Stormy Skies, Wedding Vows: Planning Amid Hurricane Season

Wedding season in our lovely state of Florida starts in October and rolls to April. Because of the beautiful mild weather, most weddings will be booked during these months. During the summer, a sprinkle of outdoor weddings occurs, normally destination weddings. Guess who also has booked a slew of dates that coincide with wedding season? Mother Nature along with her hurricanes. Hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30th, with its peak time being mid-August through the end of September. And this year, whoever rolled the dice and landed on back-to-back hurricanes needs to put the Jumanji board away.

Planning a wedding is stressful enough. Having to plan one and consider an active hurricane season can cause even the most experienced wedding planners to have hurricane fatigue and anxiety, not to mention what it can cause to the brides and grooms who have been dreaming of their big day. Based on our personal experience, here are some tips to guide you if a hurricane intervenes on your wedding day.

1.  When booking your venue, make sure you have in writing what their options are if bad weather (i.e., a hurricane) is coming your way. Some venues have relations with other venues that might be inland or away from an evacuation zone. In case a hurricane is approaching your venue, they can help accommodate at a different location. Other venues are willing to reschedule for a later date, depending on recovery efforts after the hurricane.

2.  Get wedding insurance!!!! We cannot stress this enough. As soon as you start booking vendors and venues, you should be getting with your insurance provider to get wedding insurance. Event cancellation insurance can help reimburse you for expenses. A little money spent today can be the peace of mind you need down the aisle.

3.  Be in constant communication with your wedding planner. They are the bridge between all your vendors and you. They will alert your vendors if the wedding takes place, and if it’s being postponed, and should help you determine what the next steps should be.

4.  If your wedding falls during hurricane season, make sure to ask your vendors if you need to postpone due to an incoming hurricane, what is their policy (i.e., are they able to honor the original contract and be available to switch dates, would a new contract and a fee be needed, etc.).

5.  To your guests flying in, recommend they get travel insurance. Same thing with their hotel stays. A little extra money spent here can save a lot of heartache down the road.

We understand that many expenses were incurred to plan what is considered one of the most important days of your life. Having Mother Nature hurl a tropical storm or hurricane on your big day can be stressful. Having her send two back-to-back hurricanes in sixteen days has been a nightmare. Hurricane fatigue is very real, and even though our company was lucky, many of our dear vendor friends and favorite venues were affected. Awesome couples that we have worked very closely with have had to postpone their big day. But we are #tampabaystrong and our wedding and event community will bounce back stronger than ever.