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Getting married onboard HA... Kinda...


opelmanta1900

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My girlfriend and I are planning on taking a cruise to Alaska next summer with Holland America... While on the cruise we plan on getting married, however, not onboard the ship... My parents and my future in-laws will all be on the cruise with us, and with my father being an ordained minister, we plan on finding a good port city and having my dad marry us on land...

 

So I don't really have a lot of specific questions... I'm more looking for input on what itineraries might be more favorable, what ship might be best, what ports might be more wedding friendly, what time of summer might be best, and other things of that nature... Anything will be helpful... We've only cruised once, it was on the Oosterdam, and we absolutely love it...

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My girlfriend and I are planning on taking a cruise to Alaska next summer with Holland America... While on the cruise we plan on getting married, however, not onboard the ship... My parents and my future in-laws will all be on the cruise with us, and with my father being an ordained minister, we plan on finding a good port city and having my dad marry us on land...

 

So I don't really have a lot of specific questions... I'm more looking for input on what itineraries might be more favorable, what ship might be best, what ports might be more wedding friendly, what time of summer might be best, and other things of that nature... Anything will be helpful... We've only cruised once, it was on the Oosterdam, and we absolutely love it...

Not wanting to pour cold water on what seems like a lovely idea---very romantic. There is one thing to consider.

I have read stories on Cruise Critic over the years where people have made marriage plans in port---with families flying in etc. Sometimes ships have to miss a port due to weather conditions, mechanical problems or labour problems in the port. Your wedding plans would be left high and dry with money laid out for in port facilites. It has happened in the past.

 

Now the chances of a glitch are not large, but they do exist and bear thinking about. Whatever you decide, I hope you have a memorable ceremony.

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My husband and I got married on the Oosterdam last year before sailing to Alaska. We had looked into doing it in Alaska, but figured it would have been a risk if something went wrong. Also, being from Seattle, we were able to have more people come in for the wedding before we went on the cruise with our wedding party. We went in early August and had absolutely wonderful weather in all of the ports. Some of the crew said it was one of the best weeks they had ever seen on the cruise. I actually managed to get sunburt in Sitka. The only day that was a little overcast was the day in Glacier Bay but we just put our sweatshirts on and were perfectly fine.

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Oh, pick Seattle on August 9, 2012 and we could join you. Amsterdam sails out on August 10 and what a honeymoon that would be!!!!

 

If that isn't in your plans, I also vote for Juneau and the Mt. Roberts tram to the top for the ceremony.

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In Juneau, The Shrine of St. Therese is a beautiful setting based on photos. It would require a rental car to reach the site, I believe. I wonder if you could perform the ceremony there if you aren't Catholic... or if they might allow you to use the grounds... The stone of the chapel is beautiful, IMO

 

http://www.shrineofsainttherese.org/

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Oh, pick Seattle on August 9, 2012 and we could join you. Amsterdam sails out on August 10 and what a honeymoon that would be!!!!

 

If that isn't in your plans, I also vote for Juneau and the Mt. Roberts tram to the top for the ceremony.

 

If that is your option I hope there are no bears at the top of the Mt. Roberts Tramway.

(Some call it the Mt Roberts Skamway.)

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The view from mt Roberts is beautiful when it's not fogged in......

 

There is a beautiful circ? About a quarter mile up the trail.... There were lots of wildflowers in June....

 

The first time we were in Juneau the top 3/4 of the mountain was wrapped in fog all day.

 

How about Sitka? How about charter a small boat and go to one of the small islands....

 

If it's a small party ( you said your parents and inlaws - but not how many) you might hire a float plane in Ketchikan and go toward misty fiords ( it would be pricey... Island wings does landings in misty fiords. I don't recall if micelles larger plane carries 6 or 8...)

 

Yukatania point in Skagway is beautiful... It's not far from the cruise dock and you could walk...... Lynn canal in the background.....

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So it looks like most people here agree that Mt. Roberts tramway would be a beautiful spot for the wedding, other than the one poster who feared the presence of bears... I'm not too worried about mother nature in terms of wildlife, so I will definitely be looking into Mt. Roberts ...

 

I absolutely love the idea TiogoCruiser posted of taking a float plane to the Misty Fiords... Myself, my girlfriend, her family, and mine, will probably be around 20 people or so, so definitely not in the scope of affordability, but still a wonderful idea to dream about...

 

trvlcrzy - my dad, who cruises to Alaska regularly with my mom, said the exact same thing about St. Therese being a picture perfect setting, but also wondered if my non-catholic stance would prevent us from being able to get married there... But I have seen my parents pictures and it would be perfect, and will definitely be another venue I will be looking into...

 

I am a little concerned about the weather situation in that I know Alaska is somewhat unpredictable... Anyone out there have any recommendations for what time of summer might give us the best chances of sunshine, historically speaking?

 

Also, we will definitely be leaving out of Seattle as my sister, her husband, and their newly born twin boy and girl reside there and we will be spending some time with them prior to the cruise... that in mind, I think the Oosterdam and Westerdam both leave out of Seattle for Alaska next summer... We've been onboard the Oosterdam on our only cruise... Do we take her again or do we brave a new ship?... Or are the two ships so similar it really doesn't matter?

 

Thank you again everybody for your great input... It definitely helps having a community of such well-informed, well-traveled individuals to help plan these types of things...

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The poster who mentioned a question about Alaska's marriage laws raises a good point.

 

What is necessary for a license (e.g., blood tests) and how much time would it take to get one? Even with the presence of an ordained minister, many states will not recognize the validity of a marriage if there is no license.

 

Also, if I'm not mistaken, the top of the Mt. Roberts tram is part of the Tlingit Reservation (the tribe operates the tram). If one really wants to get the legality of their marriage in limbo, I can't think of a better way to do it than to marry on a reservation, where a tribal license might be required.

 

I don't know if Alaska has community property or not, but such questions, as well as any question about the effectiveness of pre-nuptial agreements, etc., should be referred to an attorney in the jurisdiction where the ceremony is to be performed.

 

These are all reasons why it's generally better to perform a wedding in a locale where the couple are familiar with the local laws or can easily obtain legal advice about the local laws.

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The poster who mentioned a question about Alaska's marriage laws raises a good point.

 

What is necessary for a license (e.g., blood tests) and how much time would it take to get one? Even with the presence of an ordained minister, many states will not recognize the validity of a marriage if there is no license.

 

Also, if I'm not mistaken, the top of the Mt. Roberts tram is part of the Tlingit Reservation (the tribe operates the tram). If one really wants to get the legality of their marriage in limbo, I can't think of a better way to do it than to marry on a reservation, where a tribal license might be required.

 

I don't know if Alaska has community property or not, but such questions, as well as any question about the effectiveness of pre-nuptial agreements, etc., should be referred to an attorney in the jurisdiction where the ceremony is to be performed.

 

These are all reasons why it's generally better to perform a wedding in a locale where the couple are familiar with the local laws or can easily obtain legal advice about the local laws.

 

 

You bring up some very good points... The state of Alaska it seems is very familiar with people doing just what I and my girlfriend are doing, which is coming from out of state to get married against the beautiful backdrop which is Alaska... For that reason, they make it very easy for people such as myself to obtain a marriage license, and even make it pretty basic for someone like my father to show up from out of state and perform a marriage ceremony... nearly all things that need to be done ahead of time can be done online...

 

As far as the issue with the top of Mt. Roberts being an Indian Reservation, I did not know that, and it does seem like that may complicate things a bit more... That will definitely be an issue requiring me to make some phone calls ...

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