Anthony & Rachel: A Garden Wedding at the Beldi Country Club

Anthony & Rachel: A Garden Wedding at the Beldi Country Club

When Anthony and Rachel reached out from New York, they had a clear vision: a wedding that felt like stepping into a secret garden — lush, romantic, and completely unhurried. They'd visited Marrakech on holiday the year before and fallen in love with the Beldi Country Club's rose gardens. Six months later, we were planning their wedding there.

The Vision

Rachel is a botanical illustrator, and her aesthetic shaped every detail. She wanted organic abundance — overflowing florals, trailing greenery, hand-dyed silk ribbons — but nothing fussy or over-designed. The palette was soft blush, ivory, and dusty sage with touches of aged gold. Anthony, a sommelier, took charge of the wine pairings and insisted on a mix of Moroccan and French bottles that told a story at every course. Together, they wanted a celebration that felt generous, warm, and effortlessly beautiful.

The Venue: Beldi Country Club

The Beldi Country Club sits on five hectares of gardens, rose fields, and olive groves just outside Marrakech. It's the kind of place where bougainvillea spills over every wall and the air smells of jasmine and orange blossom. The ceremony was held in the sunken rose garden, framed by hundreds of David Austin roses. Dinner took place under the ancient olive trees, lit by hundreds of lanterns and candles. The Beldi's handcrafted aesthetic — wrought-iron furniture, hand-thrown ceramics, woven textiles — meant the venue needed very little additional decor. It was already a masterpiece.

The Ceremony

At 5 PM, with the golden hour light filtering through the olive trees, Rachel walked down a petal-strewn grass aisle to where Anthony was waiting. Her sister officiated, weaving in personal anecdotes that had the guests laughing and crying in equal measure. Rachel wore a flowing tulle gown by Monique Lhuillier, paired with a hand-embroidered cathedral veil. Anthony wore a tan linen suit with a sprig of rosemary in his lapel. They wrote their own vows, and the ceremony closed with a reading from Pablo Neruda. The whole thing lasted thirty minutes and felt like a dream.

Dinner & Dancing

Cocktail hour was set around the Beldi's natural swimming pool, with Moroccan mezze, fresh oysters, and rosé flowing freely. Dinner was served family-style under the olive trees: whole roasted lamb with herbs, grilled sea bass with chermoula, couscous royale, and platters of grilled vegetables with argan oil. The wedding cake — a three-tier naked cake adorned with fresh fig, pomegranate seeds, and edible flowers — was made by Marrakech patisserie Kech Cakes. After dinner, a DJ set blending French house, Afrobeat, and Moroccan grooves kept the dance floor alive until the early hours.

Details That Made It Special

Rachel hand-illustrated botanical place cards for each guest, featuring a different Moroccan plant. The welcome bags included locally pressed argan oil, a pouch of Moroccan saffron, and a watercolor map of the Beldi grounds. Instead of a traditional guest book, they set up a table with dried flowers and pressed-paper cards where guests wrote notes and sealed them with wax stamps — to be opened on their first anniversary.

The Numbers

Guests: 75. Total budget: 38,000 euros. Venue (2-night exclusive rental + accommodation for 30): 8,500 euros. Catering & beverages: 7,800 euros. Flowers & decor: 5,200 euros. Photography & videography: 4,500 euros. Music (DJ + sound system): 1,800 euros. Stationery & paper goods: 1,200 euros. Bride's outfit: 3,200 euros. Wedding planner: 5,000 euros. Miscellaneous: 2,800 euros.

Anthony and Rachel's wedding was a reminder that the most beautiful celebrations grow from the setting itself. The Beldi's gardens did most of the work — we simply added the people, the food, and the love. It was, without question, one of the most romantic evenings I've ever planned.