Being a wedding planner in Santorini since 1994 years, I receive a lot of questions! The most frequent one is “how to plan my wedding in Santorini”! And I am here to answer this question so the whole experience will be easy and stress-free!
Venue, venue, venue
The ceremony and the reception venues are obviously the most important decision to make. But you need to be aware of the actual destination you are getting married to. Some couples asked me for a garden wedding while Santorini is a volcanic island, with no trees and grass. Santorini island is the most romantic wedding destination to get married. Offering beautiful ocean and cliff views and mostly the wedding venues are outside with inside areas as well.
When choosing a wedding venue in Santorini, it doesn’t have to be in one place. And that, is simply because the distance between the venues is so close. Sometimes, choosing to separate the ceremony and the reception venue, saves you money! Also, another matter you need to consider is the closing time of the reception venue. And of course their policy. There is no better way to celebrate your wedding than in a venue that will welcome you and treat you like royalty and not just numbers! You can see all Santorini Wedding Venues here.
Hire a Santorini based Wedding Planner
Why? Truth hurts and to me this is ugly, but you are just a number to many of the vendors, who really don’t care about your review! But they do care a lot about losing the volume of work from a wedding planner! If I only told you how many of them I fired when I started back in 1994! And then they knew I meant business! Because I work for you and not for them! Thus, I care about your wedding as if it was my own! Why? Well…that’s another story that you can read here.
When planning a destination wedding, it can be stressful especially if you haven’t been to Santorini before! So, you really need to hire a planner that has experience with communication across different time zones. And will walk outside his/her comfort zone for you. And most important, your wedding planner must be located in Santorini! Be in the “game”. Know first everything that happens in order to offer you the best and make sure that there will not be any unpleasant surprises!!
Why not organize everything by myself for my Santorini Wedding?
Trying to organize everything by yourself, can be stressful and to be based on a review or a forum is not enough. I know cases of vendors that took deposits like photographers and never showed up! Or flowers that were far from what was ordered. Hair that didn’t stay in place even for the duration of the ceremony. Makeup that was too harsh for Santorini’s light! Transportation with no air-condition that broke conveniently that day! And if you feel that you are saving money by not hiring a wedding planner, then you have simply not found the right one! My network of vendors is trusted and certified with over 30 years of experience. And speaking of certified…your wedding planner must be certified as well! Santorini is like a pie that everyone wants a piece and everyone is self-called a wedding planner!
But most of these wedding planners, are employees that work for a hotel or a restaurant that tomorrow might be fired or quit! And then what this means for your wedding? Is this really something you want to risk? Therefore, it is best to choose a Santorini-based wedding planner, well connected. That is certified by the Greek government. And that has a huge experience of making dream wedding reality by personally guarantee a stress-free perfect wedding day!
Guest List
This is the foundation element that guides the rest of your planning as it affects your budget. Just because you’re getting married in Santorini, it doesn’t mean you should send “obligatory invitations” to people you hardly have in your life. You will be surprised how many people will accept your invitation! It’s an opportunity to use vacation time! So, my advice is to cut that guest list down to the people you care about the most. It gives you a more intimate celebration and so much more flexibility with your budget and specialty items.
Choose the Proper Time of the Day & the Year for your wedding in Santorini!
Don’t book your wedding venue before talking to your wedding planner! It might be a holiday, festival, bad weather, etc! And again you need a locally-based and experienced wedding planner. A reputable one, that will not go after your money and just book you any date that might ruin your wedding!
And the time of the day is so important! Especially with the temperatures of Santorini! Having a 2 pm to 6 pm wedding in September is just beautiful. But having it during May, June, July, and August is a nightmare! You will boil in your wedding dress! Do you love rain? Then April is your month! My point is that there are so many things and factors that can affect your wedding. Therefore, you should definitely book a wedding planner in Santorini.
Legal Wedding vs Symbolic Santorini Wedding
A legal wedding in Santorini, will be legal back in your country as well. So, if you want your marriage certificate to say “Santorini, Greece”, then a legal wedding is your choice. Please have a look at all the legal requirements here.
But if you wish to renew your vows or you prefer to avoid the hassle of the paperwork, then you can have a Symbolic wedding. In Santorini that is exactly the same ceremony as the legal one, without the paperwork. And you can get legally married with a short ceremony back home when you feel ready. It is not a requirement to be already married in order to have a Symbolic wedding in Santorini.
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