also scuba dive to the lodge the following morning and prepare breakfast. The Jules’ Undersea Lodge wedding is perfect for those who wish to elope to an unusual location.

The cost for the Jules’ Undersea Lodge is $1,495 plus tax. If you have any extra guests attending the wedding you will be charged an additional $60 per guest. Call (305) 451-2353 for more information.

Wild

What could be more wild than a shotgun wedding or a wedding at a haunted hotel?

With a wedding and honeymoon in Oatman, Arizona, you get both. Where's Oatman, you ask? It's an historic ghost town 20 miles southeast of Laughlin, Nevada, formerly a thriving mining town during the gold rush. Oatman today is a tourist town with daily wild west shootouts and shotgun weddings. Oatman is also where you'll find the Oatman Hotel, where, in 1939, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent their wedding night.

It's said the Oatman Hotel is haunted by numerous spirits, including, some say, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, a former chambermaid and an Irish miner who once lived there. It's said staff and guests of the hotel have heard the spirits of Gable and Lombard laughing from their honeymoon room. There are also reports of the sound of bagpipes coming from the room of the Irish miner, whose spirit is referred to as "Oatie"

For information regarding shotgun weddings, you can call 928-768-8063 or 928-768-3839. For reservations to The Oatman Hotel you can call 928-768-4408.

Another wedding venue which many consider haunted is Thayer's Historic Bed and Breakfast in Annandale, Minnesota, which is owned by a psychic, Sharon Gammell. Thayer's specializes in interactive mystery dinners, ghost huntings, psychic readings and small weddings, which, if you choose, can be officiated by Gammell. Built in 1895, Thayer's Historic Bed and Breakfast is said to be the home of several ghosts, including the original owners, Caroline and Gus Thayer and some of their friends. And, for you cat lovers, Thayer's is also the home of three resident ghost cats (as well as some living cats).

Annandale is just a little over an hour's drive from the Twin Cities International Airport. For more information call 800-944-6595.

Wacky

For one of the wackiest wedding experiences, try Star Trek the Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton, where you can have your ceremony on the Bridge of the USS Enterprise 1701-D. You minister will perform your wedding ceremony dressed in Starfleet outfits while intergalactic wedding music plays in the background. Depending on the Wedding package you choose, you can have your choice of one to three Star Trek characters present at your wedding: Klingon, Ferengi or BORG.

You can also choose to have your wedding reception inside Quark's Bar or the Captain's Lounge, depending on the size of your wedding party. You can have your choice of different reception menus, but I'd definitely go for the Romulan Warbird, which is a marinated chicken breast served with wild rice pilaf and seasonal vegetables. Wedding cakes come with the Star Trek logo on them.

Hopefully some of the above wedding ideas will either appeal to you, or get you thinking about other creative and unique ways to celebrate your wedding. Maybe wet, wild and wacky weddings aren't your thing. Maybe eloping to Hawaii or Las Vegas is what you want. Whatever you decide to do, make it special.