Seashells Weddings enjoys a preferred wedding vendor relationship with Cable Beach Resorts and is The Bahamas' leading, full-service bridal consulting firm with a staff of experienced professionals who are dedicated to making your wedding a success.
Please read the following conditions carefully as they outline the official policies and procedures that govern the contract between us. Once we have accepted your booking by sending a confirmation, a contract will come into existence commencing on the date the invoice is issued. All wedding plans are sold by us subject to these conditions. No variation to these conditions shall be valid unless agreed to by us in writing. It is agreed by both parties that this Contract is deemed to have been made at our registered office in Nassau, Bahamas and is subject to Bahamian law and jurisdiction. Please note that any travel agent involved in booking your holiday will be acting as your agent until the booking has been confirmed by us and any monies held by them after confirmation of the booking are held on our behalf.
Our Responsibility
We accept responsibility for ensuring that all component parts of your wedding booked with us are supplied to you and are of a reasonable standard. We accept liability for the negligent acts of omission of our servants and/or agents. We will take all reasonable steps to ensure the proper arrangements have been made for the weddings advertised on our website and that the suppliers of the various services provided as a part of the wedding arrangements are efficient, safe and reputable companies who comply with the local laws and regulations of the Commonwealth Of The Bahamas.
We will obviously have no direct control over the provision of services to clients by these suppliers but subject to the Important Note below we will pay our clients the equivalent of such damages as would be awarded by a Bahamian Court for personal injury to the client, including illness or death, caused by negligence, as understood in Bahamian Law, or the servants or agents of ourselves or any suppliers contracted by us to provide any part of the arrangements for your wedding as described in our brochure or on our website. The exemption to this is any air or sea carrier whose own conditions of carriage apply, some of which exclude or limit liability.
Should you suffer personal injury, including illness or death during your wedding arising out of an activity unconnected with the wedding arrangements and which is the liability of a third party, we will offer you help with any claim you may have against the said third party. The help comes in the form of advice or recommendation.
Complaints
It should be understood that this contract is with Seashells Weddings, preferred wedding planners for Cable Beach Resorts and as such, we ask that you observe proper protocol and kindly address any/all points of concern to us. In the unlikely event that you have a complaint about any aspect of your wedding it is important that you advise our local consultant in order that we may have the opportunity to immediately resolve any areas of dissatisfaction. If the problem cannot be resolved satisfactorily on the spot, you must write to us within 28 days of your return and set out the details of your dissatisfaction. We cannot accept complaints received outside of this period.
Travel & Legal Documentation
Most nationalities must hold a valid passport together with any necessary visas to enter and get married in The Bahamas. American citizens are required to have a passport or certified copies of their birth or baptismal certificate with photo ID. You should contact your local Bahamas Tourist Office (listing available on www.bahamas.com), to verify the entry requirements from your country of origin. Clients who have been divorced or widowed must produce the certified copy of the divorce decree or the death certificate of their deceased spouse. Should you wish to keep duplicates of this document kindly have it copied in your hometown before presenting it with your paperwork, as the certified copy will be filed with the official record of your marriage in The Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Please note: there is a 72 hour residency requirement before you can apply for your marriage license (if marrying on Saturday, we suggest you plan to arrive no later than early Wednesday afternoon). No blood tests are required.
Brochure and Website Accuracy
We have taken every care to ensure that the information in our brochure and on our website is current. However you can appreciate that minor alterations to the information may be necessary. The information contained herein is issued on the sole responsibility of Seashells Weddings Ltd., Nassau, Bahamas and it is not issued on behalf of or does not commit any other party whose services are used in the course of your wedding.
Your obligation to us
Paying For Your Wedding
Your Wedding Checklist has three component parts: the room reservations, the food and beverage selections and the ceremony details. Once you have completed these, kindly forward the document, together with a non-refundable retainer of $500 to proceed to us via fax, email, US postal or courier service.
. To marry at the Cable Beach Resorts, there is a 3 night minimum stay requirement in any room category at the Radisson, Wyndham or Nassau Beach Hotels. For weddings with 10 or more guest rooms kindly let inform your Seashells Romance Director and she will secure your room block and coordinate with your wedding guests.
. All weddings at Cable Beach Resorts are subject to a $300 site fee. By virtue of its all-inclusive program, wedding couples registered at the Radisson will pay fifty percent (50%) of this fee.
. The Radisson at Cable Beach Resorts is such a sought after location for ceremonies, that while we will do our best to accommodate other brides, wedding sites are reserved exclusively for brides of the Resorts. All wedding reception(s) are subject to fifty percent (50%) of the cost of the function's food and beverage, not including the mandatory 15% gratuity.
. For parties greater than twenty (20) persons, banquet service is required. For parties less than ten (10) persons, we recommend dinner in one of Cable Beach Resorts gourmet restaurants with a pre-set meal from one of the established Dine-Around menus.
Please be advised that the restaurant experience does not allow for the traditional "reception" experience - there will be no audio visual available for toasting etcetera. Your Seashells Romance Director will provide and discuss food and beverage menu and venue options and assist you in achieving the required minimum as you design your overall event.
. On receipt of the completed Checklist indicating that you wish to engage the services of Seashells Weddings, we will in turn send you (or your travel agent) a confirmation/account and once this is sent from our offices a Contract comes into existence between us incorporating these Booking Conditions.
. Package components may be subject to availability, seasonality, and/or hours of operation and other terms are subject to change without notice. Unused portions of the packages are not transferable and non-refundable.
. With the increasing popularity of Cable Beach Resorts weddings, as a general rule, wedding dates are held by Seashells Weddings, for a period of five (5) working days from the date of this contract. Should we receive a request for this date from another bride during that time, we will contact you to ascertain whether you wish to proceed with your reservation.
. A fifty percent (50%) deposit will serve as your commitment to host your wedding at Cable Beach Resorts. This will enable us to proceed with planning your event. If you plan to marry within two (2) months of the wedding, the estimated payment is due in full and is non-refundable. The deposit is part payment of the wedding and is inclusive of Seashells' twenty percent professional fee applied to the cost of wedding enhancements. No booking will be considered confirmed until the deposit is received by us. If final payment is not received by the date specified we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you and the cancellation charge will be applicable as detailed below.
. The ultimate benefit to a bride and groom of engaging the services of an on-site Bridal Consultant in a foreign country, is to bridge the boundaries between you and the destination by allaying any anxiety so that you are free to enjoy a stress-free experience with friends and loved ones while drawing on the considerable knowledge and expertise of Seashells Romance Directors, in the nuances of the destination
. Where the decision-maker is other than the Bride & Groom, it would be helpful if that person(s) would make themselves known to us in the early planning stages so that there are no surprises and the input of everyone-making-decisions for this wedding are considered in the initial consultation, and all concerned parties are part of the planning process moving forward. In the absence of being able to meet face-to-face on a regular basis, Seashells Weddings is prepared to facilitate a series of AT&T Conference Calls for the purposes of meaningful discussion. This will be billed at the cost of the conference call together with an hourly rate of $65
. "Come-See Visit" - should you wish to visit Nassau/Cable Beach in order to meet with Seashells Weddings and our wedding suppliers before hand, we would be happy to make the arrangements and accompany you to the various appointments. Any off property inspections/appointments other than the church, will be subject to a $75 non-refundable fee.
. Our Reception Management package option is an excellent, fun-filled value, available to you at a flat fee of $1800. Our Seashells Romance Directors will be happy to discuss the components of this service with you and help you design your event with pizzazz.
. Rest assured, the Seashells team will work tirelessly to ensure that your wedding is all that you dreamed it would be. We must impress upon you however, that when our Seashells Romance Directors are requested to assist with matters other than those previously contracted for, an additional hourly rate will be assessed at $250. Plans for this additional service must be contracted at least seven days in advance of the wedding. Alternatively, should the Romance Director(s) be asked to stay "until it ends" on the day of the wedding (without previously being contracted to do so), a charge for the additional time will be submitted immediately after the event and payment is due prior to your departure from The Islands Of The Bahamas.
. In hosting your wedding at Cable Beach Resorts it should be understood that, Cable Beach Resorts is the only licensee authorized to sell and serve food, liquor, beer, champagne and wine on premises. We do not allow any food or beverage to be brought into the Hotel without a prior written agreement.
. Full-payment is required for all bookings made within two months (2) or sixty days (60) of the wedding and will be non-refundable.
. Preferred form of payment is a US$ Cashier's Check made payable to Seashells Weddings Ltd. For your convenience, we provide a US Mailing Address: Seashells Weddings, 1811 N.W. 51st Street, PMB 1214, H-42D, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309.
. Credit Card used for wedding transaction - we also accept all major credit cards and by order of our Bankers we are required to take an imprint of your credit card and a copy of your signature for verification purposes. It would be helpful if in the interim you would kindly fax us copies of the front and back of the card as well as a copy of your Driver's License, and we will expedite the imprint and signature requirement when you arrive in The Bahamas.
. Tipping Envelope/Goodwill Gesture - in a resort destination the size of Cable Beach Resorts, there are countless people behind the scenes, who are often forgotten but have an impact on the success of your special day. We encourage your generosity and would be happy to disburse your gratuities to bus boys, waiters, delivery people, guest services personnel and any/all persons that you feel have gone above and beyond the call, to wish you well and make your celebration a truly joyous occasion.
Booking Amendment:
If you wish to alter your booking after it has been confirmed to us, we will do our best to satisfy your wishes. However, a fee of $15 per person / per change will be assessed on each alteration, unless the change involves additional persons or features. Guarantee increases for food & beverage functions must be requested in writing if within a 96 hour period.
If you change your wedding:
If after we have issued the confirmation/account, you want to change your wedding, we will do our best to make the required alteration. However, changes to the wedding made within 2 months of the original date will be treated as a cancellation of the original wedding and charges may apply as detailed below.
If you cancel your wedding:
If you cancel your wedding after we have issued the confirmation/account, we will require written notice sent to our head office in Nassau. The cancellation is only effective from the date the written notice is received in the office. The cancellation charges apply and are based on a percentage of the entire wedding cost and the period before arrival that the cancellation is made. The cancellation schedule is as follows and Seashells will withhold these funds on behalf of Cable Beach Resorts and contracted the vendors:
. More than 90 days - deposit-only
. 90 days or less - full payment
The arrangements for your wedding are made many months in advance and occasionally it may be necessary for us to make changes to your arrangements. In this regard however, you should be mindful of the fact that:
. Function venues at Cable Beach Resorts are not guaranteed and locations may not be confirmed until 14 days prior. We are more than willing to accommodate your request for a "come-see visit" but must strongly caution you not to get your heart set on a particular venue. Cable Beach Resorts reserves the right to relocate all functions based on space and availability. Suitable alternative arrangements to meet the requirements of the event will be provided should the need arise.
. While The Bahamas is paradise on earth, we are nevertheless a tropical destination and prone to irregular rain-showers. In the event of sudden dark cloud formations and adverse weather conditions, you will be given an indoor rain back-up venue. A "weather call" will be made between the Bride, her Romance Director and Cable Beach Resorts Convention Services as follows:
(a) for evening events, the weather call will be made by 1.00pm
(b) for morning events, the call must be made the night before 7.00pm
(c) for midday events, the call must be made by 7.00am on the day of the event
(d) any weather call made after the time deadlines will be subject to service fees of $1000 per event.
. Out of respect for all guests of the Cable Beach Resorts, outdoor entertainment must wind down by 10pm so as not to cause a public nuisance. The same rules do not however apply to indoor venues, and music and dancing can go on until the wee hours of 12 midnight or 1am
. In the unlikely event of a major change to your wedding we will inform you or your travel agent as soon as reasonably possible and offer you the following alternatives:
i) accept the alternative arrangements made by us
ii) re-book for another time
iii) cancel your booking and receive a partial refund
A major change is defined as a change of wedding site, date or time. However, function rooms/venues may be changed by Cable Beach Resorts if expected attendance declines or other circumstances change. A major change does not include delays in arrival caused by circumstances amounting to force majeure and/or industrial action as detailed in Important Note below.
Important Note
When a major change is due to war, threat of war, riot, civil strife, industrial dispute, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, hurricane, tsunami and adverse weather conditions or other circumstances amounting to force majeure i.e. outside our control, we cannot offer you full compensation. We will however, make a partial refund if you choose to cancel your booking rather than accept the alternative offered.
If we cancel your wedding
If we are forced to cancel your wedding we will inform you or your travel agent as soon as possible. We will offer you the choice of alternative site, date or time or a full refund of all monies paid to us in respect of your wedding arrangements. We will not cancel your wedding after the date specified for final payment in the invoice unless that balance has not been paid by you or unless it is due to reasons beyond our control as detailed above.
Catering Event Information
So as to assure the integrity of the process, we should be guided by the following stipulations:
. Price - once full payment of your wedding has been received, the price is guaranteed, subject to changes beyond our control e.g. Government action or hotel price adjustments. Please note: Banquet Menus are subject to change at the Resort's discretion, current menus will be guaranteed up to 90 days from event date. Any changes will be notified to you as soon as possible and you will be expected to pay such price increases and accept any and all substitutions.
. Menus - in order to guarantee pricing and availability, kindly finalize your menu selections 90 days prior. Your Seashells Romance Director will provide your Schedule of Events & Banquet Event Orders approximately 60 days prior to your wedding. Signed Banquet Event Orders & the Schedule of Events will be required at least 6 weeks before the wedding.
. Special Meals Orders - Special meals are defined as those meals requested in addition to the principal menu, either contracted in advance or at the time of service. Special meals must be included in the guarantee or actual number, whichever is greater.
. Food & Beverage menu selections cannot be changed within 14 days of the event.
. Reception Style Menus - Menus other than Cable Beach Resorts' established dinner buffet menus will be limited to a 2 hour time frame and reception style seating format. Buffet lunch menus cannot be selected for Dinner Events. For customized menus, please request same of your Romance Director.
. Minimum attendance - for all meal functions where the final guarantee is less than 25 guests, a $75.00 labor charge will apply per event.
. Attendance - if no guest number guarantee is received 7 days prior to the wedding event, the agreed/expected attendance number will be used as the guarantee. Your signature or full payment of your wedding will serve as an indication of your acceptance of the agreed/expected attendance.
. Oversets - Cable Beach Resorts will set an additional 5% over the guarantee for food and seating. Requested table/seating sets over 5% will be charged an additional per table fee.
. Seating - Round tables of eight and ten guests are recommended for seated meals
. Children three (3) and under eat free and children ages four(4) to eleven (11) eat at half price respectively, at all banquet events. Please let us know this in advance.
. Gratuity - a 15% gratuity will be added to all food, beverage. Set-up and room rentals may also apply.
. Outdoor functions - require additional set-up and breakdown time. In an effort to accommodate the needs of all Cable Beach Resorts guests, outdoor functions are subject to the following earliest starting times: Pool/Beach/Lagoon [Oct-Mar - 6.00pm] [Apr-Oct - 7.00pm] Non Pool/Beach/Lagoon [Oct-Mar - 6:30pm] [Apr-Oct - 6:30pm]
. Entertainment must end at 10pm
. The resort does not allow bonfires on the beach
. Indoor furniture is not allowed at outdoor events i.e. chairs, glassware
. Lighting fees are mandatory for the beach and patios @$385 per tee-bar and applies for all Food Functions.
. Our Audio/Visual partner would be happy to discuss sound system packages and visual aid needs.
. Linens - Cable Beach Resorts offers a limited selection of complimentary linens for wedding receptions. For Brides requesting specialty linens and overlays, your Seashells Romance Director will gladly assist you.
. Custom Wedding Receptions - Our partners, the Design Team Ltd., will create a romantic, whimsical settings with gorgeous flowers, magical lighting displays and fresh, crisp linen.
. Wedding Guest Hotel Rooms - while we appreciate that everyone would wish to marry in this picturesque, idyllic setting, the demand is such that it can only be reserved for brides having their receptions at Cable Beach Resorts. As such, kindly let us know your wedding group requirements and we will be happy to make the room reservations at either the Radisson, Wyndham or Nassau Beach Hotels.
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