Magical Mayan Wedding Ceremony - Tulum Cenote

Highlights from our romantic and mystical Mayan Wedding Ceremony at a private cenote in Tulum, Mexico.
It was MAGIC. Pure. Absolute. Otherworldly… MAGIC. Nothing else can describe the beauty of that day. Without a doubt, it was the most extraordinary day of our lives.
After having experienced the mystical power of the Mayan Riveria before, we knew we wanted to be married in a sacred space, and make it an all day affair. For the Mayans, cenotes were revered as one of the three entryways to the land of the Gods. For centuries, sacred rituals have taken place at the mouth of these waters - and on February 26th, 2016 - our very own sacred ritual was performed… and the magic alive in the air was palpable.
A traditional Mayan musician graced us with ancient sounds played on hand-carved instruments; the mystical sound of the flute floated through the air as I walked down the aisle. A rehearsal had not been possible due to the sacredness of the site, so as I began to walk down the “aisle” - I realized for the first time that my 3 inch wedges weren’t going to allow me to make it down in one piece. So after a few steps down the path, I stopped my dad, kicked off my shoes with a laugh, and proceeded down toward my groom with bare feet and my dress gently draping along the earth.
Time stood still, and I didn’t care about anything that wasn’t truly real. About two minutes into the ceremony, I tossed off my veil as well because I didn’t want anything obstructing my view of some of the most precious moments of my life. And the best part? It wasn’t even weird that I did that! It all just felt like it was exactly what was supposed to happen.
As the Shaman continued the ceremony, even the fish and the birds felt compelled to join in the moment. The fish gathered near his feet, the birds flew in resting on nearby branches… even a kitten found his way into the ceremony circle! As soon as I saw him approach and take a seat at the top of the cave, I whispered to Daane, “mira! el gatito!!” (“look! a little cat!). I’m a total cat lady, so of course I was over the moon to have this particular unexpected guest join us!
Overall, it was simply magical. As our contribution to the otherwise traditional Mayan ceremony, Daane and I exchanged our own vows, pouring our hearts out to one another and promising to give the best of ourselves from that moment on.
Of course, in the real world, fairytale moments don’t come without their fair share of real-world hiccups. We had PLENTY go wrong that picture-perfect day. From the bride and groom being forgotten and left at the house while the entire wedding party was being shuttled to the ceremony, to being stranded AGAIN at the close of the ceremony when the keys to our car were accidentally taken and our wedding party was already 45 min away, to an unexpected rope swing obstructing our ceremony space and the Zika virus threatening to keep all our guests at home, we had MANY hurdles to overcome to get to our happily ever after. But when you’re riding high on love and the mystical powers of Tulum - ain’t nothin’ gonna ruin your day! With the help of our family and friends we sailed through every unexpected twist and turn with a laugh and a smile, and fell asleep that night to the sound of the waves crashing, asking ourselves how we ever got so lucky to live such a perfectly imperfect truly magical day.
For more photos and details from our wedding day, check out our feature on Once Wed: www.oncewed.com/featured/magi...
For the best in Destination Weddings, Tulum Wedding Venues, Wedding Photography and Wedding Videography:
Videographer: Gallardo Films - gallardofilms.com/
Photographer: Mariel Hannah - www.marielhannahphoto.com/
Florals & Styling: Mint Design - www.mintdesignca.com/

[@BigTimberLodge]

Beautiful wedding and amazing video. I could feel the love in this.

[@hittingreset9922]

Simply beautiful...thank you for sharing. ❤️

[@livelightwithwildlandorgan7122]

Thanks Brandi! And Thank YOU for sharing all the knowledge and insight that you do - such an inspiration!

[@lizzygoldentail]

amazing

[@livelightwithwildlandorgan7122]

Awh, thank you Elizabeth! We really appreciate the sweet words!

[@elindioincreible3680]

Deep like the universe.

[@birdeyes200]

Your veil was breathtaking! Beautiful wedding. Who did you use to plan your wedding please!? I am wanting a Mayan wedding next month . Have contacted one planner but they haven’t responded!