Breathtaking Destination Wedding in Santorini (with an Epic View!)

photo by : George Pahountis Photography ( www.pahountis.gr )

Santorini has been on my travel wishlist for a while now, but after today’s stunning destination wedding, I’ve decided, I’m going to get there in 2017.

Katrina and John are a couple from Australia, who chose to get married on the Greek island with an intimate, yet epic, three day celebration, with their two sons and their closest friends and family.

Their day was captured by acclaimed photographer George Pahountis and planned to perfection by Stella & Moscha Weddings.

Opting for a feel of ‘understated luxury’, they had a romantic ceremony overlooking the Aegean, and the most elegant cliffside reception under the stars.

A stylish occasion from start to finish, Katrina’s Galia Lahav wedding dress fitted the drama of the setting, and John looked suitably suave in his open collar shirt.

A wedding that appears glamorous and sophisticated at first glance, but on closer look, is filled with sweet moments and thoughtful touches. This one is just breathtaking.

Our Love Story

We were two weeks into our six week European holiday celebrating two years of being together.

I was too busy being a tourist and taking photos the beautiful canals of Venice. It took me a few minutes to register what was happening. There he was on one knee (whilst balancing himself on the gondola), pulled out a ring and popped the question.

We spent the rest of the evening sipping on Champagne with strawberries, listing to the amazing music with locals randomly dancing on the streets at Cafe Florian in St Mark’s Square.

It was super romantic.

The Setting

Having an intimate wedding in Santorini with closest friends and family is unique and special as it gets. We loved every moment in Santorini.

The ceremony was held at Le Ciel, which provided the ultimate view of the Aegean and was basically a clean canvas for us to decorate as we pleased.

We were so happy that we decided to have an unplugged ceremony, nothing worst then seeing the backs of everyone’s phone as you walk down the aisle.

My eldest son came up to me and walked me down the aisle with my father. During the vows, my youngest son spontaneously came up and held onto both my hand and my husband’s hand and looked up at us. It was a melting moment no one could plan.

The reception venue was La Maltese. A wonderful hotel with vintage furnishings and a jaw dropping view of the sea, as it is situated at the highest point of the caldera.

The architecture of this boutique hotel which used to be an old mansion, has a unique intimate feel to it which in combination with the spacious dancing area, the different levels of the terraces and the lush interior made it the best choice for a romantic dinner with a view and a great party until early morning hours.

The Decor & Details

The colour palette was white and gold, and the style we were going for was understated luxury. We did not want to overwhelm the venues with décor and colour but let the Santorini background speak for itself.

Since this was an intimate wedding with 40 guests we decided we wanted a long table so it felt like a family gathering.

The gold touches at the reception table brought the luxury that we were looking for, complimenting the white/ivory flowers and the chic environment of La Maltese.

For favors we sourced customised peony scented candles from Wax Pouring Chicks and alternated with local greek Ouzo.

The Refreshments

The menu was a wonderfully designed seated wedding menu by La Maltese with local produce and a round of late night snacks with traditional greek gyro and an ice-cream cart which was a great hit – as expected!

I wanted the cake to match the style of the wedding and chose a four tier white cake with white hydrangeas and flakes of gold.

While browsing Pinterest for wedding ideas and inspiration I came across a batman cake. Batman being my two sons’ favourite superhero I really wanted to incorporate it in the wedding and this was the perfect opportunity.

The baker was able to decorate half the cake with the Batman design and the other half white and gold. The kids loved it!

The Music

For the ceremony we chose a large gothic harp that played the romantic ‘A Thousand Years’ by Christina Perri as I walked down the aisle to find my wonderful family, friends, sons and husband-to-be.

For dinner we wanted lighter entertainment and went for a pop duet – the singer had an amazing voice and everyone was impressed. Hubby choose ‘All Of Me’ by John Legend for our first dance.

During the night we organized for some traditional Greek plate smashing which was a highlight.

A DJ took over after dinner and we danced all night under the stars.