Shae and Cameron decided on a destination wedding for the same reason many of you are – their guests already had to travel.

From their hometown of Jacksonville, FL the couple planned the Annapolis destination wedding of their dreams. “Cameron attended the United States Naval Academy (SNA) and the Chapel on campus is a dream ceremony venue,” says Shae. “Only people that attended the Navel Academy have the privilege of getting married on campus, so we wanted to take advantage of that.”

Having their out of town guests attend the wedding was no easy feat. “Logistically speaking it is very difficult to get people on and off a US Navy base without proper credentials. Guests are not allowed to drive on and off so we had to arrange buses to take people to the ceremony. We also had to provide a complete list guest to the academy a month prior to the wedding date.”

But thanks to Stephanie at SRS Events, the planning felt “seamless.” “She made it so easy that it didn’t even feel like we were planning a destination wedding. Seriously, using a wedding planner is the only way to go if you can’t meet with venues and vendors in person. I couldn’t recommend it more,” says the bride. “It was so nice having someone local who could meet with vendors when we couldn’t be there. It also helps that we had one of the best planners.  I can’t say enough amazing things about Stephanie and how wonderful it was to work with her. She made our day even better than we could’ve imagined. We never had to worry about a single thing and when our wedding day arrived, we all were able to really enjoy the day knowing that she would take care of every last detail.”

Although the price tag was considerably higher in Annapolis than their home town, the couple has no regrets. “If we got to do it again I wouldn’t change a thing,” says the bride.

Shae has some sage advice for other couples doing their own destination weddings: “At the end of the day it doesn’t matter where you’re getting married or what color the napkins are. What matters is the person standing next to you, all the other things will fall into place and even if they don’t the right person will laugh through whatever goes wrong!”

Vendors: Photographer: Vness Photography; Wedding Planner: Stephanie Sadowski at SRS Events; Ceremony Site: United States Naval Academy Chapel; Reception Site: Chesapeake Bay Beach Club; Florist: Eight Tree Street Floral; Stationery: Minted; Cake: Blue Crab Cupcakes; Hair & Makeup: Vintage Veils; DJ: Posh Life Entertainment; Gown Designer: Ti Adora Bridal; Bridesmaids’ Clothing Designer: Birdy Grey