Wedding in Italy
Jun 4th, 2014, 12:37 PM
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Wedding in Italy
Hi All, thanks for reading and for any advice offered - it is much appreciated. We are hoping to get married in summer 2015 in Italy but I am overwhelmed with the options and cost. We are flying from Ireland and want find somewhere within an hour of an airport and will have 60 guests approx .
We are considering somewhere near Pisa such as Lucca or anywhere mid way to Florence. (To allow for a day trip) We are also considering Bari or Palermo in Sicily due to regular cheap flights as we want to make it as easy as possible on our guests to reach the venue.
We are also looking for a venue within walking distance of a town or village so guests have some dinner options and can do their own thing on some days.
We are open to a hotel or villa but would like an outdoor pool and to have the wedding meal outside. We would like the venue to have a bar and restaurant so we do not have to cater every day as guests may stay from 3 days to a week.
I am finding that many venues in Tuscany are more remote and so it may involve renting a car which is cost we do not want to add for our guests. Perhaps we stay in one venue then travel to one of these villas!?
Any help regarding a laid back wedding that won't cost the earth is much needed and appreciated,
Thanks
Donna
We are considering somewhere near Pisa such as Lucca or anywhere mid way to Florence. (To allow for a day trip) We are also considering Bari or Palermo in Sicily due to regular cheap flights as we want to make it as easy as possible on our guests to reach the venue.
We are also looking for a venue within walking distance of a town or village so guests have some dinner options and can do their own thing on some days.
We are open to a hotel or villa but would like an outdoor pool and to have the wedding meal outside. We would like the venue to have a bar and restaurant so we do not have to cater every day as guests may stay from 3 days to a week.
I am finding that many venues in Tuscany are more remote and so it may involve renting a car which is cost we do not want to add for our guests. Perhaps we stay in one venue then travel to one of these villas!?
Any help regarding a laid back wedding that won't cost the earth is much needed and appreciated,
Thanks
Donna
Jun 4th, 2014, 01:21 PM
#2
Donna, what we did was seriously cheap and enjoyable. I hate to talk prices on this sort of website but I can give you some good idea if this is of interest. http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...d-go-wrong.cfm
Jun 4th, 2014, 03:09 PM
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It can be very hard to find a countryside venue with a pool that also is convenient to walking to a town.
Maybe you and your spouse-to-be should get married at a place with a pool that can serve you dinner but your guests should make plans to stay in a nearby town (while you and your new spouse stay at the villa and enjoy the pool).
Also, even though you want to be outside, you MUST pick a place that can move you indoors if necessary. There is NO PLACE in Italy that never gets summer storms. Nobody can guarantee you a "dry" day for your wedding or dinner.
I think you are right to consider what might be convenient trip via Ryan Air or other cheap flights for people coming from Ireland. I wouldn't just look for a place "one hour from an airport". I would specifically look for an airport with easy transport to a town where your guests can find enough places to stay. You might get more help if you listed which airports your guests could easily access.
As for cost, if you don't want to regret how much you spent on your wedding, you need to put your foot down right from the very beginning about setting a budget and not breaking it. Believe me, nobody who is worth talking to you or being your friend wants you to go broke feeding them or trying to impress them. You definitely don't need a lot of decor and flowers in Italy to have a beautiful wedding. Focus on the handful of things that really matter to you and your spouse to be. All I have ever remembered from the weddings I have attended is the faces of the two people marrying. I don't remember the cake, the flowers. Even the dress!
If your friends or family want to stay after the wedding in Italy for 3 days or week, up to them. But you should have a honeymoon. Let them make their own arrangements. They will. Don't worry about it and don't get involved.
Maybe you and your spouse-to-be should get married at a place with a pool that can serve you dinner but your guests should make plans to stay in a nearby town (while you and your new spouse stay at the villa and enjoy the pool).
Also, even though you want to be outside, you MUST pick a place that can move you indoors if necessary. There is NO PLACE in Italy that never gets summer storms. Nobody can guarantee you a "dry" day for your wedding or dinner.
I think you are right to consider what might be convenient trip via Ryan Air or other cheap flights for people coming from Ireland. I wouldn't just look for a place "one hour from an airport". I would specifically look for an airport with easy transport to a town where your guests can find enough places to stay. You might get more help if you listed which airports your guests could easily access.
As for cost, if you don't want to regret how much you spent on your wedding, you need to put your foot down right from the very beginning about setting a budget and not breaking it. Believe me, nobody who is worth talking to you or being your friend wants you to go broke feeding them or trying to impress them. You definitely don't need a lot of decor and flowers in Italy to have a beautiful wedding. Focus on the handful of things that really matter to you and your spouse to be. All I have ever remembered from the weddings I have attended is the faces of the two people marrying. I don't remember the cake, the flowers. Even the dress!
If your friends or family want to stay after the wedding in Italy for 3 days or week, up to them. But you should have a honeymoon. Let them make their own arrangements. They will. Don't worry about it and don't get involved.
Jun 5th, 2014, 12:32 AM
#4
This lady did us a very good deal and has access to a bunch of places that would interest you near Bari, Brindisi or Lecce. The paperwork for getting the actual wedding organised is the tricky bit and having someone one the ground is a real help. I had some nasty wallet-crisis in looking into Italian wedding planners but these people understood the need for budget control and hit us with no nasty price shocks.
http://www.yltourcongressi.it/
http://www.yltourcongressi.it/
Jun 5th, 2014, 04:50 AM
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Thanks - bilbo really enjoyed your wedding story, will check out the planner info now, really need to avoid adding thousands through a planner but your description of the paper work process does seem a little tricky so Im a little concerned to do it all myself! I have been warned that Tuscany can leas to mounting costs so Bari is rising up our list!
Jun 5th, 2014, 05:28 AM
#6
We did it all our selves but still needed to get an assist. Basically you need an Italian translator (unless you are both perfect speakers) you need documents translated and sworn in front of the tribunal. You can arrange all that by the internet, you can chose a civil wedding governmental site but you cannot book it until you have sent them all the translated documents (this may consume a lot of time). The benefit of having someone local is they seem to be able to book the slot that you cannot 
Jun 5th, 2014, 01:05 PM
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I have American friends who just completed all the paperwork and they did not hire anyone to help with dealing with the paperwork and the translations and notarizing. But perhaps for Irish citizens. You might want to hire someone local Italian speaker to arrange for booking your time for the civil ceremony and explain to you where you need to be and when and with how many witnesses, but unless you are getting married in the most popular places during the most popular Saturdays of the year, you should be able to get a spot on the calendar if you have the right paperwork and pay the fee.
I wanted to add that one way to keep control of the costs is to ask hotels or villas what they would charge for a group dinner and event without specifying that this is a wedding. Even the most honest Italian vendors will automatically assume that for a wedding you will want many things that are traditional for Italians but which may not be traditional for you. So just say it is a family celebrations and you would like to know certain costs: How much for a good dinner, for alcohol, for possibly musicians, for perhaps a cake, or flowers.... Then you can decide what to add and what to leave out.
I wanted to add that one way to keep control of the costs is to ask hotels or villas what they would charge for a group dinner and event without specifying that this is a wedding. Even the most honest Italian vendors will automatically assume that for a wedding you will want many things that are traditional for Italians but which may not be traditional for you. So just say it is a family celebrations and you would like to know certain costs: How much for a good dinner, for alcohol, for possibly musicians, for perhaps a cake, or flowers.... Then you can decide what to add and what to leave out.
Jun 5th, 2014, 11:06 PM
#10
No, we are Brits, so nothing different for the Irish. But on the other hand we speak very little Italian and Italy is very document difficult. (I guess you take your choice and chose your risk).
Absolutely don't tell the hotel it is a wedding, we started with " a family party" and once given a quote we moved onto a "while we are all together we might as well get married".
All weddings have to be in Italian (it's the law) and the law also says that if any of the participants cannot speak like a native (well you know what I mean) you have to have an official translator. For one hour of her time she charged us E100 while the official translation of our documents and their swearing she got done for either E30 or E50 ( I forget but I think 30 was the one) we found her from http://www.guidatraduzioni.it/
However you get your certificate it will need stamping by the civil authorities to make it legal, this seems to take 2 or 3 days (though we just walked in to pick it up, 2 or 3 days later). I would pick it up in person, errors were found in ours as, well, these guys are Italian
Lecce town hall were so nice to us, we were the first foreigners to get married in their ceremony for 7 years and they made us very welcome.
Absolutely don't tell the hotel it is a wedding, we started with " a family party" and once given a quote we moved onto a "while we are all together we might as well get married".
All weddings have to be in Italian (it's the law) and the law also says that if any of the participants cannot speak like a native (well you know what I mean) you have to have an official translator. For one hour of her time she charged us E100 while the official translation of our documents and their swearing she got done for either E30 or E50 ( I forget but I think 30 was the one) we found her from http://www.guidatraduzioni.it/
However you get your certificate it will need stamping by the civil authorities to make it legal, this seems to take 2 or 3 days (though we just walked in to pick it up, 2 or 3 days later). I would pick it up in person, errors were found in ours as, well, these guys are Italian
Lecce town hall were so nice to us, we were the first foreigners to get married in their ceremony for 7 years and they made us very welcome.
Jun 6th, 2014, 11:52 AM
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You mentioned someplace between Pisa and Florence on the train line and I am wondering if you have checked out the possibility of getting married in a church in either Pistoia or Pescia or Montecatini Alta. I am not sure about the pool possibilities in Pistoia or Pescia, but Montecatini is practically nothing but swimming pools. Half the town is a thermal spa. You might have a lot of fun there.
Jun 6th, 2014, 11:56 AM
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We were writing at the same time!
Honestly don't know what costs are for group events in the towns I mentioned. But costs for accommodations tend to be low because even those these are charming towns, they are almost totally unknown to foreign tourists.
Honestly don't know what costs are for group events in the towns I mentioned. But costs for accommodations tend to be low because even those these are charming towns, they are almost totally unknown to foreign tourists.
Jun 6th, 2014, 12:16 PM
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Might this place be affordable? It has an excellent location in terms of transportation for day trips.
http://www.artemuraresidence.com/en-index.htm
http://www.artemuraresidence.com/en-index.htm
Jun 6th, 2014, 02:04 PM
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We are in the process of organizing a wedding in Italy too. I have found this company to be very helpful, very responsive and well organized.
http://www.distinctiveitalyweddings.com/
For US citizens, there is a lot of legal paperwork that has to be done. Birth certificates have to be translated into Italian by a certified translator; the translated birth certificates have to have an apostile stamp (provided by the Secretary of State in which we reside); then the bride and groom have to have an appointment at the Italian Consulate in our state for another legal document; THEN all that gets e-mailed to Italy for the wedding planner to check that all is in good form. THEN the bride and groom and wedding planner meet with some official in Italy for another legal meeting, then another meeting, THEN they can get married --- and this is all for a CIVIL ceremony. The company provides the interpreter for the wedding ceremony.
If you want a Catholic wedding, there is even MORE documentation/legalities within the Catholic church; and a waiting period of 3-9 months (if I remember correctly) because the groom is not Catholic).
AND if the bride has been married before, Italy requires her to wait 300 days before marrying in Italy.
Probably more than you wanted to know, BUT it's not a matter of just picking a spot -- oh yeah, there are certain areas you are allowed to be married in Italy! You can't just pick a spot and get married there. It has to be in a church or someplace sanctioned by the local government.
Good luck!! I would encourage you to e-mail the company I linked above to get more information. We are doing the 360 Service as we only need assistance with a VERY SMALL civil wedding, but they have all different levels of offerings.
http://www.distinctiveitalyweddings.com/
For US citizens, there is a lot of legal paperwork that has to be done. Birth certificates have to be translated into Italian by a certified translator; the translated birth certificates have to have an apostile stamp (provided by the Secretary of State in which we reside); then the bride and groom have to have an appointment at the Italian Consulate in our state for another legal document; THEN all that gets e-mailed to Italy for the wedding planner to check that all is in good form. THEN the bride and groom and wedding planner meet with some official in Italy for another legal meeting, then another meeting, THEN they can get married --- and this is all for a CIVIL ceremony. The company provides the interpreter for the wedding ceremony.
If you want a Catholic wedding, there is even MORE documentation/legalities within the Catholic church; and a waiting period of 3-9 months (if I remember correctly) because the groom is not Catholic).
AND if the bride has been married before, Italy requires her to wait 300 days before marrying in Italy.
Probably more than you wanted to know, BUT it's not a matter of just picking a spot -- oh yeah, there are certain areas you are allowed to be married in Italy! You can't just pick a spot and get married there. It has to be in a church or someplace sanctioned by the local government.
Good luck!! I would encourage you to e-mail the company I linked above to get more information. We are doing the 360 Service as we only need assistance with a VERY SMALL civil wedding, but they have all different levels of offerings.
Jun 6th, 2014, 02:42 PM
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Honestly, my American friends who went through this process did not find it that much more a huge deal than getting the right license to get married in America. Yes, they had to provide translations of their birth certificate to the nearest Italian consulate in the US and prove who they were and not married to other people, but they didn't use a planner. I have nothing against planners, but just reporting they didn't use one. As for the meetings you will need in Italy before US officials, you can make appointments for that online with the consulate in Milan.
One important thing to know is that if you start the process too early, your documents could expire before the wedding ceremony. You should consult with the Italian embassy or consulate in Ireland nearest to you about when you should start getting things notarized.
Throughout the world, you need to go through a legal process to obtain a legal marriage certifcate from a government. In Italy, you are required to be married by a town official at town hall UNLESS you are married by a priest in a church. Is it all that different in Ireland? It would sort of a mess if people could hop from country to country and get married many times and no one was keeping track!
The law in Italy requires that you understand the legal ceremony and what you are agreeing to. Again, it would be something of a mess if people could take a girl or a boy to another country where they don't understand the language and trick them into being married! So if you don't speak Italian, then you must accept the presence of the translator so when you say °I do° it is clear you understand what you are agreeing to.
It all makes sense to me. I am sorry that some churches in Italy do not marry people from out of town, but maybe they would be overwhelmed with requests if their churches are very pretty. (Never did understand the thinking of churches. Sorry!)
One important thing to know is that if you start the process too early, your documents could expire before the wedding ceremony. You should consult with the Italian embassy or consulate in Ireland nearest to you about when you should start getting things notarized.
Throughout the world, you need to go through a legal process to obtain a legal marriage certifcate from a government. In Italy, you are required to be married by a town official at town hall UNLESS you are married by a priest in a church. Is it all that different in Ireland? It would sort of a mess if people could hop from country to country and get married many times and no one was keeping track!
The law in Italy requires that you understand the legal ceremony and what you are agreeing to. Again, it would be something of a mess if people could take a girl or a boy to another country where they don't understand the language and trick them into being married! So if you don't speak Italian, then you must accept the presence of the translator so when you say °I do° it is clear you understand what you are agreeing to.
It all makes sense to me. I am sorry that some churches in Italy do not marry people from out of town, but maybe they would be overwhelmed with requests if their churches are very pretty. (Never did understand the thinking of churches. Sorry!)
Jun 6th, 2014, 03:11 PM
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I got curious, and looked up getting married in Ireland. It's not just a breeze!
http://www.irelandforvisitors.com/ar...in_ireland.htm
http://www.irelandforvisitors.com/ar...in_ireland.htm
Jun 6th, 2014, 10:39 PM
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The Guardian news paper ran a feature today about inexpensive stays in Tuscany, and they mentioned this place, which is 30 minutes by bus or tram outside of Florence, but in the countryside. Might be too homey for some people's idea of a wedding, but if you wanted something sweet and very Italian (they will cook dinners on request), this might be memorable. The property doesn't have a lot of bedroom, but it is so close to Florence that guests could stay there. You can see pictures and read reviews here
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...e_Tuscany.html
http://www.theguardian.com/travel/20...budget-tuscany
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...e_Tuscany.html
http://www.theguardian.com/travel/20...budget-tuscany
Jun 7th, 2014, 02:43 AM
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Hi all I'm going to look through the last few links and ideas you have posted today- we had started to look at other countries last night as the cost and lack of options to meet out criteria in Tuscany seemed slim, a wedding planer there has warned that finding a villa/hotel for us all in walking distance of a town with a bar and restaurant on site for a wedding will be tough!
but think my heart wants Italy so the search continues- really appreciate all the insights given here.
I'm just so keen to not add pressure to guests of added costs or too much travel but the whole point of going going together is to spend time in the same place while also enabling people to do their own thing on some days! The choices are overwhelming- if I can narrow it down we will head over to view the options later in the summer. The villas you can rent for one day are looking at €2000 to rent plus meal then cost to get there from a base town so I'm not sure that's the best option either.
I'm not wild on the idea of marrying here then having a blessing there I would prefer to do it all at once if we can.... Looks like there's lots to consider!
Going to look more at Rome and Bari and maybe Bergamo- Rome would be very handy for guests but lack of options for pools etc might hinder that, (prob have 10 children in our group so would like to have pool) a few planners have recommended Sorrento but I wasn't mad about it when we went last year, loved Amalfi but just too hard logistically to get everyone too! Phew- so much to consider....
but think my heart wants Italy so the search continues- really appreciate all the insights given here.
I'm just so keen to not add pressure to guests of added costs or too much travel but the whole point of going going together is to spend time in the same place while also enabling people to do their own thing on some days! The choices are overwhelming- if I can narrow it down we will head over to view the options later in the summer. The villas you can rent for one day are looking at €2000 to rent plus meal then cost to get there from a base town so I'm not sure that's the best option either.
I'm not wild on the idea of marrying here then having a blessing there I would prefer to do it all at once if we can.... Looks like there's lots to consider!
Going to look more at Rome and Bari and maybe Bergamo- Rome would be very handy for guests but lack of options for pools etc might hinder that, (prob have 10 children in our group so would like to have pool) a few planners have recommended Sorrento but I wasn't mad about it when we went last year, loved Amalfi but just too hard logistically to get everyone too! Phew- so much to consider....
