Dominican Republic Weddings

Dominican Republic Weddings-2

Dominican Republic weddings can give you the blue skies, turquoise sea and Caribbean sunsets.

Many major resorts have now been arranging weddings for years and have specialist staff to arrange the whole thing. Most packages will include the judge [registrar], license, flowers, music, cake, champagne and special extras in your room.

The Dominican Republic can offer locations to complete with any other Caribbean weddings. Playa Dorada in the north has many resorts which offer beautiful settings for wedding ceremonies and impressive ballrooms for receptions.

The quiet beaches of Bayahibe and La Romana on the Southeast Coast allow for a very private, romantic ceremony. On the easternmost tip of the country lies the tropical paradise of Punta Cana, in my view a perfect wedding location.

Wedding day ideas

* A pre-wedding breakfast or brunch.

* A casual, morning gathering at the hotel for your party.

* Massage, or spend some time at the hotel spa.

* Beauty salon for manicure and hairstyling.

* If at an all inclusive the drinks tab is usually taken care of.

Pros and Cons of Dominican Republic weddings

Pros

1. You can get married on a tropical island, no horrid weather!

2. Going away can be less expensive. Obviously you will splash on hotels and flights etc but not usually large numbers of guests etc.

3. Tie the knot together, celebrate with family and friends when you get home. No risk of those `invitation` issues!

4. The wedding/honeymoon is all in one.

Cons

1. Not all your friends and family will be able to see you get married on your big day

2. Many hotels perform more than one ceremony each day. You may share the limelight with other wedding parties.

3. You need to swot up on legalities.

4. Getting married involves transporting everything for your wedding isn't always easy [ie perishables].

Legalities

These apply to UK passport holders with respect to Dominican Republic weddings:

Marriage license-Submit paperwork to Oficial del Estado Civil for preparation of marriage certificate[send photocopies in advance and bring the original with you]. You`ll need the following:

* -Passport-10 year
* -Birth/adoption certificate
* -Single status affidavit translated by an official translator into Spanish, if never married-
* -Divorce-decree absolute NB:If bride divorced- 10 mths must have passed since the Decree Absolute granted.

All documents

Dominican Republic weddings(excluding passports)must be legalised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Dominican Embassy Spanish translation of documents-documents must be translated into Spanish by a legal translator showing an official stamp, name and signature.

Witnesses

You will also need two witnesses. If they are non Dominicans they will need to have passports as identification. If they are Dominicans, "cedulas" are sufficient.

Single Status Statutory Declaration

Must have been stamped, signed and dated by a solicitor no more than 3 months before the return date.

Wedding Certificate

May take 3-6 months to be returned to the UK.

After the marriage:

After the ceremony,you will be given a document that proves the wedding took place. You then need to request a marriage certificate from the local Justice of the Peace. The document issued by the Justice of the Peace is a valid marriage certificate anywhere in the world. It will usually be ready a day or two after the ceremony.

All inclusive Dominican republic weddings

Thes are the sorts of services that are normally provided in an all-inclusive wedding:

  1. On-site wedding co-ordinator
  2. Marriage licence and ceremony
  3. Registry fees
  4. Brides bouquet
  5. Grooms button hole
  6. Wedding cake, wine etc

Non all-inclusive weddings

Dominican Republic weddings with peace and quiet?

Consider a small private hotel perhaps in a small mountain enclave in Constanza, a guest house in Playa Grande or Las Galeras, Samana.

Marrying in the Dominican Roman Catholic Church

Your Archbishop may need to request permission from the Archbishop of the Diocese where you would like to marry in the DR. If you are marrying a Dominican, this will not be necessary as the Dominican spouse has an assigned church depending on his/her home town.

San Estanislao Church (Roman Catholic) at Altos de Chavon (seats about 40) in La Romana is chosen by many foreign couples every year. It is not cheap but arrangements can either be made through Casa de Campo or you can go direct as long as you give the priest all the necessary documents at least two months ahead of time. A donation will be required.

Other possibilities for churches for Dominican Republic weddings:

* San Estanislao Church in Altos de Chavon (La Romana)
* Basilica La Altagracia, Higuey, La Altagracia (Punta Cana)
* Cathedral of Puerto Plata
* Sosua Synagogue (near Puerto Plata)
* Santo Domingo Synagogue
* Cathedral of Santo Domingo
* Cathedral of Santiago

Dominican Republic weddings

Below:San Estanislao Church in Altos de Chavon