Need help planning my wedding... please!

beautyqueen88

Can someone give me advice on where to start please..

After going on holiday to St lucia last year we have decided to get married there end of October this year, it will be a smallish affair probably with just my parents, our daughter and my fiances sister, his mum may come too not sure yet.
we will be staying for 2 weeks.

my dad's picking up the majority of the bill so he's keen for me to get it all sorted out but im just clueless where to start. i dont want anything stupidly extravagent or expensive and i've seen that with virgin packages they often include a basic wedding package with holiday if you stay for a minimum time, then you have the option to add extras.
Has anyone gone down this route? who do i contact first, the hotel? virgin? i wouldnt want to book it then find a date not available or whatever im thinking it wont be too busy end of october because st lucia doesnt really get packed until later.

i dont know what to do first im getting in a tangle. what do i do first? when do i pick a dress if it isnt until october?

we will be haveing some sort of reception here when we come back for the rest of family/friends etc but im pretty confident in organising that its just the rest.

any advice please i'm clueless about weddings and getting in a panic!!

bride_on_a_budget

Hi,
i would contact virgin first as they can advise you what to do, they should have a wedding consultant who will go through all the details with you.

i hope this helps
Bride

Horace

Before you contact Virgin you need to contact the Foreign Office https://www.fco.gov.uk as they will be able to state whether or not a wedding in St Lucia would be legal over here. The Foreign Office website also tells you what documents you need and who to contact either in the UK or in the embassy over there.

There may be a limit on the time you need to be 'residing' in the country before you get married which is why it is wise to look at the Foreign Office website.

Virgin will have their own planner who will be able to help you organise the wedding abroad.

Milly1974

Just a little note on the dress. I am getting married in November, and my dress is already hanging on the back of the door. It needs to be taken up still. I would say start looking soon, especially if you are looking for a proper wedding dress, as it may take time to be ordered in etc. I was lucky that they had 1 left in my size (prom dress) in stock, as I would have had to wait until April otherwise, and I should imagine that white/wedding dresses are more hassle.

newmoneysaver_2

I got married in St Lucia in May 06.

No need to contact the foreign office, your marriage will be legal in the UK

First thing I did was go through the brochures, IIRC virgin, tradewinds & thomson offer wedding packaging in St Lucia. You should be able to book this now. When we booked the holiday, we paid for the wedding package separate - some do offer this free, I think this depends on the resort and the number of people - we were asked to pick the date and the time of the wedding too, i think this then has to be confirmed by the hotel. The hotels usually offer extras too which are booked at the resort - dvd, photos etc

After the wedding was booked I then sorted the dress etc...I also had a party when we returned - you get to wear your dress twice

ETA: I wore a normal dress with a hoop as I found this to match my style and it wasn't too hot because the bulk of it was away from my body, IYSWIM. Also don't forget the dress has to travel in with your normal baggage allowance.

If you have any question, just ask!

beautyqueen88

Thanks for all your replies,
newmoneysaver - Which part of St Lucia did you get married in if you dont mind me asking, when we went last year we stayed at the jalouise plantation and i wanted it to be there but this is closing for renovation until 2010 so i've got to pick somwhere new altogether.
Glad you mentioned about the party and wearing the dress again i was planning on doing this but didn't know if it was a normal thing to do lol
any excuse to wear the dress again

newmoneysaver_2

Hi beautyqueen,
We got married here
All the grandparents etc wanted to see my dress, so yes I wore it again!

sexy_fufu

Hi,

Ive booked my wedding through Virgin we get married 30th July in Florida then Honeymoon in Bahamas.

I have found Virgin to be so far so good. I booked the middle wedding package and when all your info comes through there is a list of optional extras if you want them. Im not having them...

The wedding Dept wont get involved until you actually Book your holiday or accomodation through Virgin. I tried this to see if i could get any info..

If their is anythink u want to know just ask !!

Donna xx