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Say hello to Crystal River and Homosassa Springs—home of our wedding and reception!
December through February are peak season in Crystal River, so we apologize for making you travel during that time,
but unfortunately, those pesky manatees are really only hanging around in the warm springs during the winter months!
The downside to traveling during high season is that hotels book up early! And, due to high season, we're unable to secure blocks of hotel rooms.
The upside is that we're going to be in the middle of nowhere, and rates are cheaper than in L.A.
Download a map of Crystal River
in JPG or
PDF format.
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We're hosting a couple of trips to swim with the manatees
(you'll just need to rent your gear), so no worries there—however,
we've been told that there are more seats on manatee tour boats than there are guest beds
in Crystal River. We don't know if this is true, but we strongly recommend that you book your hotel early.
Below are some hotels we recommend in the area, though of course, there are many others.
The best rates we've found are on hotels.com, so that's where we recommend booking.
Another option is VRBO.com, which has numerous homes and condos for rent nightly in the area.
We've drawn a map highlighting the key locations in Crystal River, and while it's not to scale, it is a very small town and pretty simple to get around.
There are only a couple of the yummiest restaurants listed on the map, but there are TONS of places to eat all up and down Suncoast Highway 98/19,
along with the usual fast food joints like Chili's, Cody's Roadhouse, and Applebees.
If you want to see more food put on your table than should be legally allowed, we recommend Codys.
Yelp isn't particulalry useful in Crystal River and Homosassa, but Urbanspoon.com has plenty of reviews.
Recommended Hotels
Holiday Inn Express — about $101 per night
1203 Ne 5th Street Crystal River, FL 34429
Tel. (800) 315-2621
Website: www.hiexpress.com/hotels/us/en/crystal-river/crtfl/hoteldetail
Note: If you're looking to share accomodations, this hotel has some great 2-bedroom suites with living rooms and kitchens
Plantation on Crystal River — about $109 per night
9301 W Fort Island Trl, Crystal River, FL, 34429
Tel. (800) 632-6262
Website: www.plantationoncrystalriver.com
Note: has prettier views than the Holiday Inn, but it's less modern
Ceremony — Sunday, February 17, 2013
Time: 5PM (arrive early for fun animal times!)
Location: Manatee Encounter in the park
Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
4150 South Suncoast Boulevard
Homosassa, FL 34446
Tel. 352-628-7002
*** NEW CEREMONY PARKING LOT LOCATION ***
You'll want to park in the Homosassa Springs west parking lot, which is just across the street from the Homosassa Springs Visitor's
Entry building on Highway 490A — see the map here.
Please note: you'll need to take a tram or boat—and also walk—from the entry building (where you parked) to the ceremony site, so allow a few extra minutes for that.
In the event of rain, the ceremony will be held at Crystal River Ale House at the Port Hotel & Marina (the reception location below) at 5PM instead of at the park.
While our ceremony starts at 5PM, we invite you to please arrive early
to enjoy the Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park, which is open from 9AM-5:30PM.
There is generally a fee for park visitors, however as a wedding guest, just provide your name when you arrive.
The park is a rescue and rehabilitation facility for native animal species of Florida,
though they do have one very special guest, a hippopotamus named Lucifer.
He first came to the Homosassa Springs Attraction in 1964 as part of Ivan Tors Animal Actors.
Lucifer, or Lu for short, is now one of the park's longest-running residents.
There are manatee educational programs at 11:30AM, 1:30PM and 3:30PM. The wedding ceremony itself will be held at his location,
known as the Manatee Encounter. While you're nearby, pop down into the Fishbowl and take a look at the springs
and their residents from an underwater vantage point. Additionally, there are educational programs on alligators
and other wildlife—see the schedule here.
*** NEW RECEPTION LOCATION ***
Reception — Sunday, February 17, 2013
Time: Immediately after ceremony, 5:30-10PM
Location: Crystal River Ale House at the Port Hotel & Marina
1610 SE Paradise Circle East
Crystal River, FL 34429
(352) 795-3113
Driving maps will be handed out after the ceremony
to help get you to the reception.
Useful Links
Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
Map of the Park (Also available in PDF format)
General Park Information
Educational Program Schedule at the Park
Places to Eat in Crystal River Area
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