A Dreamy Destination Beach Wedding in Thailand

“I loved when I attempted to do part of my wedding speech in German and the look on Robert’s face was priceless.”

The couple: Nadia Constantino & Robert Diehl
Length of engagement: 10 months | Wedding date: 15th April 2014
Wedding location: The Surin, Phuket, Thailand

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We met… in classic Dubai style……. On a Thursday night at Barasti. Yes, it does happen!

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My hair and make-up… were done by the hotel suppliers. I shortlisted some styles I liked and had a chat with the team on the morning of the wedding and went from there!

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Our proposal… was at Sir Ban Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. We went for a romantic weekend away and Robert surprised me with a private dinner on the beach with our own chef. We had been dating for a few years at this stage, but he is very good with nice treats like this, so I honestly didn’t have a clue!

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My dress… was purchased from the fabulous Bridal Room in Jumeirah. After searching high and low across Dubai and the internet, I was super pleased to find a simple, elegant gown locally that didn’t cost the earth.

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What our bridal party wore… We struggled big time to find a bridesmaid dress in Dubai that suited our beach wedding theme. We ended up getting my sister Lucy a dress from BHLDN which was perfect. No alterations needed. My bridesman (yep, I had a bridesman) and my brother-in-law wore matching outfits to the groom.

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His suit… We found a super cool outfit on Pinterest and had it copied. My husband isn’t exactly the ‘suit type’ so for the wedding he actually wore suit shorts, a chequered shirt, vest and bow tie. It was bang on trend and perfect for a beach wedding. It was custom made by Montexa Tailors in Satwa and the fabric was Italian linen and cotton from Regal, also in Satwa.

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Our ceremony and reception… was on the beach at The Surin Hotel in Phuket Thailand. I knew that I wanted lots of hanging lanterns, orchids and fairy lights. The Surin exceeded every possible expectation. We had the reception a short distance from the ceremony and the hotel organised for a baby elephant to keep the guests entertained while we went for wedding photos. Yaya the elephant was a hit and the guests adored her.

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We chose our photographer… because they were a hotel supplier and were part of the wedding package. The Surin sent us the portfolio of 3 photographers and let us make the final selection. We ended up with over 1500 photos and a short and long video.

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We chose our venue in Phuket… for a number of reasons. Robert is German and I am Australian so Thailand was the midpoint between both countries and Dubai. Both our Grandmothers were travelling to the wedding, so we wanted the venue on a main island as they were too old to go island hopping. After a lot of research, The Surin kept coming up as the top recommendation in Phuket. A luxurious 5 star resort with a private beach and fabulous reviews, booking The Surin was the best decision we made.

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Our wedding theme/colours… Classic beach wedding! We didn’t have a colour theme per say. I wanted classic white on white everything with a splash of blue.

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We chose our wedding coordinator because… she was so efficient! Natasha responded to all emails in minutes, was super organised and went above and beyond to ensure we were happy. Her role was to help us with the legalities of getting married as well as the venue selection. Once the venue was booked, we dealt with the hotel directly. The bonus was that she was free! Creative Events gets a kickback from the hotels for making the bookings. It was no additional cost to use Creative Events than if we went to the hotels directly and we were able to leverage off their local market expertise to find our perfect venue.

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Our menu… blew the guests away! It was an open buffet with a selection of fresh seafood, traditional Thai food and various cooking stations. The sashimi and lobsters were a hit! Everyone kept saying it was the best wedding food they ever had.

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Favourite purchases for the wedding… Our cake topper, we purchased it from Etsy and it was a super cute addition. It said ‘Mr & Mrs Diehl’. My Jewellery was a mixture from Swarovski at the Dubai Mall and Passions Jewellers at Gold and Diamond Park. Get a photobooth! The guests loved it. And lastly as gifts for the guests, we wanted something practical and that would remind guests of the wedding, so we got oil burners with lemon grass oil which reminds us of Thailand. I love going to friends houses now and seeing them use it.

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My favourite part of the wedding is… too difficult to pick because there were so many amazing moments. I loved when the celebrant stuffed up our vows and had everyone in stitches of laughter. I loved when I attempted to do part of my wedding speech in German and the look on Robert’s face was priceless. But probably the most special moment was at the end of the night. We had just cut the cake, the fireworks were going off in the background and we had a moment to ourselves to stop, look around and see the joy on everyone’s faces and know that we pulled off an amazing party. Mission accomplished!

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Our honeymoon… was a familymoon! After the wedding, we went with our immediate family to Krabi for another 8 days and had a smashing time.

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My piece of advice for other brides… Relax! Enjoy it, but remember to start planning early. Pinterest is amazing for inspiration. Shop around and don’t be afraid to negotiate. The mark up on items is high as soon as the word “wedding” is attached, so don’t be afraid to ask.

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Pamela Mahon

Pamela Mahon

weddingsonline.ie Editor Pam enjoys writing about all things décor (she loves buying it too!) and has a not so secret addiction to stationery. Her favourite section on the site is the galleries and she can often be found lurking in the fashion and beauty forums as well.

  2 comments

  1. […] dress by Regine Tolentino | Main image and beach ceremony decor via real wedding on weddingsonline.ae FacebookTwitterGoogle PlusPinterestEmailAdd to favourites The following two tabs change content […]

  2. […] photo via Nadia & Robert’s real wedding on weddingsonline.ae FacebookTwitterGoogle PlusPinterestEmailAdd to favourites The following two tabs change content […]

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