Savannah Wedding Planning and Bridal Boutique: Ivory and Beau: SIMPLY PLANNING: Savannah Destination Wedding

Savannah, Georgia. suh-VAN-uh. "Slow-vannah." Savannah. 4 years ago if you had asked me if I wanted to go to Savannah, Georgia I would have said "uh... why? What's Savannah? I've been to Atlanta. That was uhh.. a big city, kinda like Portland but 5 million times more humid and had lightning and thunder and mosquitoes and hush puppies." You think I'm joking? I'm not. When my then-boyfriend now fiance told me he was getting re-stationed in Savannah, Georgia my response was uhhhhhhhhhhhh. But then we drove cross country together in a huge U-haul to move him out here and it was love at first sight. I was enchanted by Savannah. I wanted to move right then and there. Forget finishing college, I wanted to be in Savannah. Well, okay so I did finish college and was patient before moving to Savannah. And now this enchanting, beautiful, historic, romantic city is where I call home. And to this day I still love Savannah. But no... this post is not just about my love for Savannah. This post is about why Savannah is an amazing wedding destination. And of course like always, features lots of images to keep things interesting! Plus, this time all the images are from Simply Savannah Event's weddings! Yay! Happy Thursday!!!

1. Southern Fixins: shrimp + grits, crab cakes, oysters, low country boils, fried chicken, okra, catfish, collard greens, hush puppies, corn bread, tea sandwiches, gosh the list goes on. Savannah is known for it's food. There are some awesome caterers who can make some fantastic things and not just that... but the restaurants are delicious. Some of my favorite places are Bernie's Oyster Shack for shucking oysters, Tubby's on the River for crab cakes and hush puppies, Mrs. Wilkes for some good ol' fashioned Southern cookin', and Sweet Potatoes for some fried catfish.

2. Historic Roots [and venues...]: Savannah is filled with rich history and awesome venues where you can have your wedding that are also filled with rich history. Just imagine getting married in a historic blacksmith railroad shop at the Georgia State Railroad Museum, or a mansion built in 1882 at Brockington House, or in an old horse stable at Savannah Station, or in Georgia's oldest military fort that overlooks the Savannah River at Old Fort Jackson, or the oldest inn in Savannah now haunted by a heartbroken woman who committed suicide at 17Hundred90... and the list goes on. There are so many possibilities of venues where you can get married that are filled with history and are not your typical wedding venue. Plus, with all the history in Savannah there are a multitude of tours, from walking tours with Savannah Dan, to Ogelthorpe Trolley tours, or how about a horse carriage tour? Whatever you choose you can't go wrong and with all the options there are plenty of tourist attractions so that out-of-town guests can make an entire vacation out of your wedding.

3. Spanish moss, beautiful marshes, historic parks with trees + fountains, sandy beaches... do I really need to go into detail on this? Seriously though. Savannah is beautiful. Enough said. Oh, but you don't believe me? Well, it was voted #5 on TLC's "Top 10 Beautiful Destination Wedding Locales in the United States," and it is on the list of Destination Wedding Magazine's "Best Wedding Destinations in the United States," and American Profile's "Top 10 Wedding Destinations," Also, Jekyll Island, a short drive South of Savannah, made Beach Weddings by The Knot's list of "10 Best Beaches for a Wedding." Seriously, you don't need me to tell you... this tells it all. Because I mean out of who knows how many cities there are in the United States... Savannah has time and time again made the top 10 and it's for a reason. So um, obviously it's one of the best.

4. It's a romantic city: This city just oozes romance. Probably all the beautiful scenery, historic buildings, romantic restaurants, again with the beautiful Spanish moss trees, and the mysterious marshes, and the beaches. It's just so romantic. Such a perfect city to fall in love. Chris and I moved here in 2011 and we didn't just fall in love with Savannah but we fell more in love with each other. Obviously, since after a year of us living in Savannah he proposed. Probably wouldn't have happened if we still lived in the city-where-it-never-stops-raining.

5. Creative minds: Last but most certainly not least... there are some seriously creative wedding vendors in Savannah who love to get creative and do some crazy things. I have been so honored to get to work with some of the best wedding vendors in Savannah to come up with some really creative and different designs. Above are some of the weddings and styled shoots SSE has been involved in with some of my favorite vendors in Savannah!! So no I'm not saying you have to choose me as your event designer... but if you are interested in some of my designs + love hanging things from ceilings, chandeliers, wooden posts, you name it then you best contact me!! ;)

Anyway, there's my two cents on why Savannah rocks. Happy wedding city hunting all you engaged couples!!

Xoxo, Nicole Rene