Cara and John were my first relocation wedding. The obvious choice for an alternate venue would have been Whistler Blackcomb or Grouse Mountain. Both of which require a gondola to access. However, Cara wasn’t sure if she ever wanted to set foot on another gondola at this point. We searched Whistler and Vancouver, but Squamish is where they wanted to have their wedding.
Cara and John are both UK natives and had family flying in from London with all accommodations booked in Squamish; they didn’t want to leave Squamish. We were able to secure their ceremony at Furry Creek and their reception at Quest University.
Who knew that Quest University even did weddings??? I didn’t until I was contacted by a past Quest University bride. She was actually their first wedding ever. She sent me photos and it was absolutely stunning! I had to recommend it to my couple.
All my couples chose the Sea to Sky Gondola because of its amazing and breathtaking views. Cara and John wanted to keep with this theme for their alternate venue and Quest university had it! Here’s a sneak peek at some of their wedding photos …
TIPS…
- Think about your location. If you are an out of town couple, you may want to keep your wedding in the original town. Like Cara and John, they had family coming in from the UK. To relocate their wedding to Whistler or Vancouver, they would need to relocate their hotel room block, vendors, transportation, all of which could have extra charges attached to them.
- Think outside of the box. Look at venues that aren’t your typical venues. For instance, Quest University has just started doing weddings. They have a gorgeous, huge reception room with a backdrop of breathtaking views.
- When considering having your ceremony and reception in two different areas, make sure you consider your timeline and account for time and extra transportation costs. Cara and John didn’t have transportation originally booked, but when they decided to do their ceremony and reception in two different places, they sourced out a school bus to help. It turned out to be a lot less costly than renting a coach or limo(s).
THE WEDDING TEAM
Photography | Will Pursell
Ceremony Venue | Furry Creek Golf Centre
Reception Venue | Quest University
Makeup | Dolly Makeup by Lidia
Hair | The Fox Den