Beautiful women draped in lovely bridal gowns carried striking bouquets that entwined island flowers, roses and orchids. They strolled through a tropical garden as a chef plated amazing food during a glimpse of the Maui Visitors Bureau marketing campaign: "Romance Me, Maui."

The setting was Queen Emma Summer Palace in Nu'uanu for the Honolulu unveiling brunch that included writers from local media, visitor and travel publications. The campaign goes on the road next week to Toronto Nov. 6-8 and then New York City Nov. 12-16.

The bureau brought along business partners that specialize in romance, including designer Maggie Coulombe, Asa Ige of Asa Flowers and chef Patrick Callarec of Chez Paul Restaurant Francais.

Coulombe brought her original dresses to the event, with everything from formal wedding gowns to brightly colored and more casual dresses that bridesmaids could wear after the big day.

Coulombe said 90 percent of her Maui business is tourist related. She said weddings, honeymoons, birthdays and romantic getaways provide a lot of business. Her more famous clients have included Teri Hatcher, Halle Berry and Paris Hilton. But she has styles to meet most budgets: from $250 for a casual last-minute wedding on the beach to $8,000 for a more lavish design.

Coulombe said people want to get married on Maui — or in other parts of the county that include Lana'i and Moloka'i. She said many people travel from the East Coast for their wedding and want everything just right.

"They are very sophisticated, very picky," she said.

Ige learned his customer service growing up in the Islands and in 12 years in New York City, where his Stamens & Pistils shop introduced tropical flowers to a new audience.

Destination weddings give the bride and groom the chance to have "the kind of wedding that they always fantasized about," he said. And that can range from a simple $500 budget to one of $100,000 and up.

Because the time, travel and expense thin the guest list, the couple often focuses on the details surrounded by "the cherished people in your lives."

Ige said that allows them to plan "a fine party" rather than the extravagant banquet with a cast of hundreds that they might have in their own hometown.

Keli'i Brown, Maui Visitors Bureau promotions and public relations director, said they are capitalizing on the lucrative romance market. He said his county hosts about 43 percent of the weddings between two out-of-state residents.

Maui Visitors Bureau executive director Terryl Vencl said that focusing on the honeymoon and romance visitors makes great economic sense. "It's a huge market for us," she said.

And she said that market keeps growing to vow renewals and special anniversaries.

Chef Callarec helped the mood by serving up a spread that included fruit crepes with blackberries; avocado halves stuffed with crab; steak tartare topped with quail eggs; and caramelized onions with roasted garlic and mozzarella topping tomatoes.

The international competition for the world's honeymooners is still going. The latest round goes to Fiji. Sort of.

Honeymooner's Review Guide just completed a poll of couples planning their honeymoons, asking where they would "like" to go for their honeymoon.

The Fiji islands were the top choice for the dream honeymoon destination with 19 percent of the votes, edging out Hawai'i with 18 percent and French Polynesia with 15 percent.

But Michelle McKenzie, vice president of Honeymooner's Review Guide, said the poll does not necessarily indicate where they ended up honeymooning, only where they would prefer to go.

"Often budgetary issues limit the final destination of honeymoon couples. Actually, the Hawaiian Islands are the No. 1 final destination of those who complete our post-honeymoon survey," she said.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.