Hotels are now vying to host same-sex weddings

With more gay couples deciding to get married, it means big things for same-sex destination weddings. One year ago, the Plaza Hotel in NYC hosted its first gay wedding, and many others have since joined the ranks. The Biltmore Miami debuted its "Love is Love" package for gay couples earlier this month, and just last week Occidential Hotels made headlines by announcing it will offer same-sex wedding ceremonies at its resorts in Mexico, Costa Rica and Aruba. Is this all really necessary? Are same-sex weddings that much different? Do hotels really need to market to LGBT couples separately? In short, the answer is yes. The first barrier, which we're now getting over in most places, is acceptance and willingness on the part of the destination, and couples need to know that they'll be comfortable and welcomed. But there are also other details that inexperienced destinations may not understand, such as the fact that some lesbian weddings use two separate aisles and how religion comes into play during a same-sex ceremony.