This real wedding in Cancun, Mexico featured not one but two ceremonies! The two-day event celebrated the bride’s Mexican heritage with a Catholic wedding ceremony followed by a Hindu ceremony celebrating the groom’s Indian background. From the beautiful beach ceremony to a mariachi grand entrance, the bride, Cristina, tells how it all came together:
How did you plan all the Indian wedding events in Mexico?
When I started to plan, I was worried we wouldn’t be able to find the vendors we needed. To my surprise, there were plenty of vendors to choose from for our Indian wedding events. The team at Moon Palace helped connect me with everyone, from the Hindu priest to Grupo Gama who put together a gorgeous mandap for our ceremony.
Even selecting our food was easy! One of Moon Palace’s chefs is from India, and he was able to help us cater a lot of our dishes to family members’ vegetarian diets and make a lot of guests happy with lots of delicious mix of Indian and Mexican food.
Were there any special Indian traditions?
The second half of our wedding day began with Jig’s baraat. A baraat signifies the groom entering the bride’s village. Jig and I went all out with custom outfits for our ceremony. He had an idea of what he wanted to wear, and our designer, Poshaac, brought his vision to life!
Jig opted out of a traditional baraat on horseback and instead decided to jam out to his favorite music as he and his family danced their way towards the beach. 
Towards the end of the ceremony, Jig and I walked around the sacred fire four times, expressing our commitment to live a life that incorporates the four basic Hindu principles of Dharma (righteous living), Artha (prosperity), Kama (fulfillment of desires and duty), and Moksha (enlightenment and salvation). This part of the ceremony and the Saptapadi, or the seven steps taken to symbolize our vows to each other, are the most important rituals.
We dressed the bridal party up in Indian attire that matched the both of us. The bridesmaids wore fuchsia and gold salwar kameez, while the groomsmen wore all gold outfits with matching fuchsia scarves.
Did you have any special touches during the Hindu ceremony and reception?
To keep everyone cool, freshly cut coconuts with cute paper straws were served to guests on the beach, and we also gave each guest a favor bag filled with traditional Mexican sweets and an ivory elephant tea light holder.
Traditionally, Mexican weddings include mariachis arriving after the reception ends, but we decided to get the party started at the beginning of our reception! During cocktail hour, mariachis belted out favorite Mexican tunes, and they played a special song when we made our grand entrance. Everyone loved them!
We added a few more special touches to our cake and decor. A pretty gold love cake topper was an elegant touch to our simple cake. 
We kept the same color scheme from the ceremony into our reception and decorated our chairs with gold Mr. and Mrs. chair backers.
What advice would you give to other brides?
My aunt gave me the best advice. She said, “Don’t worry about something going wrong during your wedding, because it will.” It’s important not to dwell on what can go wrong or what did go wrong, and instead relax and have fun!
One piece of advice for brides planning a destination wedding: Find a wedding planner that can help you plan and more importantly help you manage all the small details on your big day. Having one person handle all those last-minute details the day of is a huge help and you won’t regret it!
Vendors:
Photography: Adrienne Fletcher Photography | Favors: Kate Aspen | Venue: Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort in Cancun, Mexico | Custom Bridal Lehenga: Poshaac Couture and Accessories | Bride’s Jewelry: Kiian Jewelers | Reception Dress: Top by Carol Hannah from The Sentimentalist, Atlanta; Skirt via Lulus.com | Hair and Makeup: Styling Trio | Ceremony Decor: Grupo Gama | DJ and Reception Dance Floor and Lighting: J&S Audio Visual | Invitations: Elegant Shaadi Cards | Wedding Programs and Custom Welcome Bag Tags: Sylvia Draws | Bridal Mehndi: Mehndi by Veronica de la Paz | Chalk Signs: How Joyful Shop | Welcome Bags: My Wedding Favors | Mariachi Band: Tempo Consulting
Congrats to the happy couple!
