FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

We address many questions and concerns on a daily basis. We hope you find this page helpful in answering your questions. If you do not see the information you are searching for feel free to contact us!

Do we pick our own location?

Yes. We can accommodate your wedding in most Southern California beach areas from Orange County down to San Diego. Every beach/park has it's own regulations and some require additional permit fees that will be added on in addition to our package prices. You may obtain the permit on your own. We also designed the package prices without permit fees option in case the location you want does not require permit. For permit and beach/park regulations for different cities - visit our locations page. If you have another location not mentioned on this page (i.e. hotel, home) please let us know and we can most likely go to that location. You would need to check with any hotel or venue for permission to use their facility before booking with us.

We decided on a beach wedding location. What's next?

If you wish to book one of our packages, you will need to let us know the date and the time to make sure we are available to accommodate your wedding. Remember that weekends and sunset times are the first to fill so we recommend early booking. Once we have established if we are able to accommodate your wedding on that date we will email you an agreement form for you to print out and mail back to us - which also states the required deposit amount to secure your date (usually 30% of total cost down). If your location requires a permit, we can email you the permit application form that will need to be signed by either the bride and groom and mailed back with any fees due at that time to the city where event is being held. We accept deposits by check, cashier's check or money order. Balance is due at time indicated on agreement form and must be payed with either cash, cashier's check or money order.

Are the beaches and parks public?

Yes, the beaches and parks that we use are public. Although some areas can be reserved, we cannot restrict the public from being on the beach nearby. Generally, later in the afternoon (when most of our weddings take place) sunbathers and swimmers have left and beaches empty out pretty quickly.

What if we have to cancel or change our wedding date?

In the event of a cancellation, all deposits are non-refundable. However, if you do need to reschedule, we will try our best to accommodate your wedding on another date providing we do not have a wedding at that time and date already booked. We ask that you please give us at least 48 hours notice prior to date you want to change to. If you have a location permit you will need to contact the city where the permit was obtained to approve any change of date/time. It will be up to the city to approve the permit time/date change and any cancellations are usually non-refundable. Any changes of permit time or date are the responsibility of the couple. *Please note - if your wedding requires chairs or arch we will need at least 2 weeks reschedule notice for new wedding date to be able to accommodate you.

What if there's inclement weather?

Most days in Southern California are sunny and range in the low 60's in winter to upper 70's-80's in summer, however, we might get a few rainy days out of the year. We cannot control the weather and it is the responsibility of the couple to have an alternate location for the ceremony. Some beaches/parks have a covered picnic area where we could do the ceremony if available. Small weddings can be rescheduled if it is raining heavily to another date. For weddings that require chairs or set-ups - we can bring in a covered tent if enough notice is given. Fees for the tent delivery, set-up and any site tent insurance charges (if applicable) are the responsibility of the couple/wedding party.

What if the beach does not allow chairs?

We have done hundreds of beach weddings over the years, and alot of them were done without any chairs. Most ceremonies are fairly short - 15 to 20 minutes and guests are usually ok with standing for this short period of time. Most of the guests are caught up with the surroundings of the event, the views and each other to not be too uncomfortable. However, if you do have elderly or guests that have trouble standing for any period of time, please let them know they can bring their own beach chair to sit in. All beaches allow guests to bring their own beach chair and it does not disturb the surroundings.

Can we bring our own minister?

On some of our larger packages - yes and we will deduct the amount out of the package price. Please note by doing this it will be eliminating the Sand Blending Ceremony and it will be up to the officiant you hire to provide that ceremony if you desire it to be a part of the wedding. Also it will be the responsiblility of your officiant for the filing of the license after the ceremony. *If your wedding occurs on Saturday or Sunday and is outside the Orange County area during high season (May-Oct), we cannot deduct this amount from the package price. We are happy to offer a substitution (i.e. additional photography time). We are unable to deduct the officiant or their fee on some of our smaller packages. Please contact us regarding which packages these are.

Do you do renewal of vows?

Yes, and we enjoy doing them!

Can we make changes to our wedding package?

Under most circumstances, yes. However, on Saturdays and Sundays we do have a required minimum for weddings outside the Orange County area. For weddings on weekends that are not held in Orange County during high season (May thru Oct), the full package price must be met. If you wish to eliminate a service from your package we can offer a substitution (i.e. additional photography time, more silk florals/plants or decorations) instead of that service. This will not affect the listed package price.

Do you do rehearsals?

Rehearsals are not necessary with smaller weddings on the beach, however, if you do need us to be at a rehearsal, it is a $250.00 additional charge.

Can we meet with the officiant prior to wedding date?

Yes. Most of our officiants do not charge extra for this, but some might have a small consultation fee.

Do you provide the marriage license?

No. The couple will need to appear in person at a California county clerk recorder to obtain their license prior to the date of the wedding. Licenses are issued the same day and we recommend you do this at least a few days prior to date of wedding. You will need to provide this on the day of your wedding so it can be given to the officiant to sign and deliver to county clerk after ceremony.

Who will be taking the photographs?

For most all of our wedding packages the photographs are taken by either Ever After Beach Weddings which includes our own staff of professional photographers or an independent contracted professional photographer. For much larger weddings or weddings requesting more hours of photography, we will usually bring in one of our highly recommended freelance photographers that we have worked with. If you wish to see samples of our work, visit the gallery page. Photographers take unlimited amount of images before, during and after ceremony. The photos will then be mailed to you on a disc within 6 weeks after wedding date. You will have full rights to do as you please with the photographs and print them wherever you would like.

Do you also do receptions?

We handle wedding ceremonies only, but have a list of reception venues in the areas we work in that we can refer you to. Most of the venues we recommend are restaurants with banquet facilities or smaller reception halls. We work with alot of highly recommended caterers, dj's, videographers and other wedding vendors. Some locations may have restrictions on tables and chairs as well as amplified sound. Most of these facilities have banquet managers that can come up with a package price based on number of people in party. View a list of our ceremony services and packages.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Affordable Beach Weddings

View information and pricing for each of our Orange County beach wedding packages.

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