Magical Mackinac

Story by Claire Long Almeida Photos by It’s Wonderful Photography

My family has a multi-generational tradition of spending summers on Mackinac Island. Ryan and I had an idea of what we wanted, but needed help in keeping planning on track. For the Love of Mackinac and Jazell Raycraft did that and more to make our wedding day perfect.

We chose May 24, 2025 for our wedding date. On the Island, this is the early part of the season -Springtime in late May. The tulips and other early season flowers surprised us with their beauty. My bridesmaids and I were together in one of the Mission Point bridal suites which was lovely. I adored the large windows with all of its natural light and the outdoor garden area.

The wedding service at Ste Anne’s Catholic Church was performed by Ryan’s family priest. Our family and friends from all over the country were there to witness us become husband and wife. Afterwards, they watched and cheered for us as we left the church in our horse drawn wedding carriage.

Our photographer, Sara Wright, of It’s Wonderful Photography, came along on her bicycle, stopping downtown and at the Iroquois Hotel and then the Secret Garden, where we were astounded by the beauty of the red and yellow tulips and the deep blue hyacinths.

Our Wedding Reception was held in the Cypress Room at Mission Point Resort. Everything was fantastic. Jazelle Raycraft kept everything on track over the course of the day and more in helping to make our wedding weekend perfect. I would absolutely recommend Jazelle from For the Love of Mackinac! .

St Ignace in Bloom provided all of my flowers. I loved my flowers and think that they brought so much life to the wedding day itself. Many guests commented on how beautiful they were.

We had chosen fudge favors from Joann’s Fudge for every place setting in a variety of flavors. The Lilac Lemonade was our signature cocktail and it was a hit. There were lots of toasts given, and we cut in to our delicious wedding cake, created by Bella e Dolce.

Musician Myk Rise played for our happy hour which our guests loved. A-List Event Group provided the entertainment and kept us dancing all evening.

i truly love being able to relive my wedding day through our wedding video. Aaron Harris of Aaron the Filmmaker was very experienced and so nice the day of the wedding. His documentary style of filming truly captured the important moments of our day. And as we look back at our photos, we can’t help but treasure them and all of the people that made our wedding day perfect.

Mackinac Island Wedding Vendors

Wedding Reception: Mission Point Resort 

Wedding Planner:  For the Love of Mackinac 

Photographer:  It’s Wonderful Photography 

Videography:  Aaron the Filmmaker 

Ceremony: Ste Anne’s Church 

Welcome Party/Rehearsal:  Iroquois Hotel

Florals: St Ignace in Bloom

Carriage:  Mackinac Island Carriage Tours 

DJ Entertainment:  A List Event Group 

Wedding Cake:  Bella e Dolce 

Invitations: Kate Creates

Favors: Joann’s Fudge

Live Music: Myk Rise

So Much Gratitude!

Story by Lauren Merritt
Photography by Andrejka Photography & Planning.

Why Mackinac Island? My full name is Lauren DeBoer (maiden) and my husband’s name is Charles Merritt. I am from Grand Rapids and he is from North Carolina. My parents have a lake house in Cheboygan so we have been coming to Mackinac for years! We currently live in Charlotte, NC but look forward to our annual trips to northern Michigan.  Looking back on my wedding, I feel so much gratitude and appreciation for everyone who came and for each and every one of the amazing people on Mackinac that made it happen.

The Proposal Charles proposed in Paris in August 2024 and we officially planned our wedding in seven months (crazy, I know). We booked The Inn at Stonecliffe in January 2025 for July 26, 2025.

Our Guest List We had invited roughly 140 guests and 102 came. I grew up in Michigan, so half of our guests were from Michigan and my husband is from Charlotte, North Carolina so many of our guests were from there.  Our guest that traveled the farthest came from Los Angeles California, and one of my closest cousins drove in all the way from Colorado. Our guests really emphasized that the entire weekend was just an incredible experience and unlike any wedding they’ve ever been to - as many guests from the south had never heard of Mackinac Island. 

The Welcome Party the Night Before We were having a tough time picking between The Inn at Stonecliffe and The Grand Hotel. However, we ultimately chose The Inn at Stonecliffe for our wedding reception and Grand Hotel for our welcome party! We loved everything about Stonecliffe, but we still wanted our guests to experience the timeless ambiance of The Grand and we were so happy to be able to incorporate it into our weekend. 

The Big Day We prepared for the wedding in a bridal suite at Grand Hotel. The wedding carriage provided a ride to the church for me and all of my bridesmaids from Grand Hotel. Father John Essel of Ste Anne’s Church performed our 2 pm wedding ceremony. Ste Anne’s is a beautiful church and the wedding was lovely.

Feeling like a movie star - Our Carriage Ride. It was so special when we left the church in our beautiful horse drawn carriage from Mackinac Island Carriage Tours through town to Windermere Point for photos. Traveling down Main Street, everyone on the island cheered us, yelling congratulations - it felt like we were in a movie! The 45 minute ride back to Stonecliffe for cocktail hour with just my husband and I was one of our favorite parts of the entire day. It allowed us some private time…just the two of us, to slow down jand relax - not to mention our ride by the West Bluffs was so beautiful. And Andrejka’s photos of this experience captured it all and are fabulous!

Our baby, RIver! We had a dog sitter in Mackinaw City.  She graciously transported River over to the island for our cocktail hour! He really enjoyed it, as he loves being around people. However, I think he was very confused as this was his first time to the island, Lol.  Our dog watcher walked him around cocktail hour and our guests told us he constantly looked for Charles and I.  River is very special to us, he’s truly our best friend so it was so important to us to include him in our day. We were grateful Stonecliffe allowed us to have him there. 

Our Cocktail Hour We decided to have our cocktail hour on the lawn at Stonecliffe because you just can’t beat the views overlooking tof the Mackinac Bridge and the water. We actually struggled deciding where to do our cocktail hour because Stonecliffe also offers their front lawn which is incredible with all the tall trees and their grotto is so intimate and secluded - we really couldn’t go wrong with any of these locations. 

Our Floral Designs We were so happy with our florals! I worked closely with Aubrey at St. Ignace in Bloom and she was absolutely wonderful to work with. She was honest, helpful and I felt they really cared about making my vision happen on my wedding day. 

Our Recpetion We fortunately did not have to do much to decor wise inside Sunset Pavillion. Stonecliffe provided a few package options in terms of the tableware options and chairs, etc which was very helpful - not have to worry about bringing those items over to the island. I chose a package and when I arrived the day of for our cocktail hour, I was blown away how well the entire space was put together. It was perfect. The entire team at Stonecliffe was incredible to work with! 

Our Photographer, Andrejka of Andreka Photography and Planning was an absolutely pleasure to work with. I especially appreciated her expertise of the island and having so much experience she was great at keeping things running and keeping our schedule on time. She knew where the good picture spots were and guided us where to take photos and how to pose, making that less planning on our end. She made everything very seamless and easy. You spend a lot of time with your photographer and luckily ours was very kind and a pleasure to work with.

 Cakes & Fudge! Bella E Dolce created our cake and it was fabulous! I appreciated their expertise with transporting cakes to the island. We went with traditional almond wedding cake and a hazelnut buttercream and lemon cake with a blueberry buttercream. It was absolutely delicious! We look forward to thawing some leftovers on our first anniversary. 

 We did use Murdick’s Fudge favors, and the most popular flavor among our guests was the chocolate peanut butter. Our guests loved these and we appreciated the convenience of having them on the island -less logistics for us to think about. St. Ignace in Bloom actually coordinated these favors and set them out at each place setting for our guests. 

Muisic and Entertainment A-List Events provided the entertainment we wanted for the day, and everyone had so much fun. The ambiance created with the music and our dancing and celebration was so much fun!

All in all, I can’t say enough good things about our entire experience having our wedding on Mackinac Island.  I wish I could relive it over and over.  The biggest shoutout to our people!  Thank you so much! I have never felt more loved, seen or celebrated. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you to those who showed up for us, supported us and shared our joy.  Our guests exhausted every means of transportation to be there, from planes, ferry rides, and bikes, to horses and carriages.  And to those who helped make this the celebration of the start of our forever – we appreciate you more than we can put into words. ❤️

Welcome Party:  Grand Hotel
Wedding Ceremony:  Ste Anne’s Church
Wedding Reception: Inn at Stonecliffe
Photographer:  Andrejka Photography & Planning
Videograpy: 97 Films
Florals:  St Ignace in Bloom
Cake: Bella E Dolce
Fudge Favors:  Murdick’s Original Fudge
Entertainment:  A List Event Group 
Wedding Carriage:  Mackinac Island Carriage Tours

Getting Married on Mackinac!

This year’s cover couple is Madalyn Spohler and fiance Kyle McGorisk. Getting Married on Mackinac can happen any day or the week, any way you like it - bicycle, horse & carrige, beach, church, or a world class resort! Photo: It’s Wonderful Photography.

My name is Madalyn Spohler, and my fiancé is Kyle McGorisk. We’ll be celebrating our wedding on September 5th, 2026, at St. Anne’s, with a reception at Mission Point Resort. Mackinac Island has always been a meaningful place for us. Our “up north” weekends have become some of our most magical times together. Choosing northern Michigan for our wedding just felt right. Biking has been part of our relationship from the start, beginning with one of our first dates biking, and our shared love of triathlons and road riding made Mackinac Island the perfect fit for our day. We love visiting the island multiple times a year; golfing at Wawa, biking everywhere and of course a few drinks around town. 

We knew we had to have some sort of bike in our engagement photos -we own 10 bikes between the two of us!  Hopping onto a single bike together turned into one of the funniest and memorable photos. Something extra special is that I was wearing my mom's wedding veil in the bike photos!

We’re currently working with the coordinators at St. Anne’s and Mission Point, along with a local coordinator who’s helping us explore vendor options.

We can’t wait until our wedding, and the Mackinac Wedding Guide is making the process of creating our dream wedding on the Island so much easier.  We’re excited beyond belief to be featured on the cover of this year’s guide, and we are so appreciative of our amazing photographer, Sara Wright, It’s Wonderful Photography, for capturing this once in a lifetime image.

Katie & Nathan's Dream Wedding

Photography by It’s Wonderful Photography. Mackinac Island, a jewel nestled in Lake Huron, is often referred to as a place where love blossoms. With its enchanting landscapes, historic charm, and breathtaking views, it’s no wonder that countless couples have chosen this incredible setting to celebrate their love. Today, we look into the beautiful love story of two individuals who fell head over heels for each other on Mackinac Island, turning their romance into a dream wedding.

Nathan and Katie were married at Mission Point Resort on Mackinac Island on Friday June 21, 2024. Mackinac Island was also the place where Nate proposed in 2022- popping the question at the West Bluff vista overlooking the Mackinac Bridge.

With their hearts set on Mackinac Island, Nathan and Katie decided to tie the knot in the same place where their love story began. They envisioned a wedding that captured the essence of their romance. Right away, they ordered the Mackinac Island Wedding Guide, which they used to select their local vendors. Planning for two years, they were able to get everything they wanted and needed right on the Island.

Katie and her bridemaids began with make up and hair styling at Lakeside Salon & Spa. Ater which, they stolled to their beautiful bridal suite, Tranquility Suite, with plenty of room for getting ready and a beautiful outdoor patio for photos. Both of these are located at their ceremony and reception location, Mission Point Resort.

Photographer Sara Macy, of Its Wonderful Photography, created beautiful photos of the bridemaids and the first look between Katie and Nathan.

The beautiful flowers bouquets and creations for the wedding and reception ceremony were chosen to complement the lavendar colored dresses which was so appropriate as the Island was full of Lilac blooms. All of the florals were created, delivered and set up at the hotel by St Ignace in Bloom.

Katie arrived with her father on the Vis a Vis carriage from Gough Carriages. After the bridal party crossed the Great Lawn, all eyes were on Katie as she and her father stepped out of the carriage.

The beautiful floral arch under which Katie and Nathan said “I Do” was made of lilacs and other seasonal flowers and was set up the afternoon of the wedding by Samantha Belonga, owner of St Ignace in Bloom. Officiant Dr Judy Robinson, of Marriages on Mackinac, performed the ceremony, taking time to make it very personal as they had hoped for.

After the wedding ceremony, hugs and congratulations took place, then Katie and Nathan set out for a private carriage ride in the Vis a Vis carriage from Gough Livery Carriages, stopping at the Secret Garden at Grand Hotel, the West Bluff and returning to Mission Point for their wedding reception.

“Everything was just like a fairy tale,” said Katie. “We learned not to sweat the little things”, said Nathan. “It did rain a little bit, but everyone made sure we were kept dry. We enjoyed every minute of our carriage ride.”

“Our amazing cake, so colorful and light was created by Paige at Bella e Dolce,” said Katie. “Everyone couldn’t keep from saying how good it was. After cutting our cake, we did our first dance, and Nathan picked me up-perfectly!”

“We were 100% happy with everyone, especially Mission Point Resort. The wonderful Gazebo and Promenade Deck, where we had our ceremony and then reception, couldn’t have been any nicer. The food was fantastic and we were very pleased with how kind the staff was. Our photos captured our day perfectly and we were so pleased with our photographer, Sara Macy of It’s Wonderful Photography.”

If you are thinking about having a wedding on Mackinac Island, Just Do It! You won’t be disappointed. Trust the Island vendors you’ll find in the Mackinac Wedding Guide and plan your own dream wedding.