Lauren and Charles have a lesson for you folks scared of getting wet: a little rain can’t ruin a beautiful wedding on the beach! Showers rolled in just moments before Lauren and Charles’ ceremony began, but both the bride and the groom’s dreams of a beach wedding outshined a little rain. At ICONA Windrift in Avalon, the show went on.
To prove they aren’t afraid of a last-minute shakeup, the couple jumped in one of ICONA’s pools with wedding attire still on when the night was over. The wedding was full of memorable moments like this, thanks in large part to ICONA Windrift’s walkable distance to downtown Avalon and the beach.
Many of their guests stayed on-site, which made celebrating a whole lot simpler. Nobody had to leave early or forgo just one more drink.
The massive ICONA property has panoramic views of the Avalon dunes and the Atlantic Ocean. It has three ceremony spaces: a romantic beach setting or two elegant indoor options with ocean views.
It was the perfect spot for the couple’s shore wedding.
Lauren and Charles grew up coming to Ocean City and Wildwood every summer. They loved walking the North Wildwood seawall, which holds chaos at bay during the island’s off-season storms. It was here that Charles proposed, right in front of the historic Hereford Inlet lighthouse.
For readers hoping to copy some of Lauren and Charles’ wedding day charm, here’s what she told us: her father surprised everybody by hiring the Woodland String Band Mummers to make a surprise appearance during the reception. “Mummers” are colorfully dressed dancers, musicians, and actors who frequently parade around the Philly area. This chaotic energy was balanced out by the wedding’s calm, earthy colors; Lauren recommends earthy greens and browns for the natural beach setting. She also recommends a speech just for the bride’s mom, a figure she said is often forgotten in the chaos of a wedding day.
“I wrote a speech just for my mom. No one except Charles knew I was doing it. I felt like the moms of the brides are never honored on the wedding day and I wanted to make sure she was,” she told Weddings by the Beach.
At ICONA, guests are welcomed with white wine to begin their five-hour event, including a cocktail hour which can be hosted in one of two spaces tailored to the guest count, up to 220.
Lauren and Charles thought early on that they would need an outside planner, but ICONA’s in-house event manager and wedding coordinator brought their vision to life. ICONA also offers welcome parties, rehearsal dinners, post-wedding brunches, a complimentary wedding cake or cupcakes, a room for the wedding night, 50% off an anniversary stay, on-site accommodations for all parties, including 3 and 4-bedroom condos for families, and a private Bridal Salon for getting ready.
Lauren said that she loved ICONA “for so many reasons. We loved that everything was right there. We could get married on the beach, walk right to the reception, and our guests could stay the night. The location and ocean view was so cool. We also loved how organized they were. We also liked how nice the reception room was. Even without our decorations and florals, the room was beautiful. From the moment we toured, you could tell they knew what they were doing and we could fully trust them with our big day.”
