Wedding abroad - advice / experience wanted!

Jaffacake007 · 2022-12-17T22:37:58+00:00

Hi, My partner and I got engaged a couple of weeks ago and we've started chatting about what we'd like to do for our big day! We are considering getting married in our home town registry office and then having a small 'symbolic wedding' abroad, preferably Mexico. Has anyone used a travel agency like Tui to organise their wedding? Or did you use an individual / company? Any recommendations or experiences would be most welcome! I literally have no clue where to start [grin]

PritiPatelsMaker · 26/12/2022 00:54

I suppose it depends on how many people you want there and how long you're going to give people notice of your plans so that they can save?

mdh2020 · 26/12/2022 06:46

Are you really expecting people to travel to Mexico?

Whattheladybird · 26/12/2022 06:48

Congratulations! Do what you like the two of you, but once you’re married, you’re married, and I wouldn’t expect any guests to come to a pretend ceremony many miles away. Also, honeymoon with the inlaws isn’t my thing ;)

I got married abroad and didn’t invite anyone. It also wasn’t a very wedding-y wedding; no white dress/photographers/etc. but we hired someone local to deal with the translation and paperwork and it was all fine.

EasterIsland · 26/12/2022 06:54

So basically, you’re marrying in the UK, and your honeymoon will be in Mexico and you’re inviting people along to share it?

I suppose it’ll depend on your budget. How many people can you afford to fly out to Mexico and accommodate there?

Judgyjudgy · 26/12/2022 06:59

Sounds amazing! Enjoy! Wish I had done something like this

ALittleBitAhAh · 26/12/2022 07:06

My sister got married in Crete and it was amazing! My mum arranged most of it as she holidays out there a lot. She didn't use a company as such. The wedding planner at the actual venue was used to people from abroad marrying there though so signposted to lots of things (hair, makeup, coach for guests etc). Have a wonderful time ❤️

Daisy03 · 26/12/2022 07:20

Why not just get married there otherwise it's not really a wedding? You could just have a blessing at home instead.
We got married in barbados through virgin holidays, was really good, everything was arranged for us and was very stress free. Didn't invite anyone to come which was the whole point of it for us

RampantIvy · 26/12/2022 07:26

Just be realistic about how many people will want to come along to your honeymoon, and don't get arsey if they can't afford it or don't want to come.

FlamingJingleBells · 26/12/2022 07:35

As long as you're not annoyed if people decline the invitation because of various reasons including expenses then go ahead. There are lots of threads on AIBU about people being treated terribly because they've declined to attend a destination wedding.

You can have your wedding where you want as long as you respect people's decision to decline due to cost, childcare & distance.

SuperSange · 26/12/2022 08:03

Not sure I'd travel to Mexico for a pretend wedding, tbh. In fact I wouldn't. It depends how many people you want to come.

luniz · 26/12/2022 21:13

Congratulations! I'm sure it'll be lovely. Look for venues online that cater to destination weddings. They'll have wedding planners with them who'll help you sort it all out.

raveltrips · 11/01/2023 10:22

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Moonlightsonatas · 11/01/2023 10:26

My brother is getting married in the UK and then having another ceremony abroad. I am expected to go to both so now I have to save thousands of pounds for me, DH and the kids to go on a holiday we wouldn’t have picked. I can’t say any of this to him though as it’s family.

Have the wedding abroad if you want but then have a party at home for everyone to come.

maddy68 · 11/01/2023 12:08

For legal reasons. It's easier to marry officially in your own country

Brefugee · 11/01/2023 12:11

My brother is getting married in the UK and then having another ceremony abroad. I am expected to go to both so now I have to save thousands of pounds for me, DH and the kids to go on a holiday we wouldn’t have picked. I can’t say any of this to him though as it’s family.

yes you can say no.

Congrats, OP, have the wedding you want, that's always the best advice.

RampantIvy · 11/01/2023 12:16

My brother is getting married in the UK and then having another ceremony abroad. I am expected to go to both so now I have to save thousands of pounds for me, DH and the kids to go on a holiday we wouldn’t have picked. I can’t say any of this to him though as it’s family.

Yes, you can say no. Or you can ask him to pay towards your travel costs instead. The way families try to guilt trip each other is not on.

purplecorkheart · 11/01/2023 12:28

Pick somewhere that your guests can get to easily. Friends of mine got married in a resort where they were collected in a limo style car anytime they went to view the place and dropped back to airport. For the guests we had to make our own way. Taxis were hugely expensive and public transport brought you to the middle of nowhere with no other option but to hitch to get to the venue.

In the end a guest arranged to hire a bus and driver to bring us all to the airport home.

PritiPatelsMaker · 11/01/2023 13:34

That sounds like it was awful purple.

EasterIsland · 11/01/2023 14:31

My brother is getting married in the UK and then having another ceremony abroad. I am expected to go to both so now I have to save thousands of pounds for me, DH and the kids to go on a holiday we wouldn’t have picked. I can’t say any of this to him though as it’s family.

That's just awful, @Moonlightsonatas Utterly selfish.

I think you should try to say something - how on earth can a family save thousands of pounds at the moment? It's so thoughtless and selfish.

@Jaffacake007 I hope you're taking note of this. And trying not to be a selfish arse, as some brides & grooms mentioned on this thread have been.

Original poster

Jaffacake007 · 11/01/2023 16:19

There won't be an expectation for anyone to attend, it's more of a "come if you can". We would host a party back in the UK. I fully appreciate people's financial situations are tricky right now. We were originally planning on just going ourselves and eloping - that's still on the table as another option.

We've decided to get officially married in the UK as Mexico require a blood test and you have to pay £200 for it on the day! Also, its very cheap to get married at our local registry office. But in all fairness, we are considering other locations now. One of the reasons we considered abroad was because we could organise through a travel agent, and say book for 2024 or 2025, we can all pay in instalments which would be definitely useful for us, and probably others if they decide to attend. We can also have a "wedding package" and pay for optional extras as we aren't overly fussed on every finer detail.

It's all very new to us at the moment! Thanks for your advice and opinions. We'll play it by ear and see what family say and make a decision in a few months

OP posts:

Kaggi9 · 04/02/2023 15:32

I got married abroad last Summer and used TUI. I have to say, they were fantastic! I was contacted by the wedding planner (all included in the price) in March and she sorted everything from the flowers to the cake, having my dress steamed etc. Nothing was too much trouble and we had the most amazing time. I was in the pool at lunchtime on the day of the wedding and we got married early evening, with the photographer capturing the most amazing picture of the sunset. I would definitely recommend it!

Lcb123 · 04/02/2023 15:34

If you’re getting married and having a party in the Uk - (kindly) why do you need another wedding in Mexico? Just have your honeymoon there, and a ceremony just you two. Inviting guests to Mexico could create tension / stress for those who can’t come for whatever reason.

Catapultaway · 04/02/2023 15:37

We got married in Cancun, just the two of us, no guests. We used an individual over there that arranged everything from the wedding, to the witnesses, to the blood tests etc (yes, you need blood tests to prove your not related and don't have HIV)
But not sure in your case. You are getting married in the UK so all seems a bit pointless.