The Daily O’Collegian

Editor’s note: This article ran in a previous O’Collegian Bridal Tab issue.

Choosing a great location for a wedding doesn’t have to be a hard decision.

Although couples have to consider their family and choose a place that makes both of them happy, finding a location nearby or out of state can be easy with research.

For those interested in having their wedding ceremony in Oklahoma, Edmond and Tulsa offer selections.

In Edmond, there is the Boulevard Chapel that seats 165 guests.

The bride and groom receive four ours in the chapel, including a reception. Couples can choose to bring their own minister or use one the chapel provides.

In the Tulsa area, the Lodge at Five Oaks in Jenks is one of many places to host a wedding or reception. It can accommodate receptions for up to 400 guests.

Meredith Keeling, a psychology junior, and John Slish, a music education senior, planned to get married in a church in May 2006 and are thinking about having their reception at the Lodge.

“It’s got a rustic feel,” Keeling said. “It’s this big open room, and it has a big deck where you can go out and be by the lake. We want our  wedding to be simple and our reception kind of elegant.”

For the beach lovers, Sarah Reynolds, a travel consultant for Carlson Wagonlit: International Tours of Stillwater, suggests Sandals Resorts, which has locations in Cozumel, St. Lucia, Antigua and the Bahamas.

The resort offers a deal to those who are about to be married—guests who stay five night or longer are treated to a free wedding.

Reynolds has also planned “wedding moons,” as she calls them, in Cozumel, Mexico; Hawaii and Las Vegas.

“They have several resorts in the Caribbean, and they are all-inclusive resorts,” Reynolds said.

All-inclusive resorts include transfer to and from the hotel, room fee, drinks, tips and taxes, Reynolds said.

The most popular choice for Oklahoma State couples is Cozumel and it’s also the most affordable, she said.

Tracy Clay, a secondary education sophomore, and her fiance Nick Kila, a finance freshman, plan to take a cruise from Galveston, Texas, to Cozumel and Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

“We do hope to go on a shore excursion to see the Mayan Ruins while we are there, but other than that we just want to have fun on the beach, shop, eat out and relax,” Clay said.

San Antonio offers a unique wedding experience.

One option is to stay at the Homewood Suites-river walk. The hotel will help couples find the perfect spot in the city to be married and also help with all of the other  details.

Afterward, the hotel offers reception rooms with intimate settings and views of the famous River Walk.

Barbara Bischoff, a history senior minoring in sociology, is marrying her fiance,  Kevin Egan, at their church in Stillwater in July.

Bischoff describes her wedding as simple elegance and plans to honeymoon in San Antonio.

“We are staying four nights in a hotel and spa on the RiverWalk,” Bischoff said. “We are planning on visiting some of the local sites but mostly enjoying the company of one another and our new life together.”

Alaska may be the answer for those who are interested in an exotic wedding location.

The Wedding Experience.com offers a package for a couple to be married in an Alaskan garden park. The package includes round trip for the bride and groom and other amenities such as a non-denominational marriage officiant and a photographer.

Reynolds offers this advice to the newly-engaged couple: “One of the best things they can do is to come in and get brochures as soon as they’re engaged. The earlier they book, the better — so they get what they want.”