Getting married abroad, who has done it?

[Letsstopwiththechoccis]

Hey folks

My partner and I got engaged yesterday :) some would say cheesy getting engaged on valentines day, however I am ecstatic. We were talking last night and are thinking about marrying abroad :)

We have been together 4 years, live together and have a child, so no need for a traditional wedding. Just cheap and cheerful in the sunshine would be fab.

Just wondering if anyone out there would like to share their experiences. Where, how, costs and who you all booked though, good and bad experiences please x

Yes we did it. Got married in Malta. Did loads of research. Loved Malta anyway but chose it for easy legals, loads of budget flights for guests, great value top notch venue, and you dont need to be there very long. We had 25 guests. Whole thing cost 3.5k. I wasn't bothered if people said no. Some guests spent less than what I did on their uk weddings! Did have a few issues with family politics though and would have happily married in Vegas just us! I don't live in the UK now and the area I now live in is very popular for weddings and I know some planners here.

When I decided on the destination I booked a package for us. Then chose the ceremony venue and paid the basic package and the transport for guests from our hotel to ceremony. Then I booked the reception directly with the hotel as they gave me a wedding planner free.I worked out a menu then paid for decorations. I then discovered their conference and banqueting prices were cheaper so negotiated a deal on that too.

PM me if you need any help.

Thanks for your post, oh Malta sounds lovely :) did you visit a few times before deciding? I really don't know where to start. I have looked at tour operator wedding packages but lots of bad reviews.
I'm like you, not too fussed how many people attend as long as my nearest and dearest come :)

We'd only been to Malta once but I loved it. We ended up choosing it for logistical reasons too as the in laws live in Cyprus, and both sets of parents refused to go transatlantic and Italy was too expensive so that just left Malta and Greece as they were the only places the in laws could fly to. I. Didn't want to do Cyprus as I worried mil would take control. Cyprus weddings are popular but very conveyor belt like whereas I had exclusivity for my wedding for the entire time we were in the hotel. Having said that, the lady I know who is a planner here is an expat and does gorgeous intimate weddings in her village taverna I can send you a link if that sounds like an option.

Congratulations!

We got married in Jamaica. Booked it through Thomson Weddings and it was fabulous!

Hotel was amazing, there was a wedding planner at the hotel who organized everything for us, we chose flowers etc over email and it was so easy.

There was 12 people there, including DH and I, and I think we paid about £10k in total.

The wedding itself cost about £1000 which included flowers, registrar, certificates, cake, wedding breakfast, champagne, use of wedding planner. Basically everything other than dress, rings and hair/makeup.

I'd recommend it to anyone, it was fab

That sounds gorgeous Tequila!

I think a good starting point is the budget and the date. Take family into consideration to some extent but not too much.we upset a few people by getting married in term time but couldn't afford it otherwise. It had to be done in a week for us but I loved the idea that friends could come for a long weekend. So we married on a Monday. It meant friends could fly after work on a Friday, hen do in the hotel spa on the Saturday while the boys had the stag on the beach but took the kids, ice breaker dinner that night then we all went on a boat trip on the sunday. Some people flew home the day after so only needed 2 days off work.

When some of my friends have married in the UK they went a bit ott, with the wine tasting and menu tasting and deliberating over chair covers. You can't do that as much you have to trust your wedding planner and those reviews probably reflect that. Example, my flowers and cake were so crappy they were laughable but it didn't spoil my day, I supplemented my bouquet from the hotel garden and everyone was to full for cake anyway and I got some money back. But the decs the hotel laid on for me were stunning.

It is worth asking if the agent knows anything about weddings in your chosen venue. Don't think you have to go and check it out first it is possible if you don't want the added expense I was just familiar with the resort id never been inside either venue.

I didn't use Thomson as I needed scheduled flights but they did quote me and were very good so definitely consider them. A friend of mine is looking at their cruise weddings and has been to a few herself. Would that be an option. Incidentally, my budget included our rings, and outfits.

We got married in Paphos, Cyprus, we'd been there on holiday for another friends wedding so went to look at venues when we were there

The legal side there is simple, we used an independent planner, heard a lot of bad reviews about travel agents and set packages with no flexibility. We ended up with 35 guests, would've been happy with just us if everyone had said no, didn't put any pressure on anyone and picked a mid range hotel to to stay at but some guests stayed elsewhere

Originally I wanted a beach ceremony but most are on public beaches, or private to a hotel but still open to hotel guests, we had a small chapel and reception at a private golf course

Oh, we spent about £8k, that included a two week holiday and spends, a paid bar, meal and transport for all the guests on the wedding day, outfits for wedding party, rings etc

I know this is an old thread but like the idea of the village taverna for a wedding. Do you have details?

Zombie threa 8 years old

Hi! So we want to get married abroad but have no idea where to start. We just want a small/intimate wedding- nothing fancy any recommendations?

Maybe start your own thread rather than bumping ine that is 8 years old.