Anyone get married abroad?

Cherry_Bomb

We're looking at Spring/Summer 2014 for the date. I was hoping for next year but OH is due a posting then so [STRIKE]we[/STRIKE] I don't want to plan something and then have the stress of a move too!

Plenty of time to save for somewhere perfect

On the topic of expecting others to come we're going to make it clear we don't want anyone else to come. Sounds awful I know but if for example my parents were happy to pay for themselves but OH's parents couldn't afford it it's going to create bad feeling somewhere along the line. We don't want any of that.

NEH

Cherry_Bomb wrote: »

We're looking at Spring/Summer 2014 for the date. I was hoping for next year but OH is due a posting then so [STRIKE]we[/STRIKE] I don't want to plan something and then have the stress of a move too!

Plenty of time to save for somewhere perfect

On the topic of expecting others to come we're going to make it clear we don't want anyone else to come. Sounds awful I know but if for example my parents were happy to pay for themselves but OH's parents couldn't afford it it's going to create bad feeling somewhere along the line. We don't want any of that.

You can avoid that situation by asking them to come but as I said include a villa as part of your wedding package. You can get some really good deals on the net, with say two villas on one site and per person it works out much cheaper. If you've got money to play with then as long as you book earlier enough you can get some really cheap flights too..

alwaysskint96

We got married in Sri Lanka in 2010 The villa we stayed at organised it all for us and it was customised rather than a standard wedding packager

cuthbert_the_octopus

We got married in the Snow Castle of Kemi in Finland during March 2009.

We only invited parents and siblings to travel to Finland - but I know other members of the family wanted to come & many others would not have been able to afford it. We did not want to put anyone in a awkward situation, so went with our nearest and dearest.

By inviting guests to travel over seas for your wedding, you are basically choosing their holiday destination and when they will be taking their annual holiday.

On return home around 2 months later we held a party at a local village hall with a Hog roast and a Celidh band - people still talk about this to this day!

I dont regret getting married abroad (and everyone presumes that my hubbie is Finnish!) and we have memories for a life time.

noodledoodle78

I got married in Cuba in July and can recommend it as a wedding destination.

It was just the two of us, as that is the way we wanted it. But, ironically a friend of my OH who he hadn't seen in about 15 years was on the same flight out and staying in the same complex. Result - bestman sorted!

Good luck in your search, and if you want any furtehr details, give me a shout.

gwilo

It all depends on the family thing. If you want a 'proper' wedding with everyone attending, then it can cause problems. If, like me and my wife, you are doing it just for you two and want to get married in a place that is special to you both (without worrying about forcing people to come) then abroad is great.

I hate weddings (unless it's my own) and hate being forced into attending - especially if it's one abroad and I know a lot of my friends and family wouldn't care either way as long as we are happy, so my wife and I got married in November abroad. Rather than wasting money on a ridiculously expensive day that's just like any other here, we had a month in the States. We started in New England and worked our way South and got married in Charleston, South Carolina and then continued to Savannah and Georgia for our honeymoon. Charleston is the 'wedding capital' of the US and it was fabulous. We love it there, it's beautiful. Gorgeous white chapel, southern minister and the works. Everything was organised before we went and all we had to do was appear in front of the judge 48 hours before getting married to buy the marriage licence. So fall in New England, Halloween in Salem, wedding and honeymoon in the deep south with lots inbetween, staying in great hotels and eating out every night in restaurants for a month - all for half the cost of a traditional church wedding and do here, the same as most others.

It's horses for courses though ofcourse and not everyone likes the same things/places. I would imagine Cuba is a cool place to get married, like the last poster, as I love it there. Depends what you like and what the family situation is. Just decide what you will like to remember the most for all those years to come. Make it memorable! Good luck whatever you choose - best thing I ever did.

Person_one

Cherry_Bomb wrote: »

We're looking at Spring/Summer 2014 for the date. I was hoping for next year but OH is due a posting then so [STRIKE]we[/STRIKE] I don't want to plan something and then have the stress of a move too!

Plenty of time to save for somewhere perfect

On the topic of expecting others to come we're going to make it clear we don't want anyone else to come. Sounds awful I know but if for example my parents were happy to pay for themselves but OH's parents couldn't afford it it's going to create bad feeling somewhere along the line. We don't want any of that.

I wouldn't 'make it clear' you don't want them there, what I'd do is just act like its an ordinary holiday and when you come home, invite them round for tea, show them the pictures and let them see a wedding pic as a 'surprise'.

Depends on your family I suppose but in most that would go down a lot better than announcing beforehand.

fluffnutter

claire16c wrote: »

Ive never been to a wedding the in UK that was free for me to attend.

You should have come to mine . Even the transport was free. I didn't stretch to buying you a new frock but I'd have been perfectly happy if you'd have turned up in an old one

That aside, I appreciate your point; weddings typically cost money for the guests. But there's a world of difference between buying a new hat and fifty quid's worth of gift vouchers and flying to Barbados for a week.

celyn90

NEH wrote: »

I know if you have a wedding in Europe for example it can work out cheaper to go to that wedding than some places in the UK when you add on petrol, accommodation, formal dresses etc.. ...

I agree, the last wedding we went to in the UK set us back over £300 in expenses (transport, accomodation, clothing - not including gifts). You see a lot of people on here that are worried about the cost of attending a UK wedding; even more so if they have to foot for special dress or a £300 hen weekend.

We got married abroad because we wanted to (and we paid the expenses (even down to the airport parking) and flights for people to attend). We had guests from a number of different countries - so even if we had got married either in the UK or in Germany, some people would have had to travel. It worked out cheaper than getting hitched in the UK though; even silly things like there was no mark up on the food just because it was a wedding; it was just normal resturant prices (we just preordered it all to make it easier for them).

We also got married in Kemi; it was awesome; I can't rate the Snowcastle staff highly enough for all their help. We invited close family and a few friends and it was really special - with the added bonus of not having to bother with table plans and colour schemes and not having to have a disco. We do get the odd sarky comment from people who weren't invited; but I just look on it as a reminder why I didn't want them there in the first place.

Congratulations - I hope whatever you decide to do you find a solution that is really special for you both.

fluffnutter

NEH wrote: »

I know if you have a wedding in Europe for example it can work out cheaper to go to that wedding than some places in the UK when you add on petrol, accommodation, formal dresses etc.. ...

celyn90 wrote: »

I agree, the last wedding we went to in the UK set us back over £300 in expenses (transport, accomodation, clothing - not including gifts). You a lot of people on here that are worried about the cost of attending a UK wedding; even more so if they have to foot for special dress or a £300 hen weekend.

I agree but arguing that UK weddings are just as expensive as weddings abroad doesn't make either OK!

The bottom line for me? My guests were kind enough to come to my wedding and help me celebrate my day (evening really - didn't get married until 6pm). There's no way I'd expect them to shell out on my behalf! I didn't want presents, I laid on transport and made sure all booze was free for everyone, all evening.

I think people lose sight of the impact their 'special day' has on others and believe they've got carte blanche to expect hundreds of pounds spent on hen dos in Amsterdam, stag weekends in Vegas, specific frocks because Bridezilla doesn't want to be upstaged, expensive presents or (even worse) a cash contribution to the honeymoon (surely the rudest request ever??), accommodation in the quaint country hotel in the middle of nowhere unless you're prepared to stay sober and drive 300 miles home at 1 o'clock in the morning, etc. etc.

Whether you marry abroad or here in the UK, not considering your guests in the blind pursuit of your own 'perfect' experience is rude.