Getting Married in Europe: 2005
Have you "tied the knot" overseas? Planning a wedding can be challenging enough, but getting married in a foreign country adds new challenges: finding an officiant, planning the menu, convincing your travel-leary family and friends to go, legal red tape, etc.
Share your wedding abroad planning tips, advice and experiences here.
Getting married in Ukraine!
I was married in Ukraine to a wonderful Ukrainian lady in February of 2000. We did it the "Soviet" way at a ZAGS (sp?) government marriage place. We had to bribe the officals who schedule the wedding otherwise we could not have been married before I left for Canada. I believe that a discreet $30 was enough to do the trick! Getting married in Europe was a wonderful experience for me! And I'm still married almost 6 years later, so I must have got it right!
Married man
Surrey, BC Canada Thu 12/29/2005
Paris weddings
Regarding the comment below about weddings at the American Church in Paris---you need to be aware that a church ceremony, while meaningful to you, is not legally binding in France. That is, you still need a civil marriage certificate. Wedding planner sites for France will advise you of this. If it is not a legally binding marriage there, it is not recognized here either. You could, however, have a lovely church wedding in Paris, and then legalize it when you return home, as Mike suggests below. But simply taking out the marriage license is not enough. The license needs to be signed by someone officially designated by your state to perform weddings. In other words, some kind of civil ceremony, with witnesses. While the "real" wedding will be the one in France, you still need to make it a legal marriage as well.
Note that this problem does not arise in Italy or Spain, because church weddings are recognized as legally binding in those countries.
Lorna
Bellevue, WA USA Wed 12/21/2005
Getting Married in Europe
I agree.
Do not listen to the naysayers!!!!!
I got married in Italy as an Australian citizen. No hoops to jump through, no hurdles to overcome. We simply presented our passports, paid our brilliant organiser Paola (Marry Me Abroad - http://www.marrymeabroad.com.au) and for a VERY reasonable fee, the church, priest, translator, documents and service was all organised.
They did everything to perfection.
(Yes, my marriage was legally recognised in both Europe and Australia).
Bonnie
Sydney, NSW Australia Tue 11/29/2005
Getting married in Ireland
My fiance and I are getting married in Ireland in about 4 weeks...neither are Irish. It's possible...don't listen to all the naysayers and wedding planners who don't actually know the laws. Research on your own.
Suzanne <email>
Huntington Beach, California USA Tue 11/29/2005
Marriage Outside in Austria
Hello All,
My fiance and I would really like to get married in Austria, as that is where we met and lived for a while when first together. However, we were really hoping to be able to have a civil ceremony on a mountain, as none of the registry offices we have seen are big enough to house the number of guests we would like to have! The registrars I have spoken to seem to say that it is only possible to get married in Austria in the designated registry offices. Is this strictly true or has anyone managed to organise a mountain ceremony?
Claire <email>
London, UK Mon 11/14/2005
Engagement
Hello all,
I will be in Europe next spring for my college study abroad. My girlfriend will be joining me in June... I would like to ask her to marry me there. We are both Christians and love to visit churches... but I am not sure weather to do the Tom Cruise thing on the Eifle Tower or to take a boat ride to a country church with our parents waiting inside... Any suggestions would be welcomed and appreciated.
Thank you
Don
Central, OH USA Mon 11/14/2005
Eilean Donan Castle wedding
My husband and I were married at Eilean Donan Castle near Kyle of Lochalsh, Scotland in May 2004. The site was amazing, and since it's one of the most photographed castles in the world, we see pictures of it everywhere, which brings back all the wonderful memories. Marrying in Scotland was much easier than we expected because we used a wedding planner, Highland Wedding Belles. They were fabulous and took care of everything. For example, I emailed photos of a wedding cake and bouquet that I liked and they had them recreated by local vendors. In addition to the wedding planner, the folks at Glenelg Inn where our wedding party stayed were terrific. Glenelg is a small village several miles over the Mam Ratagan Pass from the castle. It's quite a drive in and out, but you really feel like you're in the middle of nowhere, and you're treated to world-class hospitality. If you feel the need to control all the details, marrying abroad may be more difficult for you, but if you relax and let someone else (who's references you've checked) take care of the details, it can be a magical experience.
Roxanne <email>
Seattle, WA USA Sun 11/13/2005
wedding in Tuscany
Hi everybody!
I got married in Tuscany last summer and it was incredible, everything was as I have always dreamt!
If you are planning a wedding in Tuscany go to www.theweddingplannerintuscany.com
Write them and they'll help you from the first day!
<email>
USA Tue 11/08/2005
Getting married in Sorrento/Amalfi Coat, Italy
Hi All
My wife Laura and I married in Sorrento last year and had a fantastic time (with 120 guests!). Laura is now running her own wedding organsiation business dealing only with the Amalfi Coast - you wouldn't believe the deals she can achieve as a local! I'm sure she would love to help you out if you are seriously considering this area. She is exceptionally thorough and well organised.
Good luck!! Ben
Ben <email>
London, England Tue 11/01/2005
renewing vows--london??
Hi all..
Has anyone renewed their wedding vows in London or anywere in England for that matter. Me and my wife are looking to do this, we need help...
George <email>
PA USA Mon 10/31/2005
We are planning on getting married next July in Tuscany. We flew over there in March to meet with Sandra from www.Gettingmarriedinitaly.com and she was very rude. I was so upset after we left that I contacted www.italyweddings. My backup plan if anything went wrong. Ben is amazing! He met with my fiance and I the very next day and has helped us sincerly throughout the whole process.
Unknown
Il USA Sat 10/29/2005
wedding in Italyl
Hi...I am planning to be married in Italy in September 2006. Has anyone used weddingitaly.com? I want to be sure this is a reputable company. Thank you.
Jan Stratton <email>
Ludington, MI USA Mon 10/24/2005
Married in Florence
We were married in Florence last year, and we were very happy with the wedding planner we used.
www.gettingmarriedinitaly.com
Michael McAuley
Boston, MA USA Wed 10/05/2005
weddings overseas
I am leaving in a week to get married in Florence, Italy at the Palazzo Vecchio. I have received great service from the company I am using. You can contact them at www.italian-weddings.com. They have been great and very attentive. I will let everyone know how it went when I get back.
Jenny Johnson <email>
Atlanta, GA USA Fri 09/30/2005
Wedding Planner - Italy
I'm interested in getting married in Italy. Can anyone recommend a wedding planner?
Kris
USA Wed 09/28/2005
Paris Weddings
The one place I know that you can get married in Paris is at the American Church, which is right on the Seine River. The French do not make it easy for non-French, or non-residents to marry in France.The church is located on the opposite of the Louve, a slightly to the west. You can search for them on-line. If I remember correctly, they charged 120 frances back in 2001. You would have to convert that to Euros now. But, after an exhusting attempt to find someone to marry my wife & me, I came across the American Church in Paris website. Just e-mail them and they will set you up with a date & time. ANd, to make it easy, just pull a marriage license locally when you get back. YOU KNOW WHERE YOU GOT MARRIED, THE LICENCE IS A PIECE OF PAPER FOR LEGAL PURPOSES.
Mike Allen
Tampa, FL USA Mon 09/26/2005
My wife and I were married in Italy in May of 2005. We were married in the small town of Vinci, Italy. There is only one wedding planner that does this, so please e-mail me for that web site. We will never forget the great wedding we had in Tuscany.
Shawn <email>
Chicago, Il USA Fri 09/23/2005
Re: Gay Weddings
Italian family law is very traditional, even common law heterosexual couples are not recognized. So the answer to your question is a definite no.
Even though many other EU countries now recognize gay unions in some form it remains legally confusing. For example Denmark will recognize a same-sex union from Sweden or Germany, but not one from France. Often the ceremonies are restricted where one of the partners must be a permanent resident, work/study immigrant, or citizen of the country in question.
I noticed you're from California as well. You should also be aware that state law (Section 299.2 Family Code) was recently changed to recognize civil unions and domestic partnerships performed pretty much anywhere on par with our own DP laws. So do think about it carefully before jumping in. I wouldn't fly off to Cologne (or wherever) for a civil ceremony just for the sake of curiousity. You may find yourself with a binding legal contract back home.
JJ
San Francisco, CA USA Sun 09/18/2005
Gretna Green, Scotland weddings
Want to get married at the world famous Gretna Green Blacksmiths Scotland. You can stay at The Glen Bed and Breakfast Carlisle www.theglen.co.uk as it is only 15 minutes drive away and get use of a chauffeur driven E class Silver Mercedes to get you there, saving you over $200.
John Beaumont <email>
NY, NY USA Wed 09/14/2005
Son's American wedding in Germany
I didn't get married in Europe but my son just did! On August 20, 2005 my American son married a German girl. I was very involved in helping to make it a mix of traditional American and German wedding and reception. To complicate the whole process, my American sister did all the flowers and decorations. My one word of advice is start early and persist, persist, persist! You never can tell what will come up to slow things down! :) I'd be happy to answer questions and share how we all pulled together, creating a bi-lingual, fabulous wedding experience for everybody on both sides of the Atlantic!
Michele <email>
Sacramento, CA USA Tue 09/13/2005
Married in Florence
My wife & I were married in Florence last October. It was a simple civil ceremony inside the Palazzo Vecchio (Florence's city hall). We hired a wedding planner who took care of all the details. It was the best thing we could have done. One of the most wonderful experiences of our lives. We are already making plans for a return trip.
Michael McAuley
Boston, MA USA Wed 09/07/2005
Gay Wedding???
Can gay or lesbian couples from other countries marry in Italy? I know it's not recognized in the US, but what about Canadian citizens? Couples from Amsterdam? Others? I'm curious.
Kim and Terry <email>
San Francisco, CA USA Tue 08/30/2005
wedding in Italy
My sister (we are danish but I live in Italy) got married in Italy last year. It was a wonderful experience! A wedding planner helped her and she was so happy about it! She got married in the North of Italy, near Como. If you need any more information you can write to me. Pernille
Pernille <email>
Copenhagen, Danmark USA Sun 08/21/2005
Italian style wedding
My daughter was married in a castle outside Florance Italy three years ago. She hired a wedding planner in Florance who handled everything. It was a beautiful wedding.
Linda
Woodstock, IL USA Fri 08/19/2005
renewing vows
My husband and I want to renew our vows in Paris. How should we go about doing this?
Ajmcneal <email>
Knoxville, Tennessee USA Thu 08/18/2005
renewel of wedding vows
Last August my wife and I re-married in Salzburg, what a great experience. It took about a year to get it planned but it was worth it. We had a beautiful wedding in Miribel Castle and gardens with a carriage ride through the city. This entire event was special because we had friends from Vienna and Salzburg attend. It was not difficult to arrange and there are agencies in the city that will assist you. It was something that we will never forget.
Dick Henderson <email>
Tomball, Texas USA Mon 08/15/2005
We tied the knot in Basel
My wife and I were married in May 2002 at the Zivilstamzamt office in Basel. We already had a child, a house and were looking for a quick (yet nice) combo wedding/honeymoon. I had traveled to Basel many times before and was surprised to find how straightforward the process was. A quick trip to the Swiss consulate in Atlanta, then email contact with the Zivilstamzamt (Civil Registry Office) to request a date. Once they received our request (and papers from the consulate), we requested May 28. The actual ceremony lasted 30 minutes and we were required to have two witnesses (my mother and her boyfriend obliged). The next day we set off for a honeymoon in Ascona.
Thomas <email>
Nashville, TN USA Sun 08/14/2005
To the couple who wants to know if a pilot is able to marry people like a ships captain: I worked for a major cruise line for years and ships captains cannot legally preform weddings. I doubt that pilot can either. Best Wishes.
Portland, OR USA Tue 08/02/2005
Swiss Mountain Wedding
I got married in Switzerland on top of Mt. Rigi-Kulm in July 2003 in a small rustic chapel. The wedding party took a boat from Luzern to Vitznau where we then proceeded up the mountain on a cogwheel train. The Mt. Rigi-Kulm is quite special as one can see an amazing sunset and everywhere you look you are surrounded by the beautiful alps. My husband's family (14 people) was gracious enough to agree to make the trip; I didn't even have to beg! It is very convenient as there is a hotel on top of the mountain and this was where we had our reception as well. I was fortunate to have family in Switzerland to help me plan out all the details. We managed to find a preacher that conducted the ceremony in both English and German. We had a civil ceremony here in the States two months beforehand. We decided to go this route because it was the easiest and cut down on a lot of paperwork. I would certainly recommend getting married overseas as it makes a memorable experience even more so. Of course planning an overseas wedding requires much more planning and research; the trick is to keep it as simple as possible.
Heidi
Ohio USA Tue 08/02/2005
Problem solved... we'll have a simple civil official thing, then go on vacation... thanks for all your help. not....
USA Mon 08/01/2005
I am planning to get married in Paris while doing a RickStevesTour. Will this be legal? Can the pilot of the plane do a ceremony the same way the captain of a ship can to the same?
USA Sun 07/31/2005
Scotland
The Scottish government had nothing to do with the rule change - immigration policy is made in London for all of the UK.
Essentially the changes just mean that you have to get a entry clearance from your nearest UK consulate and pay a fee.
In general, they've been making immigrations laws stricter and raising fees, but I think the tightening of the marriage entry requirements are probably due to trying to crack down on problems (real or imagined) with arranged marriages, and people using them to get residency in the UK.
Kate
Scotland Fri 07/29/2005
Scotland
I'm so sad to read that the rules for getting married in Scotland (for a non-citizen) have gotten tougher. My husband & I eloped in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull in April 2003, and it couldn't have been a more perfect experience. I arranged nearly everything - including the ceremony - via email, and we remain in contact to this day with the couple who ran the B&B where we stayed. It was magical. When we were debating where to elope, we found (at the time) that Scotland and Switzerland were the least difficult places to get married for non-citizens, as neither had residency requirements or challenging paperwork to deal with. If Scotland has made the laws too difficult to deal with, that's a shame - I can't imagine a kinder or warmer group of people to be around when getting married. If it's just a speed bump and still do-able, I'd encourage anyone who's contemplating it to go for it. Tobermory's website is: http://www.tobermory.co.uk/ - and they have plenty of information online about getting married in their wonderful town.
Jessica <email>
Portland, OR USA Fri 07/22/2005
Get married in Italy!!
My husband and I are currently living in Berlin, Germany (we are both US Citizens). We love living in Europe and thought it would be great to get married over here. We wanted something small and intimate, so we decided to elope to Italy this year. You have to do a few things to get married in Italy, but if you are up for dealing with some consulates, etc, it is worth it!
You need to get a sworn statement from and Italian consulate in the US (we did it here in Berlin). Then when you get to Italy, you need to go to the US consulate and sign another statement, called the "nulla osta". You need to then get the official stamps at the Italian prefettura (make sure to get two sets, as you need one set for each "nulla osta". It can be time consuming and maybe a little stressful (but what wedding is not atleast a little stressful?), but not impossible. The US embassy in Florence and Rome have information for you on their websites -http://www.usembassy.it/florence/cons/acs/marriage.htm .
Find a company online that organizes weddings in Italy, it is very common. They will be able to help you with all the paperwork details. I would recommend doing it somewhere in the countryside. We got married in a small town in Umbria. The wedding coordinator planned a 5 course meal(including wine) for us in the local restaurant that was delicious. Italy is beautiful and romantic - a great backdrop for a wedding.
N. Khan <email>
Berlin, Germany Sun 07/17/2005
Tying the Knot overseas
Although it was many years ago, my husband and I (both US citizens)had the experience of tying the knot in Germany. Although church and state are not separated in many areas of German government, a church wedding is NOT legal in Germany, so those wishing to have their union blessed in a church must also do so in the city hall. Interestingly enough, one pays a fee to marry on a sliding scale, based on income. Since my hubby was in the military at the time and I was unemployed, we didn't pay much. The wedding in city hall took all of a generous 5 minutes, mostly on the lines of "if you are kind to your spouse you will have a long and happy married life, sign here..." We had to have birth certificates and passports translated by official translaters (with official stamps) and had to wait a week after the wedding was permitted for the banns to be posted. We now have two anniversaries (civil and church ceremonies on two different dates), so my hubby has two chances to remember the flowers, candy, etc.
Patricia Lewis <email>
Milwaukie, OR USA Wed 07/13/2005
Getting Married in Scotland
However, the laws changed earlier this year, so it's a bit more complicated to get married in Scotland if you are a non-citizen:
From 1 February 2005, people who are subject to immigration control who wish to marry in the United Kingdom (UK) will need to follow new procedures. They must either:
* Hold entry clearance* as a fiancé/e or marriage visitor, or * Hold a Home Office certificate of approval**, or * Be a person with settled status in the UK (e.g. indefinite leave to remain)
See rules at the Home Office Website:
http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/ind/en/home/news/press_releases/getting_married_in/new_rules_for_getting.html
Kate
Scotland Sat 07/09/2005
Perfect place to elope? Scotland!
First and foremost let me say that none of this would have happened without the assistance of the wonderful people at ETTBD. Rick, your people are the best!
Back in 2000 my wife and I decided that after a long engagement we did not want the hassle of a large wedding and that we would rather save our money. Having a lust for travel and too many family members in the states that would have followed us anywhere we went, we decided that we had elope somewhere distant and someplace that would satisfy our desire to see more of Europe. After much searching and frustration we discovered that Scotland is one (and may be the only) place in Europe that does not have a residency requirement or a vast amount of paper work (Italy was our second choice but you need a letter from the consulate or some such thing) to get married. All you need to do is contact the government offices, send your check, choose a time and be there for your civil ceremony. It was truly that easy and Edinburgh is a lovely city with great people. When anyone found out that we were eloping from California and that it was just the 2 of us they went out of their way to give us what amounted to a family abroad. One of our favorite memories is from our wedding dinner. Sitting in the Balmoral Hotel's bar before dinner (while pricy, we would highly recommend #1 Princess Street in the hotel for dinner - http://www.thebalmoralhotel.com/) we discovered that we were sharing the room with many rugby fans who had come to see the France vs. Scotland match. Every time my wife stood up the room would erupt in a sea of cheers and applauds. If I had to do it all over again I would not change a thing.
Greg K. <email>
Montara, CA USA Tue 07/05/2005
Bellisimo Wedding in Lake Como
I just came back from Italy where my sister was married near Lake COmo, a few miles from Menagio.
They stayed at a villa called Villa Camilla, and got married in Dongo (?). The guests all stayed at the Villa. The villa had a huge kitchen and a few of the guests who rented a car drove to the local market to get food and wine. We all pitched in cooking food and dined outside, looking at the wonderful view.
She had to go once to get the paperwork done at the embassy, and lucky her husband had friends who emailed them the needed information.
We had family and guests from Sweden, Moscow, and the US and my sister gave great directions on how to get there by boat/ferry, train, or car. From Milan's airport, I took a train and a ferry, and then took a taxi to the Villa. It was very easy!
The wedding coordinator helped the couple with everything they needed. The reception was held outside and we had various cheeses, meats (grilled and smoked), appetizers, and fruit. The coordinator took care of the details like the table setting, the drinks, and even the cake.
I'm sure there were a lot more details, but as a guest and family member, I had a wonderful time. I even took a side trip to Bellagio and to Lugano, Switzerland.
Michelle
Anaheim, CA USA Tue 06/21/2005