Full Steam Ahead Through a Successful Decade
What a decade it has been! At the beginning of 2010, SunQuest Cruises was moving full steam ahead with dinner cruises, yacht weddings and events. Adapting to the needs of the local community, SunQuest Cruises began to organically expand to fill other niches. It started with the addition of SunVenture Cruises in 2012 to offer one of the only Crab Island cruises from the Destin Harbor. Last year, the expansion continued with the addition of SunQuest Beach Weddings.
So how does a leisure cruise company expand to a full-service Destin wedding company? It’s an amazing story that all started with a yacht. Take a cruise down memory lane with us as we look back at SunQuest Cruises’ voyage through a successful decade.
It All Began with a Yacht
SunQuest Cruises, is a locally owned business that is celebrating its 15th successful year of business in the Destin area. What began with the idea of a 125-foot dining and entertainment yacht has evolved into a full-service wedding and event planning company offering a variety of venues, floral design, catering, event planning, rentals and more.
The SOLARIS yacht was personally built by Jim and James Murray at a local shipyard in 2004. They custom designed the yacht with three decks of indoor and outdoor flexible spaces for dinner cruises, Destin weddings and events. When the SOLARIS was brought to the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, it quickly filled a niche as a unique fine dining experience in Destin on the water as well as an unparalleled event venue.
As the popularity of the SOLARIS yacht venue grew, the team was executing hundreds of events in Destin each year to include floral design, creative culinary menus, event design, décor and event coordination. SunQuest Cruises began to earn accolades from industry leaders including Best of the Emerald Coast, The Knot’s Hall of Fame, TripAdvisor’s Certificate of Excellence and Wedding Wire’s Couples Choice Awards.
Soon, satisfied guests were asking for SunQuest Cruises to take their services beyond the yacht. The vision for SunQuest Cruises organically expanded from dinner cruises and yacht weddings to becoming a full-service event and wedding planning company.
SunQuest Beach Weddings
SunQuest expanded in 2018 to SunQuest Beach Weddings, a full-service, all-inclusive wedding and event company. Couples use one company as their full-service vendor that can handle every aspect of wedding and event planning. In-house services include planning and coordination, catering, venue selections, floral design, rentals, and trusted connections to other local wedding vendors.
What makes SunQuest Beach Weddings different is that it offers an entire team of local, award-winning wedding and event professionals, not just one event planner. The team has experience planning all types of events including weddings, corporate events, holiday parties, military events, and more.
Venues for All Occasions
SunQuest Beach Weddings has access to many traditional and non-traditional venues across the Emerald Coast spanning from 30A to Fort Walton Beach. There are venues for any occasion, budget or group size, from a casual outing on the SunVenture Catamaran to beach homes and beach wedding sites to formal, land-based venues such as ballrooms. Some of the most creative venue options include beach bonfires and the SOLARIS yacht.
Destin Beach Weddings
With a variety of venues and in-house services, SunQuest Beach Weddings can coordinate any type of destination wedding experience. From a two-person elopement to a wedding with 34 bridesmaids, the team has done it all. SunQuest Beach Weddings talented team works closely with each couple, near or far, to creatively execute their wedding vision from start to finish. Each couple’s vision is seamlessly carried out through all aspects including the wedding, reception, flowers, catering, event design and more.
Full-Service Catering Services
The culinary team at SunQuest Beach Weddings creates art for the palette for each catering event they execute, whether it’s a wedding, holiday party, corporate function or other event. From full-service plated catering to casual affair options to a convenient Drop and Go menu, there are flexible off-site catering options for any occasion. Only the freshest local Gulf seafood and finest ingredients are used on all catering dishes. Signature coastal cuisines include the Southern Crab Cakes and Gulf Shrimp with Grits.
Off-site catering options are also available for private holiday parties. Packages include a full-service staff, rentals and food or more casual options like the Drop and Go menu with affordable pricing and half serving options.
Other Destin Wedding Services
The all-inclusive Destin wedding experience continues with additional services offered by SunQuest Beach Weddings. Our team includes in-house florist who can creatively customize your flowers for your ceremony, reception and bridal party. We can also assist with rentals, wedding planning, wedding design, wedding coordination, photography and so much more.
We’re starting the new decade on a great note as both SunQuest Cruises and Sunquest Beach Weddings earned the 2020 Best of Weddings award from the Knot. These awards are directly related to couples’ reviews which speaks volumes to level of dedication our team has to make each wedding unique and unforgettable.
Our success is directly due to this amazing community and our loyal SunQuest guests. We thank you and look forward to another successful decade of creating memorable experiences along the Emerald Coast.