One of the hardest things about planning a destination wedding is deciding your wedding decor. Even though you’re getting married in Punta Cana, you don’t have to go with a beach theme for your wedding. But you do need to choose an overall style for your big day. After all, you want everything to look beautiful and flow nicely together.
Since there are so many options when it comes to wedding decor, I’ve put together this guide to help you out. Hopefully, it makes planning your beach wedding a little bit easier.
So let’s get started with a few different wedding styles!
Tropical Wedding Decor in Punta Cana
Tropical wedding decor is a popular choice for many brides in Punta Cana. With the palm trees, white sand, and turquoise ocean, you don’t have to do much when it comes to decor. Nature really speaks for itself. You’ll want to use lots of bright colors like green, red, orange, and blue to make your decor pop.
Focus on vibrant flowers and lots of fresh greenery. Lush plants like monstera and palm leaves can fill up the space at a fraction of the cost of flowers. But hibiscus, cayenne, lilies, and bird of paradise are all bright flowers that look amazing with this wedding style.
Fresh fruit is a simple way to bring this decor style to life! Add pineapples, coconuts, oranges, or grapefruit for bursts of color around your wedding venue. Banana leaves can also be used as natural and beautiful charger plates at your reception.
Your centerpieces and bouquets should be big, bright, and flowy. A little on the wild side with all the greenery you add. Remember it’s all about color, so use vibrant floral arrangements to create a tropical vibe.
Rustic Wedding Decor
Rustic wedding decor is inspired by the simplicity of nature. Your goal here is to bring nature into your wedding venue. Stick with earthly colors like brown, green, and sage. Navy, pale blue, and copper can also work well with this style.
Incorporate wood elements, string lights, an unstructured bouquet, and mason jars to bring the rustic vibe to life.Think wooden barrels, crates, and signs. Wooden chairs, tables, and a gorgeous canopy.
Check out Etsy for rustic guestbooks and wedding signs.
Dried flowers and baby’s breath will help you complete this look. And since it’ll be more relaxed than a traditional wedding, you can mix and match wedding styles to incorporate other elements that you connect with.
Bohemian Wedding Style
A Bohemian-style wedding will feel charming and carefree. Soft colors like peach, champagne, and sand mix well with bold colors like burgundy, burnt orange, or emerald.
Keep your wedding decor simple, relying on the beauty that nature has to offer. Add in some handcrafted designs to really capture this theme. Macrame, dreamcatchers, and handwoven pieces are your best friend here. You’ll also want lots of natural elements around your wedding venue like dried flowers and eucalyptus.
Your own style will play a huge part in completing this wedding style. With a flower crown, cascading bouquet, and flowing lace wedding gown, you’ll be living your bohemian wedding dreams.
If you’re a Boho bride, you will absolutely love the look and feel of Huracan Cafe!
Romantic Wedding Decor
A romantic wedding usually features delicate lighting and plenty of floral arrangements. Soft pastel colors are the heart of your wedding style. Pink, blush, rose, and white. You’ll want to keep everything light, flowy, and airy like you’ve just stepped into a fairytale.
Lace invitations are a great place to start and will set the tone of romance right off the bat. Decorate your reception with hanging string lights and floral arrangements.
Flickering candles whisper romance and will bring this decor style to life. Add a shimmering crystal chandelier and a pastel flower wall behind your sweetheart table to really wow your guests! And plenty of fragrant roses and peonies throughout your venue.
Elegant Wedding
An elegant wedding is usually a luxurious, black-tie event. It’s all about glitz and glam. You’ll pull in a lot of similar elements from the romantic decor style, but your colors can be bolder if you choose. White will be the staple, but incorporate darker colors like red, burgundy, or navy blue. You can also use black and gold which help to create a more formal feel.
For your wedding decor, you’ll need to pull out all the stops! Full table settings, grandiose flower arrangements, and posh seating.
It’s all about the centerpieces here! They should be tall, dense, and make a statement. You’ll want them clean and in a tight arrangement, not flowing like you would see in a rustic or boho style. You may even have multiple centerpieces on each table, along with candles, crystals, and formal glassware.
If you’re on a tight budget, this is probably not the best decor style for you, as you’ll need to go above and beyond to create this style. Always bigger, bolder, and completely glamorous.
If this is all music to your ears, then Hard Rock Punta Cana is a great wedding venue option.
Classic/Traditional Weddings
Traditional wedding decor is similar to the romantic theme, but it centers more around classic elements. The goal of your wedding decor is to withstand the test of time. Will this style still look beautiful in 10 years? 20? More? That’s what you want.
For a classic wedding, you’ll keep it very simple when it comes to your color palette. White and ivory are charming and beautiful. Fresh greenery and light green accents will add a splash of color without overwhelming your look. Simple is the name of the game.
Imagine soft color palettes, smooth lighting, and simple textures. Gentle elegance. Minimal decor. Light linens, delicate floral arrangements, and plenty of lush greenery will knock this look out of the park. You’re going for a chic and sophisticated vibe so skip anything that is too bold or flashy.
Kukua Beach Club is your go-to venue if you love this style.
Vintage Wedding Style
Draw inspiration from past decades to bring your vintage wedding dreams to life. Incorporate classic colors like red, white, and black. Or you can add in brass or copper elements as well.
Black-and-white photos, brass antiques, old lanterns or lamps, and vintage trunks can help send you and your guests back in time to create this vintage look. Lace and ribbon can be used on your wedding cake, in your centerpieces, and on the bouquets to tie this look together. And pearls will go perfectly alongside it all.
Roses, a birdcage veil, and some antique accessories can help you complete the look.
Modern Wedding Decor
For a modern wedding style, incorporate sleek lines and geometric shapes. Think elegant, chic, and trendy.
You’ll want to keep your wedding decor minimal adding just a pop of color to create that modern look. Start with black and white, and then add in touches of gold and metallic to bring this look to life. Use lots of greenery in your decor instead of florals. Leaves, vines, and lush green foliage are simple and great for your budget.
And don’t be afraid of negative space when you’re crafting your wedding plans. Remember you want to keep the decor minimal.
Glass votives in varying heights can give a sleek look while adding dimension and diversity to your venue. To really send this look home, incorporate geometric designs into your dancefloor.
If you’re feeling especially adventurous, ditch the white wedding dress and go for something completely bold and unique – like a crimson ballgown.
How to Choose the Wedding Style That’s Right for You
After looking through these decor options, you should have a better idea of what wedding style you connect with most.
Don’t be afraid to mix and match styles. Boho and rustic look great together. So do elegant and romantic styles. And you can incorporate modern accents into almost any wedding.
Think about your personality and where you feel most comfortable. After all, this is your wedding, and it should reflect you. (Well, you and your fiance, of course!)
Elements of Your Wedding Decor
Now that you’ve decided on your wedding style, you can start to piece together every part of your wedding decor. There’s a lot to consider here, but don’t worry, I’ll walk you through it all.
The good news is that since you’re having a destination wedding, your venue is going to take care of most of the big details for you. So even though it looks like a lot, your main goal will be adding your personality and your style into the wedding decor. Let’s start with your invitations…
Wedding Invitations
Alright, so this is not technically part of your wedding decor… but it is a good starting point! When you’re looking for wedding invitations, you’ll start to get a feel for what you want your wedding theme to be. Whether you prefer bright, tropical colors or soft, romantic tones instead, you can set out your color palette, style, and theme from the very beginning. This will help you as you continue to piece together other elements of your wedding decor – keeping everything consistent and cohesive.
Wedding Arch, Canopy, or Wreath
Take your wedding ceremony to new heights with a bold arch, canopy, or wreath at the end of the aisle. This can be the anchor for your outdoor wedding ceremony creating a perfect backdrop for your wedding photos! For a glam or romantic style, you’ll want to cover your arch in roses, light fabrics, and complimenting flowers. If you’re going for glam, the bigger, the better.
For tropical themes, you can add bright colored flowers and lots of lush, green foliage. For a boho wedding, a giant woven macrame arch looks amazing. Modern styles can incorporate a geometric arch with simple floral arrangements, while a vintage wedding will look better with a lace fabric canopy.
While arches and wreaths can be a huge wow factor, keep in mind that a covered canopy can offer some shade for you and your fiance as you say your vows under the hot, Caribbean sun. For the best time to have your ceremony, check out our Ultimate Guide to Destination Weddings.
Wedding Signage
If you’ve spent any time scrolling through Pinterest, then there’s no doubt you’ve seen the hundreds of different options and ideas for wedding signs. From sweet quotes to practical instructions and literally everything in between. Signs are super helpful for your guests to know where to go and when. And they can add a personal touch to your wedding space.
A welcome sign will let your guests know they’ve made it to the right place, and it can help set the tone for the rest of your wedding decor.
I also encourage every couple to set up an Unplugged Ceremony sign at the entrance to their ceremony location. This will ensure that everyone is focused on you instead of staring at their phones.
Make sure you set a seating chart at the entrance to your reception so that all of your guests know where to sit. You can keep it simple and assign tables, or take the time to set out place cards as well if you want to assign every seat.
Your tables should be numbered (or have names) so that your guests aren’t wandering aimlessly around the tables. Make sure the numbers are big enough to see, but not the focal point of the tables. Just be sure that all of your signs match the style of your wedding.
Now that we’ve got the most important signs out of the way, let’s move on to the most beautiful part of the wedding: the flowers.
Wedding Flowers
Flowers have the ability to transform any space! They add color, texture, energy, and life.
Incorporate flowers into every piece of your wedding from the ceremony to the reception starting with your bouquet.
Your bouquet technically isn’t decor, but it will tie into the decorations you have throughout the venue. Think of it as decor for your body – because you will be holding on to it (and showing it off) all day long. Your bouquet should complement the flowers at your ceremony, the centerpieces at your tables, and any hanging flowers you have on display.
Arches, canopies, or wreaths lined with flowers are absolutely stunning and will create the perfect backdrop for your I Dos. And for some photo ops afterward.
Keep in mind that fresh flowers can get expensive, so don’t be afraid to add artificial, silk, or dried flowers to stay within your budget. Greenery will also help fill up a space while still looking amazing! Now let’s go back to the topic of centerpieces because that’s a big one.
Centerpieces
Your centerpieces are the focal point of every table. The most traditional centerpiece is a floral arrangement, but by no means does that mean that you have to choose flowers for your wedding day. You can mix flowers with other elements that match your wedding style. Things like candles, vases, and terrariums look great! Plus they help to diversify your tables and add a little something extra.
Glam styles usually have big centerpieces that make a bold statement, while tropical styles tend to have colorful flower arrangements or pineapples instead.
When choosing your centerpieces, it’s important to consider the space of your reception area. If you’re in a huge ballroom with high ceilings, small centerpieces will get lost. Tall, denser flower arrangements will work better to give weight to the space. If your reception is in a small area, large centerpieces will be overwhelming. Make it light and airy with a simple candle or a vase with long-stemmed flowers instead.
The size and shape of your tables will also make a big difference when choosing your centerpieces. Long tables usually have a table runner in the middle and several centerpieces placed apart. Shorter tables will have their own centerpiece. Large, round tables will look fabulous with lush, overgrown flowers centerpieces since those tend to take up more space and will fill up the table beautifully.
It’s all about balance!
Sweetheart Table
If you want a little bit of intimacy with your new husband during your reception, then a sweetheart table is the way to go. A sweetheart table is a small table reserved only for the bride and groom. A special place to relax, eat, drink, and enjoy that just married bliss together.
And the sweetheart table can be so much fun to decorate!! You can pull out all the stops (since it’s just for one table) and completely elevate your wedding decor. Drape your table with a lush, floral table runner, loads of greenery, and romantic candles. Or go glam in a flash with a rose-gold sequin table cloth.
Snuggle up together on a lavish love seat, or decorate your chairs with adorable Mr. and Mrs. hanging signs. And of course, lots of flowers and fresh greens all around!!
Wedding Cake & Topper
Your wedding cake can be another beautiful element of your decor by tying in your colors, flowers, and/or your cake topper. If you’re having a traditional or classic wedding, keep it simple with a white frosted cake and white detailed piping. You can add flowers or ribbon and keep that traditional look. For a rustic wedding, a naked wedding cake is probably more your style. Modern wedding cakes can be dark with bold colors, or include fun elements of your personalities. This brings us to the beloved cake topper.
Gone are the days of the traditional bride and groom figurines. Now you can really get creative and show your personality through your cake. Whether you want to keep it light by adding a figurine of your little doggy or your fiance’s favorite superhero, or keep it classy with a gold monogrammed topper with beautiful lettering, you can’t go wrong with a custom wedding cake topper!
Final Thoughts
I hope this list has helped you figure out your wedding style and piece together every aspect of your wedding decor. Whether you decide to have a tropical wedding, an elegant wedding, or somewhere in between, I hope you have an amazing time planning and I hope you have the wedding of your dreams!
If you still need decor ideas, check out some of our past weddings in Punta Cana!
Happy Planning!
