Free Wedding Guide - Sophisticated Weddings

Our Guide to Getting Married
on the Amalfi Coast
Tell me about the Amalfi Coast
Sophisticated Weddings Top Ten Reasons to get married on the Amalfi Coast
When is the best time to get married?
Transport & Travel
Civil and Symbolic Ceremonies
What are the legal requirements for British Citizens?
Can we marry in Church?
What choices are there for our venues?
How do we pay suppliers and venues?
What do we need to budget?
How does the planning process work?
When should we send our save the date cards?
Do we need wedding insurance?
Optional Extras
Why use Sophisticated Weddings to plan our wedding?
Tell me about the Amalfi Coast
Sophisticated Weddings are specialist wedding
planners in Sorrento and across the Amalfi Coast,
Italy; an incredibly alluring and beautiful part
of the world in which to get married. Every twist
and turn along the Amalfi Coast brings you to
another incredible destination. Positano, Sorrento,
Ravello and Amalfi are glamourous resorts
settled amongst lemon trees and olive groves,
all offering breathtaking scenery with cliffs that
plunge straight into the sea. This stretch of coast
is steeped in history having been inspiration for
poets, painters and musicians alike. Romanticised
in the 1960s, it was also famous for attracting
Hollywood movie stars such as Greta Garbo who
came to escape the paparazzi. Few places in the
world can surpass the Amalfi Coast’s spectacular
allure with quiet bays, stunning scenery and
crystal blue seas. We certainly can’t think of a
better place to get married!
Top 10 reasons to marry
on the Amalfi Coast
The Scenery
Upon arriving at one of my venues, Villa Antiche Mura in Sorrento, I
remember being blown away by the incredible view as I walked up the
steps of the villa and looked out over the sea across the bay of Naples.
My stomach literally turned over and I could only imagine how excited
I would be as a bride, the sun beaming down on the main terrace,
aperitif in hand and all of my loved ones around me. The scenery is
truly breath-taking across the entire Amalfi coast and definitely needs
to be seen to experience the emotion that it instils in you!
The Food
This is Italy so surely this goes without saying! The Italians of course
take great pride in their culinary abilities and the menu suggestions
on offer for your big day are amazing. Four courses, often inclusive
of a speciality wedding cake are pretty standard! A lot of the venues
customise their menus to the bride and groom’s individual tastes so
you can ensure you and your guests are well catered for!
The Wine
Obviously Italy is not just famous for its fresh locally sourced food but
also the wine that compliments it so well.
The Climate
Summer in Italy offers temperatures that won’t disappoint! The climate
in the South of Italy remains mild for most of the year. And even if
you get a rainy day, don’t despair as Italian tradition deems it lucky for
a bride to have rain on her big day. The sun drenched terraces in the
summer months overlooking the bay of Naples make for wonderful
wedding photographs too.
That’s amore!
Italy is renowned for being the country of love and romance! It’s not
unusual to see couples strolling through the piazzas hand in hand,
gazing into each other’s eyes, so what better setting to celebrate your
wedding and love for one another?
It’s not as expensive as you think!
Most venues in Sorrento, Ravello and Positano offer amazing
packages in incredible settings that back in the UK would
undoubtedly cost a small fortune! Your extra budget can be spent
on additional activities such as a boat trip to explore the coast or a
cooking lesson, wine tasting class or just making the most of your
special time spent with friends and family!
Warm hospitality
The tourist industry is very important in the South of Italy and the
Italians are renowned for their warm hospitality. Whether you choose
formal dining for your wedding breakfast or something more relaxed,
be reassured that you will receive the best service from start to finish,
from all of the professionals around you!
Short Flight Time
Flights to Italy from the UK are affordable for most with many
budget airlines offering direct routes from major airports. What’s
more the flight time is usually under 3 hours to Naples so for friends
and family travelling with children they do not have to worry about
lengthy flight times!
Customised to you
Your wedding reception can be as formal or informal as you want it
to be, with the timings of the day to suit your requirements. From
exclusive villas to smaller restaurants, there is a venue to suit every
taste and every budget.
Accommodation options to suit all budgets
Unlike some long haul destinations, Italy can be done on a budget.
Therefore more of your family and friends may be able to make the
trip to share in your magical day!
When is the best time of
year to get married?
Summer is the wedding season in the south of Italy
and the majority of weddings take place between the
months of May to September. This is the perfect time
of year to enjoy long sunny days and warm evenings
and the towns are buzzing with activity and life. Be
warned that July and August are usually exceptionally
warm (reaching into the 30s) so bear in mind the
comfort of your guests during this period. This period
is particularly busy so we would recommend booking a
year in advance to secure your preferred day and time.
Weddings are also available in the low season. Just ask
us for more information.
Transport & Travel
Reaching the Amalfi Coast is straightforward and
there are low cost airlines who fly from most major
airports into Naples International. Transfers are
easily arranged via your wedding planner or there
are buses and trains that can take you into Sorrento
and onwards. Most towns are easily accessible via
bus, train, car, taxi or boat!
Civil and
Symbolic Ceremonies
Sophisticated Weddings offer civil (legally binding)
and symbolic ceremonies. All weddings with legal
validity must take place on a local authority property
(i.e. a town hall) or a venue which has obtained a
legal license to hold a wedding ceremony.
There are a number of locations for your civil
ceremony across the various towns, many offering
outdoor ceremonies with fabulous views. The
ceremony itself is conducted in Italian and by law
there must be an individual to act as a translator
if the bride and groom do not speak Italian. The
ceremony itself is recognised under British and EU
law so there is no need for a separate ceremony in
the UK. The ceremony lasts around 30 minutes.
Symbolic ceremonies can be held in most of our
venues and can be customised however you wish!
What are the legal requirements for
British citizens to marry in Italy?
You cannot start the documentation process earlier than 6
months before your wedding date, or 3 months if you are
resident in Scotland.
There are 4 simple steps that each British national, resident
in the UK, must follow to get the right paperwork for
marrying in Italy.
STEP 1 - CERTIFICATE OF NO IMPEDIMENT (CNI)
You need to obtain a CERTIFICATE OF NO
IMPEDIMENT from your local Registry Office in the
UK giving notice of your marriage and may take upto
28 days to obtain the certificate. It is essential that the
names you give to the Registrar, which will appear on your
Certificates of No Impediment, are exactly the same as
written in your passports. Please take your passport with
you at the Registry Office, just to be absolutely certain.
STEP 2 - THE STATUTORY DECLARATION
While you are waiting for your Certificate of No
Impediment, you should make a statutory declaration
before a solicitor or public notary in the UK. I will attach a
copy of the statutory declaration link to your e-mail.
The declaration is required by the Italian authorities and
gives additional information that isn’t detailed on your
Certificate of No Impediment. Your solicitor or public
notary will charge a fee for this service - fees will vary so it
might be worth shopping around.
STEP 3 - LEGALISING YOUR DOCUMENTS FOR THE
ITALIAN AUTHORITIES
When you have your Certificates of No Impediment and
you have your Statutory Declaration, you need to send
them both by mail to the FCO Legalization Office in
Milton Keynes for each to be legalized with the Hague
Apostille.
STEP 4 - TRANSLATION OF YOUR CERTIFICATE OF
NO IMPEDIMENT IN ITALIAN
Once both these documents have been legalized, please
send me scanned copies of all. My contact in Italy and the
Town Hall Officer will check them. I will inform you if all
is correct and then you will need to send them to me by
courier.
My Italian representative will take care of the translations
of your documents. As they will become Italian legal
documents, they should be translated by a translator based
in Italy officially authorized by the Court and sworn before
the Italian Courts.
Once that is done all the documents will be personally
delivered to the Town Hall.
To summarize, each British national resident in the UK
should have:
• A Certificate of No Impediment – issued in the UK,
legalised in the UK and then translated officially in Italy
• A bilingual Statutory Declaration legalized in the UK
• Passport copies
Please note: Under Italian law, a woman who has been divorced or
widowed and wishes to re-marry in Italy cannot do so until 300 days
have passed from the date of her divorce/death of husband. It is possible,
however, to apply for a dispensation to this through the Civil Law Courts
(Tribunale Civile). Further information should be obtained from the
Town Hall (Comune) of the area where the marriage is to take place and
we can assist you for the application - please contact us for full details.
Please also notice the following :
British Nationals resident in England and Wales marrying an Irish citizen
should follow a different procedure - please contact us for full details.
British Nationals marrying an Italian citizen resident in the UK and
registered on A.I.R.E. (Anagrafe degli Italian Residenti all’Estero) should
make enquiries with the local Italian Consulate in the UK.
Can we marry
in Church?
Due to the fact that religious ceremonies are
predominantly Catholic and also that some
religious ministers have objections to foreign
nationals marrying in certain churches, at present
Sophisticated Weddings only organise civil and
symbolic ceremonies.
What choices are
there for our venues?
There are some incredible venues to host your wedding
reception across the Amalfi Coast, however large or small
your wedding party we have something for everyone. From
restaurants, to hotels to exclusive villas, we will guide you
through all of the options available within your budget and
make recommendations to suit your vision for the day!
We organise weddings of all sizes, from just the bride and
groom, to parties of 200 guests! Have a look at our venues
on our website www.sophisticatedweddings.net and feel free
ask for further information, often we have other suggestions
that may not be listed!
How do we pay the
suppliers and venues?
Venues and suppliers generally ask for a deposit (circa 30%)
upon confirmation and will require this via bank transfer. It
depends on each venue as to when the balance is then due.
Don’t forget to add the VAT as well (IVA in Italy).
Your wedding planner will let you know when payments
are due and provide you with the necessary details.
Payments are made directly by you to the supplier/venue
and payments are only made via Sophisticated Weddings in
certain circumstances with prior agreement from you as
the client.
What do we need
to budget?
The million dollar question! Every wedding is individual
and therefore so is the cost! Bear in mind that the more
guests you have the higher the budget you will need. Your
reception venue will work on a fixed per head menu cost
and then you will need to consider the other elements such
as drinks packages, cars, flowers, transfers, exclusive hire
fees (for certain venues) photography, videography … the
list can be long!
The ceremony costs are fixed and non-negotiable, however
the other aspects of your wedding can be customised to
fit your budget and your wedding planner has plenty of
knowledge of the local areas, vendors and suppliers and will
make suitable recommendations to suit every budget!
Our reception venues start at around 90 euros per head.
How does the planning
process work?
The hardest part of the planning process is
the first stage which is where we coordinate
the ceremony with your chosen reception
venue. We recommend trying to book a year
in advance to help make this part easier. We
will discuss available times and dates with both
your ceremony venue and reception venue
of choice. Deposits are then transferred and
the venue is secured. The second part of the
planning process is once the date is booked and
we then begin to discuss the finer details: cars,
photographers, make-up artists, hairdressers,
flowers etc. This is always the fun part! As the
year progresses we inform you at each stage as
to what documentation we require from you and
what we need to have in place and by when so
there’s no panic!
When should we
send our save the
date cards?
Most of our brides and grooms
will send the save the dates as soon
as we have confirmation that both
the ceremony venue and reception
venue are confirmed and deposits
are paid. That way your guests have
plenty of time to research flights and
accommodation.
Do we need
wedding insurance?
Sophisticated Weddings Ltd is covered by
Professional Indemnity and Public and Products
Liability Insurance. We would recommend you
consider a wedding insurance policy of your own
in addition to your standard travel insurance.
Optional Extras
We can organise special events for you and
your guests in addition to your wedding.
Ask us for more information on boat trips,
rehearsal dinners, pizza parties, girls and boys
nights. We have lots of recommendations in
these areas for you!
Why use
Sophisticated Weddings?
Each and every bride and groom has a different vision of what
constitutes the perfect wedding day and therefore we do not offer
specific packages but tailor each wedding to the clients’ exact
requirements and budget. We believe that your day should be as
unique as you are!
We are specialists in this area and have worked incredibly hard to
build lasting relationships with local people who offer exceptional
levels of service. We have negotiated some competitive prices
along the way to ensure that your dream Italian wedding can be
realised for often less than you may expect. You also have a choice
of suppliers and are not tied in to specific vendors as you may be
with set packages.
Nothing is too much trouble for us at Sophisticated Weddings
and we go the extra mile for ALL of our clients offering a fixed
fee to ensure complete transparency and unlimited access to your
wedding planner, who is on hand to answer your questions and
alleviate any concerns you may have.
Every aspect of your wedding is carefully considered from start
to finish from the ceremony, assistance with the legal paperwork,
venue suggestions, flowers, cars, hair and make-up; we are on hand
every step of the way to ensure your day is seamless. Payments
are made directly to vendors/suppliers to ensure that you know
exactly what you are paying for.
We are English mother tongue and Italian speaking wedding
planners, ensuring that no aspect of your dream Italian wedding is
ever lost in translation.
We are a Limited Company and hold full public liability
insurance.
We love what we do and we believe that our passion in planning
weddings shines through!
Contact me today to start your Italian love story
M | 07875 136132
E | victoria@sophisticatedweddings.net