So it won't be long now before the clocks spring forward and winter will be behind us. Are you cuddled up on the sofa dreaming of a gorgeous wedding in Kefalonia? Perhaps you have a special anniversary coming up and fancy renewing your wedding vows? Now is the time to start thinking about the many different options available and of course, the costs involved. Having your dream wedding on a budget in Kefalonia is possible and we can tell you how.
You shouldn't feel that having your dream wedding abroad is out of your reach for financial reasons. There is a lot you can do to bring the costs right down if you are willing to put in a little work.
With 25 years experience in the UK as a Registrar of Marriages, Bride Buddy is the ideal service to use to perform your actual ceremony. We offer a personal and bespoke service, building the ceremony around you as a couple, and we are completely transparent and up front with our prices. (Take a look at our website for prices)
We can offer you a 'Ceremony Only' option or a 'Full Wedding Planning Package' which if you are willing to arrange your own flowers or meal, can literally save you thousands! We have a small experienced team based permanently on Kefalonia.
We can act as your contact on the island, offering you just 'Coordinator Services'. This can be to help coordinate all your arrangements or maybe you only need an 'On the Day Coordinator'. We can help with venues, flowers, photographers, cars etc. The difference that Bride Buddy offers is that we will only charge for you for our 'time spent' instead of a fixed fee. You will find this could bring your costs down significantly. If you decide that you do want the legal marriage in Kefalonia rather than in the UK, we have the professionalism and expertise required to give you accurate advice and guidance through the whole process.
Firstly, I need to tell you about the best options available on the island for planning your wedding. Many wedding planners will look at your requirements and quote you a fixed fee for their services. This will include arranging the legal marriage, the wedding ceremony, a celebrant, the reception venue, food, drinks, flowers, cakes, photography, cars etc. Then you need to add accommodation costs and flights. The wedding planner works with all the suppliers, often at near to cost prices which is why they like to charge you a fixed fee and this is how they make their money. This is a great option for a very large wedding or if you just want to alleviate some of the stress involved. But if you are on a budget there are alternatives that could save you a lot of money.
Some couples make all the arrangements themselves and do a very good job of it, and they save an awful lot of money. In those cases I know they have had a friend or family member on the island to help them, which is great and there is no reason why you cannot do this. I do know a few who arranged everything completely alone but it did include a couple of short visits to the island to check everything was on track. Getting married is complicated, there is no doubt about it, but it is obviously not impossible because thousands of people do it every day! All you need is to be organised, have a plan, and go through one process at a time.
Ok, so here's the legal stuff. Let's talk about the actual legal marriage options.
The majority of couples opt for a Register Office wedding in the UK and then have a celebratory wedding ceremony here on the island. The reason for this is that it costs £50 for your legal marriage in the UK and around 300 euros with a wedding planner guiding you through the system here in Kefalonia and Town Hall fees here in Greece. Add to that between £200 - 400 for the legally stamped and officially translated documents that you need to bring with you. One other advantage of having the legal marriage in the UK is that should you need more marriage certificates in the future, it is very easy to obtain them from the Register Office rather than the Greek Embassy. Take a look at our page outlining the process to have the legal marriage abroad in more detail here.
So, to sum up, wedding planners do an excellent job from start to finish and if this is your preferred option expect to pay a fixed fee for their services, if you are thinking on a budget and would like to make a lot of the arrangements yourself - go for it. If you get stuck, get in touch and we will help only with the bits you want us to help you with. If you don't want to spend too much money but would still love to have your wedding or renewal of vows ceremony here in Kefalonia, we can help right from the beginning and save you money by only charging you for our time instead of the fixed fee option. The choices are out there, you can have your dream Kefalonia Wedding - you just need to think about the best option for you. Remember, all our options can save you money:
Ceremony Only
Full Wedding Planning
Wedding Coordinator Service
On the Day Coordinator
Go to our website to find out more about the services Bride Buddy can offer you. Why not take a look at 'Our Ceremonies' page and read some of the Thank You's we have received Good Luck! We are sure you will make every success of your wedding!
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