Hi: My daughter has decided that she would like to get married in Scotland in May, 2009. Many questions and I need help. Has anyone done this? According to the research that I have done, the paperwork for a US Citizen is not really hard. This would be a very small family wedding and I guess I just would like to have some information from someone who has actually done this and how they felt about it. Thank you for any information that you might have.

Not exactly Scotland, but I'm planning my own Italian Wedding in May 2009. The legalities of marrying abroad are different in each country, but to save the hassle, we are getting legally married here in the states, then having the symbolic wedding/blessing in Italy... your daughter may want to look into something like that... hold a ceremony there, but get "married" stateside before crossing the pond... congratulations and best of luck!

The easiest and best source for information is to go to google. They have numerous sites offering all the information you'll need. Come back here for specifics.

http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/regsc...-about-it.html

It's a lot easier to get married in Scotland than some other countries in Europe, as there is no residency requirement.
The link that Sheila has given you is definitely the best starting point.

There are all kinds of venues to choose from, including hotels and castles. For examples check out:

http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/...e/weddings.htm

http://www.destinationscotland.com/r...ddingguide.asp

Gretna Green was the place for elopements. See the following:

http://www.destinationscotland.com/romance/gretna.asp

Thanks for all of the information. I have researched this on my own, so I was really hoping to find someone who had actually done this. We are currently trying to decide on a wedding planner to help us. I will keep you updated! Thanks

We are currently trying to decide on a wedding planner to help us. >>>

Wedding planners are a yank thing. We get our mums or aunties to do it.

There are some rules if you want to get married in a church (varies depending on which foot you kick with). Google is your friend.

Actually, David, there are a few agencies who do this sort of thing for furriners. It's hard to organise a wedding- even the legalities- a continent away.

That's me told.

Ive been married three times and every one of them has been sorted out by old biddies.

Each to their own and all that.

hmmmm..... what does that teach us?

That marrying me is a short but lucrative experience.

I blame the lawyers.

<i>&quot;That marrying me is a short but lucrative experience.&quot;</i>

Where's the queue?

&quot;I was really hoping to find someone who had actually done this&quot;

I got married in Scotland 3 years ago, but I'm originally from Scotland and my mum still lives there so she took care of a lot of the organisation.

(The most complicated thing was actually the hoops that the French Consulate made us jump through to ensure our marriage was legal in France (my husband is French, though we live in Brussels).)

We got married at Lennoxlove (www.lennoxlove.com) near Haddington, about 20 miles from Edinburgh. Lennoxlove actually took care of a lot of things and were extremely helpful and efficient (they had lists of florists, photographers, organists, etc. that they were used to working with). I think the same is true of many wedding venues in Scotland, so you might find that you don't actually need a planner.

The best resource for information on photographers, florists, caterers, venues, etc. is the Scottish Wedding Directory magazine, which comes out every 6 months if I remember correctly. http://www.scottishweddingdirectory.co.uk/