Destination Weddings. Marrakech. Family. The Secrets.

I’ve been known to say that “I don’t deal in the carpet trade”… basically I’m not one to sweep things under the carpet and hope nobody notices. So, let’s be clear – a Destination Wedding is not much cheaper (if at all) than hosting a wedding at home. When the exchange rate was good, that may have been the case…in today’s currency it’s just not.

That aside, we had the most incredible experience at Palais Namaskar, Marrakech coordinating a stunner of a celebration. It was hands down the most exhausted we’ve ever been after a wedding but worth it!

The Events:

• Day 1: Guest Arrival, Welcome Lunch (casual), Mandvos, Mehndi (formal)
• Day 2: Lunch (casual), Hindu Ceremony (formal), Reception (formal)
• Day 3: Brunch (casual), Guest Departure

The Planning:

On this occasion, very much led by the couple. To be fair both of them are in the Wedding Industry and they knew their suppliers (not gonna lie…with that in mind, we were DELIGHTED to be asked to be on the team). With one being in Décor and the other Photography, this couple had a clear vision of not only what they wanted the events to look like but how they wanted them captured.

Our role was to help create their timeline, think through possible “missings” and then to coordinate the events in Morocco. This was closer to our Bespoke Planning Service but amended.

The UK Suppliers:

When you’re in the Industry, there’s pretty much no way you can host your Destination Wedding without bringing in some of the talent you’ve gotten to know over the years. Apart from us, this lovely lot was also flown in:

• Planners: SW Events
• Décor: Wed In Style
• Dhol: Beat Alliance
• DJ: DJ Rugrat, Musical Movements
• Film: Story & Motion
• Hair Stylist: Bash
• Hindu Priest: Kamal Pandey
• Jewellery (Bride’s): Red Dot Jewels
• Makeup Artist: Patti Panue
• Photographers: J Dhillon Photography & Gurvir Johal
• Stationery: RAW Invites
• Turban Stylist: The Turban Stylist

On the Ground:

It was intense. For starters…everyone got to know who we were and being SO accessible to EVERYONE meant that we had an awesome time and had to prioritise like maniacs. Check out Secret numero uno.

The venue team were some of the best we’ve worked with. Nothing was too much and they were incredibly helpful even when asked to produce a bouquet at 2am for the following afternoon.

The trickiest thing to manage was transport. There were airport transfers and shuttle runs between the core hotels. The airport trips were hard because the time to get through the airport was anywhere from 1 hour to 3 hours…even if guests were all on the same flight! The hotel shuttle runs were tricky because at each hotel there were different rules about where the drivers were allowed to pick up from.

To get around some of the challenges, we had the couple send out pre-written WhatsApp broadcasts to keep guests updated … and add a personal touch.

The most memorable moment was the DJ playing a track and joining the guests on the dancefloor! Love him for that.

The longest party…ended at 6am. We were passed out in bed long before that…it was the final night after all.

The coolest tech used was the drone.

Our favourite elements of the décor were the elephants and fountain installations, the mandap and the dancefloor over the pool.

The piece of culture that we’ll never forget is the Gnawa band. The history dates back to slavery, the performance was one of the most incredible things to be immersed in.

The most impressive thing was what Wed In Style produced. Everything was locally sourced. So much was made on site – the mandap, the fountains, the “floating elephants”, the custom dance floor etc. And like us, this was their first time working on a wedding in Marrakech. #TheDreamTeam

And so…that was the Joy that was Marrakech. And we caught the Destination Wedding flutters. Our next stop was Vienna for the Amour Forum…but that’s for another blog!