South Seas Island Resort

I got married at South Seas Resort three weeks ago and had an incredible experience. We wanted a casual, but beautiful place where our guests could enjoy the Florida landscape, but also have a formal wedding experience. I thought it would be difficult to pull off a black tie wedding near the beach, but South Seas was the perfect place to do it. Because we had a large wedding of approx 300 guests, we set up a tent on the West Lawn just steps from the beach. South Seas was incredibly accommodating and gave us ample time to set up and prepare for the big day. The result was gorgeous. To top it off, the food and service at the reception was exceptional and we still receive raves about the dinner and general ambience of the whole night. Our rehearsal dinner the night before was in Kings Crown/Kings Crown Lawn where beautiful twinkle lights made the night so scenic. Brunch was in the same place -- and because the weather was so beautiful all weekend -- was a fantastic way to end the celebration.

All in all, I couldn't recommend South Seas more. Our guests felt at home with all the different options the hotel has for accommodations – big families stayed in houses and villas, groups of friends chose between 1-3 bedroom hotel suites, etc. Everyone at the resort was super friendly and incredibly professional. The wedding team at South Seas worked with us and our party planner for nearly 15 months and made sure that every detail was addressed. I do not have enough good things to say about the resort. We had an incredibly unique wedding that I genuinely believe could not have been done anywhere else. I cannot wait to see the pictures and wouldn't change a thing about our big day. Thank you South Seas!

The staff at South Seas was professional, responded in a timely manner, and was fun. They helped make my wedding day one that I will never forget. I greatly appreciated how quickly John responded to my emails, how me and my guests were treated with respect and the entire staff went out of their way to make sure that everything was perfect. Every event from the rehearsal dinner to the wedding to the farewell brunch was well thought out, every detail was taken care of and it was absolutely amazing! I am so happy that I chose to have my wedding at South Seas.

Absolutely loved this resort and all it had to offer for our wedding! It was the perfect spot to have our guests celebrate the evening with us. Everyone loved it, and had nothing but wonderful things to say about the resort. It was the most memorable day, and we will return to celebrate our anniversary!

My husband and I were married at South Seas on May 20th and after months of planning, we walked away thinking that nothing could have possible gone better. We had 3 different dinner events, Friday night at Kings Crown, Saturday night at Sunset Luau, and Sunday Wedding at the Cove and reception on the lawn and each event was flawless! We have heard from over 20 different people that this was the best wedding they have ever been to. John Blaharski, our wedding coordinator, was many things to us at South Seas and we couldn't have done it without him:

Organized - I always felt that John had a great grasp on the plans and I felt very comfortable leaving many decisions to his better judgement. We had not seen the property prior to committing to South Seas, so it made us feel at ease that John was always on top of everything from the rooms, to the lighting, to the timelines, to the transportation, to the menus, etc.

Flexible - It seemed like whatever we wanted, John found a way to make it happen. This included my husband and I's trip down the waterslide in our wedding attire after the wedding reception! To this day people are still telling us that that was one of the most memorable parts of the wedding and it was all thanks to John!

Committed - When I ran into an issue, John was always right there to fix it. I came to Captiva with the security tag still on my dress for the rehearsal dinner, and John somehow took it off of the island and found someone to remove it in time. I'm still not sure what I would have done without him!

Solutions-Oriented - John always knew the balance between telling us what to do, and letting us decide. He obviously knew the venues better than we did, so we really appreciated his candor when we were deciding the logistics of each of the events. Although it was always clear that we could do what we thought best, he made us aware of the various options and their implications before we settled on a decision. We really appreciated the unique ideas and solutions that he brought to the table.

The Pre-Wedding Experience - The planning prior to the wedding was also a great experience. I felt like the entire team was very accommodating with our unique requests, which was very important to us. The chef and John were both very helpful with our requests to keep the meals Vegetarian/Kosher and to put together theme dinners so that each night had a different look/feel. It was also meant so much to us that John was so flexible with his meeting times during the planning phase. Both my husband and I work a lot and John was always readily available to talk to us at night and on weekends. I think he even took our call on Mother's Day when he was at dinner with his family. The commitment that he showed to us prior to the wedding made it clear to us that the event was in good hands.

I was an Event Manager for weddings here in Michigan for 4 years, so I will be the first to admit that I probably wasn't easy to handle, but John took my demands, added his own little twist, and turned our wedding weekend into a masterpiece.

I highly recommend a wedding at South Seas... you won't be disappointed.

I cannot rave about South Seas and their amazing staff enough! They made sure that every detail was perfect from day 1 of planning until we left the island after our wedding was over and our vacation ended. Their attention to detail exceeded my expectations as this was very important because we booked sight unseen and are from out of state. The resort is beautiful, their reception food was the best meal we had on island and the setting in every picture is amazing. South Seas (and particularly John Blaharski and John Dillis) exceeded all my expectations and gave my family & friends, as well as my husband and I, the best week and wedding we could have dreamed of. We only had guest list of 26 however there are accomodations for all size weddings. I highly recommend this venue and all their preferred vendors. They'll make your dream wedding come true also!

Amazing!! Could not be happier, everyone involved at South Seas was professional and did everything they could to make my day special! They do weddings there every week and weekend so they are well prepared for anything, they even had a backup dj for me because mine was going to be late! This place is charming and beautiful!

We worked with a provided wedding coordinator, John Blaharski, at South Seas Island Resort, who assured us that our wedding we were planning from 2,000 miles away would be perfect, and it was. South Seas was not only beautiful, but also made sure that everything went off without a hitch. Thank you to John and all of the staff at South Seas who helped make our 11/11/11 Wedding weekend perfect from Friday through Sunday you all were amazing!

John Dillis and his staff were wonderful!! The day of the wedding he was all over the place checking on both me and the groom. We had an issue with our flowers and he came to the rescue and fixed it.

Also he was EXTREMELY accomodating to our requests while the girls were in the "get ready" room.

Servicie is A+ and the Venue is absolutely Beautiful. Love this...

South Seas did an amazing job with helping to plan my wedding on the island. Very easy to work with and taylor everything to your needs. Beautiful location on Sunset Cove and so much to do on the resort. All my guests keep talking about what an amazing time they had and how beautiful everything was. Would recommend to anyone.

South Seas was the ideal location for our commitment ceremony and reception!!! Every detail was taken care of with highest level of professionalism and care. John D. and John made our day so special and took care of us as well as our guests. It was a pleasure to work with them! They were so kind and caring while setting up the reception, serving drinks, waiting out the rain with us...they were by our side every step of the way! Thank you John and John!

We chose South Seas Island Resort off of the internet and could not have been more pleased! John Dillis took care of every detail for us... I honestly can't think of one complaint! Great resort to enjoy time with friends and loved ones leading up to ceremony!

We started planning our wedding at South Seas in 2010 after a site visit. We were looking for an outdoor, near the water but not "beachy" site, in a classy, clean, location with lots for our guests to do. The catering/banquet team was professional, warm, and welcoming right from the start. Once we booked the event (on the day we visited) we were "handed over" to Alicia Minisce, who was our coordinator for what turned into a 4 day Wedding Weekend. She was phenomenal to work with- always responsive, and never pushy. She really listened to what we wanted and took interest in all of our details (the many, many boxes of them that arrived in her office mid April...). It wasn't until we arrived the week of our events that I realized just how wonderful she, and the Resort staff, really were. Our family and friends raved about the service, and they along with our wedding party, were treated like VIP's the entire week. There was a band of rain and wind that blew through the night of our outdoor, poolside welcome dinner, and Alicia was on top of things with a second location and coordinating all of the food, floral, entertainment, and lighting to go along with it. She reached out to my Maid of Honor and I never knew anything was even happening until they were done and everything was set to go.
Their Chef is beyond amazing, everyone raved about the food all weekend. He was so accommodating when we requested a Vegan option at our events- including a six course wine paring- he was up to the challenge and rocked it.
If you use South Seas, you'd be crazy to use a florist other than Ruth at Captiva Blooms, she is truly an artist. I was overwhelmed when I saw the centerpieces for each event, but particularly the Reception. She is amazing.
The resort Spa, Kay Casperson Lifestyle Spa, is also wonderful. This group of women is the most welcoming, personable bunch you'll ever work with- and be pampered by.
The waitstaff, especially Rosa and Ricardo, were so attentive and remembered our family members' names and favorite drinks throughout the week.
This venue was truly a shot in the dark- a google location that we figured we'd visit for a possible destination wedding location... and couldn't have been happier.
If you are looking for an elegant, yet fun and airy location- this is it. They have several different ceremony and reception locations, and we used several of them- all were wonderful. Alicia, however, is what made me sit down and write this review right away- she is amazing and deserves all the positive reviews possible. Highly recommend South Seas, and their wonderful event coordinator!!!

South Seas was the perfect venue for our destination wedding. We had a welcome dinner the night before on the beach and the wedding (Kings Crown). They had a great selection of vendors to use and were so easy to work with. Alicia our on site wedding planner was amazing. The wedding day I didn't need to worry about anything, they took care of it all. It rained on our wedding day and she had it all taken care of in the alternative location (Kings Crown). We couldn't have asked for better service. The food was excellent and the team was great. Our wedding guest kept gushing about how amazing the resort was. I would highly recommend this location for anyone who is looking to have their wedding in Captiva.

I have no words for the wedding weekend that my husband and I experienced at South Seas! It was an absolute dream and Alicia, John and the entire team were incredible to work with. We couldn't have been happier with our choice of South Seas! Our guests are still thanking us!

Our Wedding at South Seas Island Resort was everything we expected...and more. Our Wedding Cooordinator, Amanda D. , along with her assistant, Andrea were above average! Everything was taken care of from across the country by our amazing coordinator! The resort was enjoyable for our guests and breathtaking in person!
Choose South Seas for your wedding...No regrets!

Beautiful property and beautiful accomodations. We were there during a quite season and they upgraded many of the rooms at no charge. The concierge took my husband on an hour tour of the property one morning and told him all about the history of the island. Fantastic customer service, beautiful pools, fantastic experience!

South Seas was absolutely gorgeous for our wedding weekend! Our guests had an absolutely wonderful time at the wedding AND at the resort. We got off to a rough start with our wedding planning with South Seas, but I'm convinced it was more a matter of circumstance than anything, so I really can't say anything negative about the resort itself or the staff on hand for the wedding! Everything was wonderful!

We had our fairytale wedding...the location was breathtaking!!! Everyone at the resort was completely professional and provided the highest quality of service.

Our wedding was absolutely perfect. South Seas was beautiful, and the resort was amazing. The gorgeous views and wonderful service really made for a great time.

Great service and very accomodating to our needs.

Extremely beautiful venue for the ceremony on the Kings Crown Lawn. Incliment weather was a risk - they provided a backup location - but the evening was perfect. The wedding coordinators were amazing at getting everyone organized and getting the place set up. They took a lot of stress off me. Our guests really enjoyed coming to this venue for a getaway weekend while coming to our wedding.

After viewing many different venues in Southwest Florida, we booked South Seas site unseen and couldn't have been more pleased. It was the perfect location for our private beach wedding and reception!

South Seas was fantastic. I would highly recommend them! Amanda, our coordinator was the best!

Ceremony: I could not have been happier with the way everything turned out! The resort was just gorgeous. Everyone had a great time before the wedding hanging out at the beach and the pools. We had a few volleyball tournaments going throughout the weekend! All guests rooms have been newly renovated. They are beautifully decorated with big flat screen TV's (all the guys made sure to comment on that!) We had reserved trolleys running back and forth to take guests to our rehearsal dinner which was located just outside of the resort. They also picked up guests for the wedding. Our ceremony location was just beautiful. They also have a beautiful private beach if you were to choose to have your wedding ceremony on the sand!


Reception: The reception site was really set up as 2 rooms...our dining room and just connected off of it through french doors was the dance floor, bar and cocktail tables. There were also french doors that opened up to the outside patio which provided a great view of the ceremony lawn and ocean! Normally I think all wedding food tastes the same...just kind of like blah banquet hall food...ours was unbelievably good! All I heard were raves about the appetizers and dinner. It really is a truly beautiful room for a wedding reception.

Words truly cannot express our happiness with this vendor. South Seas and Emily Orsini went above and beyond over and over again. Emily's professionalism, enthusiasm and attention to detail was beyond our wildest dreams. Emily and South Seas provided us with 5 star service and made us feel as though our wedding was the most important event happening all week! Emily was not just a catering manager to us; she really became our wedding coordinator for the entire event. Any task or idea I threw her way she took hold of and ran with! Emily made the experience of planning a destination wedding so easy and stress free! The food was amazing and quality of service was outstanding!