Seaside’s Sweetest Weddings: Couples Share Their Love Stories

In the last issue of The Seaside Times, we took a look back at some of the most special recent weddings in town, from intimate Ruskin Place affairs to parties that took over Bud & Alley’s Waterfront Restaurant until the wee hours. This time, we’re covering weddings from 2001 on, including sweet nuptials on the beach and gorgeous events at the Chapel.

Read on to discover some of the most romantic weddings, with Seaside as the backdrop. 

Nick and Macy Scialdone 

We got married April 1, 2023, and had our ceremony at The Chapel at Seaside and our reception on the lawn and courtyard outside of the chapel. When we began planning and thinking about our wedding day, we found what we wanted – the most beautiful setting and a place our guests would be able to enjoy all weekend long! The chapel was the dreamiest place and the town surrounding it was the perfect place for our family and friends to enjoy all weekend long!” 

Brian and Vivia Arbelaez 

We got married at sunset at the seashore and just below the Pelican Pavilion on Feb. 21, 2022. Seaside has been a magical place for my husband since he was two years old. When he was 14, his parents purchased Wave the Wheat just off 30A before the honeymoon cottages. Seaside is so magical, and calls everyone to be childlike and free-spirited. It’s there we fell deeper in love time and time again. It was there we were introduced, where we decided we’d get married and where we had appetizers at Bud & Alley’s Waterfront Restaurant, got married on the beach and ended the night with a bonfire and pizza with a glow-in-the-dark Frisbee toss just below Watercolor Inn. Now, we vacation there with our toddler two or three times a year, reminiscing and making more sweet memories together. 

Daniel and Laura Harrison

I began visiting Seaside in 1992 with my family — bike rides and Camp Seaside are some of my fondest memories. Although the town has grown and evolved over the years, Seaside has always felt like home. When Daniel and I got engaged, without hesitation we knew where it would be. On Oct. 31, 2022 (my grandmother’s birthday), we wed at The Chapel at Seaside. It was magical with sprinkles of subtle details throughout — my family even stayed at Happily Ever After. After the ceremony, we took a walk through town where we were complimented multiple times on our costumes — a bride and a groom! 

Benjamin and Shelby King 

My family and I have been coming to Seaside for summer vacation for 28 years, every year since I was four years old. It is definitely our happy place and I always knew from a young age that I wanted to be married in my happy place! We got married in The Chapel at Seaside surrounded by our closest family and friends. Now, every year we go back, we have a new memory in our happy place. 

Shaun and Kara Hood

We’re based in Ringgold, Ga., and started visiting about 25 years ago. We were married at the Pensacola Pavilion on June 2, 2001, with about 50 people in attendance in a small and intimate wedding. I have always been a sucker for detail and Seaside was such a sweet town. I knew it would be the perfect backdrop for our wedding. We come down five or six times a year and plan to retire there when our youngest graduates. Seaside holds a very special place in our hearts. 

Cara and Mikey Brock 

We got married July 9, 2022 at The Chapel at Seaside. We chose Seaside since it is a place we both had a lot of memories of growing up and it’s a place we still regularly visit to this day. We love being in Seaside and being reminded of our special day every time we are in town!

Ashley Gunn and Andrew Farquharson

We got married at The Chapel at Seaside, followed by a reception on the Lyceum Lawn on Oct. 13, 2023. I’m blessed to have grown up visiting Seaside as my family has a second home in the area. For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed about getting married at the Seaside Chapel. Even though my husband is from New York, the first time we visited he also fell in love with the town and I love that he supported my Seaside wedding dream. We had an absolutely perfect wedding day and it was truly amazing to see the vision I’ve always pictured in my mind become a reality. We are blessed that so many of our friends and family were willing to make the trip to celebrate. For many it was their first time in the area. Overall, our wedding was a huge success and we will cherish our Seaside memories for a lifetime!

Jill and Harrison Haest

We got married June 17, 2023 at The Chapel at Seaside with a reception on the lawn. When it came to choosing where to have our wedding, we wanted a place that was sentimental and somewhere we could always go back to and remember our day. We could not think of a more perfect place than Seaside. Seaside has always been a second home for us, and now it holds an even more special place in our hearts!  We will always be reminded of the love, joy and commitment we celebrated on that magical day with each visit to Seaside. 

Nick and Carrie Smalara

My husband took me to Seaside on our first vacation together, as he had many fond memories vacationing there as a teenager. So, after a proposal years later in Seaside, the choice was so easy to get married in a place we both love so much on May 13, 2005 at the Tupelo Pavilion. We love it so much that we’ve brought both of our children here to vacation each summer since they were born. And yes, they love it as much as we do. Fun fact, our wedding photographer took yearly pictures of us as a family until her retirement from her business.