Weddings in Crete: The Blog
December 2010
After a most fantastic November, apparently the best since 1926 - and yes we do know you are all suffering in the North - our weather at last broke on Friday 10th December. The White Mountains have been bare of snow since May but are now shining brilliant white in the December sun (yes the rain didn't last more than a couple of days ... although the temperature has dropped and we are now wearing coats!!)
Greeks like everyone else are getting ready for Christmas, but with a heavier heart this year as Christmas bonuses and pay in general have been cut. As an island relying heavily on tourism it is a shame not more people think of Crete in the winter, especially as our winters seem to be getting warmer, and this year swimmers could be seen all through November.
We have one Christmas wedding this year, a few days before Christmas- very small and intimate in the Chapel of St Lazarus in Rethymnon.
Couples who have written to us will know that we are very flexible with venues - we are happy to go where our brides want! However we always try to be honest about the venue - if for example we know there are 90 steps down to the church, we will tell you, so your Granny doesn't find out on a boiling evening in August. As mentioned on another wedding planning site there is a charming little chapel at the end of a walkway in the sea in Georgiopolis; it looks absolutely great in the photos. What you cant see is firstly how rocky the 'walkway' is - its not a question of walking, it s a question of clambering! There is an option to take a boat but that of course limits your guest numbers. You also can't see how small the chapel is and how little room there is for a ceremony with more than a very few guests. It is possible the walkway will be improved this summer and really become walkable ... all I know is that it has been like that for as long as I have lived here (twenty five years) and any couples considering this chapel as a venue either with us or with other wedding planners should know these facts! Beautiful, but limited.
It just remains then to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ... Have a look at our new video
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November 2010
This month we have had time to work a little more on our site and the internet ... and we decided to put a few
slide shows on youtube. Two so far, with more to come, to give you a better idea of what getting married in Crete
is all about, and also to see how individual each wedding is ... Have a look at
Video 1 and
Video 2.
As bespoke wedding planners, we pride ourselves on our ability to arrange a wedding wherever YOU may want
rather than sticking to certain venues because it is easier for US ... we also do not have deals with tavernas or
hotels, so we do not push specific reception venues either. Of course there are certain hotels and restaurants
we particularly recommend, but we are always happy to work with your choice of hotel or villa, and when couples
want their favourite taverna we are happy to work with them.
It is hard to choose a wedding planner when you are in a completely different country - so when you are
thinking about how to choose have in mind what your priority is - is it good personal communication, is it a
particular venue, is it the lowest price? And don't forget to check out the testimonies!
And how is November in Crete? So far, warm, sunny and better than October - we could have had some lovely weddings
this month, but with the same risk as a wedding in summer in the UK ... may be sunny, may be pouring! Nearly all
tourists have gone now, and life is much quieter as the Cretans recover from another hectic summer and prepare for 2011!
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October 2010
We have just finished our summer weddings for 2010 and can now update the website properly - we will be adding a
Wedding Blessing page for couples who want to marry in their own country but would like a full blessing ceremony
here in Crete. This can be conducted by a Protestant priest, or by a celebrant. Couples who want to renew their
vows may also want to have a Crete blessing, especially if they missed out on a big wedding for whatever reason..
We have also been approached by the management of the Cretan Aquarium to organise weddings IN the aquarium,
in front of the shark tank! Well whatever the couples want ...
Finally I wanted to mention www.sayido.org, a site organised by
Cancer Research UK, which gives you the opportunity to order wedding favours or choose donations as
presents ... a great idea for a great cause.
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September 2010
September has been a very busy month for us so not a lot of time in the office! As the end of the 2010 season
comes couples for 2011 are fixing their dates and letting their guests know their wedding plans ... it is important
to sort your date as early as possible for two reasons - to make sure your wedding planner is not already booked,
and for your guests to have plenty of time to organise their own accommodation ...
Weddings in Crete is always very busy in late May and June, and then again in September so if you are thinking
of these months don't delay as there are not a lot of dates left.
As for weather, this month has been amazingly hot but with continued threats of thunderstorms ... which never
materialised. At the last minute we changed the reception venue for our couple last Friday due to rain threats ...
and of course in the end the weather was perfect. The reception was a great success anyway, with our couple having
the restaurant all to themselves and their guests!
When a couple book with us we send a lot of wedding information as well as our planning sheet, all designed
to encourage the couple to think about the many options available here in Crete. We have recently discussed
adding to this; having seen some grooms in black suits in the middle of July or August, and some bridesmaids in
heavy satin long dresses we just want to remind our brides that the weather here can be really hot,
and nobody looks good in a photograph if they are dripping with sweat ... formal weddings are great in the UK,
but linen suits are the most a couple should go for ... and remember, if you want to join in the Greek dancing later,
your dress should be easy to move in!!
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August 2010
August the hottest month ... and the busiest in Crete, with many mainland Greeks on holiday as well as all the
tourists. All our weddings were from the UK this month, but they were all different- one with caterers, one
taverna reception and one restaurant. However, each of these couples had a full ceremony to mark their joining
together in marriage, regardless of how many guests they had and whether or not they had the short Town Hall
ceremony first.
We always have a pre-wedding meeting with our clients so that they know what to expect on their special day,
even though they may not understand Greek. We want our couples to know exactly what is happening during their
day and for them to be able to discuss and confirm the arrangements we have made for them.
We have recently had the misfortune to have accidentally witnessed another planning company at work and
overheard the bride ask her fiancé if they were now married. In fact they had just signed an application
form! .Unfortunately, the couple did not know what they were signing and their 'planner' certainly did not
think to inform them. We certainly would not expect a couple to have to wait around in 40o C in full wedding
dress and suits in an area with no air-conditioning for at least 15 minutes, whilst the wedding planner sorts
out the paperwork and learns where the venue is!
Of course the amount of planning and attention to detail that we put in to each wedding means that we are
not the cheapest company. However, your wedding day is important and the memories of that day are priceless
and can never be repeated. From what we have seen of some of the weddings we have not organised, it really
is true you get what you pay for.
As Greek speaking Brits we understand both the Northern European culture and the need for detail, along with the relaxed and the wonderful Greek way of life, so you have the best of both worlds from us. Our advice to each couple is to read very carefully what your wedding planner is offering to do for you and make sure you understand exactly what will happen on your special day.
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July 2010
June was a really busy month for us and before we knew it July had arrived!
Weddings and blessings with couples from all over the world, ranging from Ireland to Canada to France to Norway.
And one Norwegian couple even asked for a Mamma Mia type wedding with Abba music and one hundred guests in white -
quite a sight and a very happy wedding, with all the guests singing and dancing to Abba!!
In fact June and July seem to be Scandinavian months, when lots of our couples are from Norway and we are
getting quite used to toastmasters, many speeches in Norwegian and hard partying at the end ...
We have also used several new venues in the Chania area; all with their own charm and beauty.
A bit of a break now for the rest of July before the hottest month, August, when all the Greeks are on holiday
too (and the Town Hall officials) ... which gives us time to complete the planning for our September and October
weddings. We started early this year with a February wedding and will end early with a December wedding!
Weather not guaranteed but the party will be!
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May 2010
While all the news of Greece is negative, and frightening images of riots appear in your newspapers and on
the net, here in Crete there is very little evidence of any difference from any other tourist season ... yes the
petrol is more expensive, and yes there are strikes which inconvenience, but the sun and the sea are still as
beautiful, and the taverna prices are still low.
It seems there is a bigger threat to Crete's economic status from volcanic ash!
The Cretans are a resilient people, having been occupied for 400 years, and the economic threat now facing
them will not defeat their determinedness to enjoy life, however little they have. As some have pointed out to me,
the sun and the sea will always be free, who really needs more ... and for those thinking of getting married in
Crete, that 'Mamma Mia' spirit will always be there ...
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April 2010
Spring and Easter come together and here are 2 images taken in Aptera village last week ...
Although the news is still very much about the recession, the irrepressible Cretan spirit made Easter
the huge festival it usually is s here.
As everybody gets ready for the start of the tourist season sleepy seaside resorts suddenly
come alive with people, which makes life easier for a wedding planner who cannot organise
tavern receptions, boat trips, and little train transport when no one is there yet!
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March 2010
After an amazingly hot February, we have officially moved into Spring - Flowers everywhere but the weather not
quite so hot - better for the flowers of course.
Now that Greece seems to be headline news everywhere I want to say that what is happening in Greece is
definitely being exaggerated in the foreign press - The idea of the whole country being brought to a stand
still is laughable but having said that, yes we are having general strikes. For example, on March 11th, according
to the BBC, Greece practically shut down. Well, my daughter still went to school, my friends who are civil
servants still went to work - however Athens airport was closed. Anybody due to arrive in
Athens yesterday was offered alternative flights ... I do not know if or when they will strike again but
I think that the numbers taking parts in these strikes are reducing every time ...
I will keep updating the Blog, so you can hear if the strikes are really affecting life in Crete ...
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February 2010
February and a busy month in Greece - Carnival month! And for us our first wedding of 2010 will take place on
16th February in Rethymnon, so we are hoping the sunny weather we have had so far this month continues!
For those of you planning on getting married between end of May and September, Easyjet are now selling
direct flights to Chania airport four times a week. These flights are of course in addition to the charter
flights operated by other companies which usually arrive on a Tuesday.
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January 2010
Sorry to all those following what Weddings in Crete is up to during the Winter ... I didn't manage to
do a December note as the first half of my month was taken up with preparations for our Christmas trip to the UK ...
and it was a lovely break, cold and snowy but very pretty and luckily snow did not inconvenience us at all.
Back from -3o to 20º !!! Christmas in Crete was apparently hot and many were swimming on Boxing Day!
Perhaps couples that want winter weddings should reconsider Crete in November and December - visit our beautiful
island when there are no tourists and enjoy Crete as the Cretans do!
January came and while the North of Europe freezes we still enjoyed high temperatures and lots of sun for the
first half of this winter month ... only now in middle January are we seeing some rain!
Lots of couples are now enquiring for 2011 and we are taking bookings already, although of
course it is hard for us to give estimates of costs when the season of 2010 has not begun yet! There are even
some late bookers for 2010. When we can we do try to help late bookers; but if they choose very
popular times then we cannot - bespoke weddings require a lot of time and attention so that every couple get the
day they dream of, and we can only achieve this by limiting the bookings we take.
If you are thinking of getting married this year, consider October, as the weather is still great, there are
not many tourists around, and you can travel cheaper ...
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