Active Weddings Trend

On May 1, 2015, Cheetah Platt and Rhiann Woodyard celebrated their 48th wedding ceremony in New York City’s infamous Times Square with an audience from all over the United States tuning in to Good Morning America to watch their final nuptials. Besides a love for each other, Cheetah and Rhiann share a love for adventure. The couple met at an acrobatic training session where Cheetah says of Rhiann, “I picked her up and never put her down.” As the two began to plan their wedding after becoming engaged in 2014, they realized nothing about the traditional wedding preparations felt good for them, “It was expensive, it was stressful, nothing was feeling right, and we realized, ‘Wait a second, renting a venue is $10,000 or we can go around the world for $3,000.” And so, the adventurous couple planned the trip of a lifetime, traveling the world together and exchanging vows 47 times in 47 exotic locales around the world. Their favorite wedding location was in front of the pyramids in Egypt-- talk about a venue! For Cheetah and Rhiann, the world became their wedding venue, the natural sights like the pyramids of Egypt or the botanical garden in Colombia became their ceremony decor, and they never spent more than $50 a night on lodging.

While Cheetah and Rhiann’s wedding may seem extremely unique, this idea of the adventurous or active wedding is actually an emerging trend cropping up in the wedding industry. Active and adventurous couples want to incorporate that unique side of their relationship into their big day like Paul Donnelly and Laura Oliver, whose unique nuptials were recently featured in the New York Times, did with their Wedding Day 5k, which was complete with race numbers, t-shirts adorned with specially made logos, swag bags, and time rankings for their wedding guests.

The New York Times cites other brides and grooms seeking out physical activity as a way to bring about the bond of matrimony in wedding ceremonies. One couple in upstate New York participated in a $2000 Barry’s Bootcamp session with wedding guests prior to their wedding ceremony, while two military veterans elected to have guests participate in a Tough Mudder competition just after they were officially pronounced husband and wife.

More Millennials report themselves as members of a gym, intramural sport, or other athletic organization than they do as religiously affiliated, so it is not surprising that the shift from traditional church wedding ceremony to more active and adventurous ceremonies and traditions are beginning to emerge as the Millennial generation begins planning more and more weddings. In each instance of these new and seemingly “radical” weddings, all couples stressed the importance of doing what feels right when planning a wedding. For them, the traditional venues and approaches to the ceremony and reception weren’t organic and didn’t capture their individualism, and so, they found what worked for them.

Whether you and your groom decide to go a traditional route, incorporate something active and adventurous, or even some other unique touch that maybe doesn’t require world travel or running a marathon, Peachtree Petals is here to help you with your wedding flower needs. Named top Atlanta wedding florist by TheKnot.com and WeddingWire.com, the Atlanta florist has over 20 years of combined industry with extensive experience working with wedding flowers and brides. Peachtree Petals is so confident in their ability to provide you with the arrangements you’ve been dreaming of for your special day created with the highest quality of flowers within your budget, that they are offering Atlanta brides free wedding consultations to begin the planning process. Schedule your consultation today using Peachtree’s easy online consultation scheduler to begin!