It was beautiful scenes like this, from my recent holiday in Spain, that really got me thinking about how gorgeous a wedding destination it would make. However, getting married abroad doesn’t come without its questions – so who better to ask than the lovely Angela Valtueña from Catalonia Weddings Boutique. Being the first London based Spanish wedding boutique, with over 10 years of experience coupled with a wealth of knowledge about all things Spain, here are her tips and advice for holding your wedding under the Spanish sun.
Catalonia as a wedding destination
Spain is a very well known tourist destination for British people due to the weather, the food and wine and the charismatic and joy of its people, among others stereotypes such as “la siesta” and “la fiesta”. However, rather surprisingly Spain is not so popular as a wedding destination, even though it’s just 2 hours away from the UK and offers a climate and landscapes that you couldn’t ever imagine!
Catalonia is one of the most beautiful areas of Spain, located on the northeast of the country and having Barcelona as its capital. With over 500km of breathtaking Mediterranean coast, Catalonia is the perfect destination to hold an unforgettable wedding thanks to its history, its natural beauty, its different landscapes and its gastronomy. Actually, Catalonia is a region renowned for its outstanding cuisine and one of the top culinary destinations in the world.
Catalonia Weddings Boutique Ltd
Catalonia Weddings Boutique brings you closer to BARCELONA and the Mediterranean. It’s the first Spanish Wedding Boutique, based in LONDON, which focuses exclusively on arranging weddings in Catalonia (Spain) and its breathtaking and diverse landscapes.
Catalonia Weddings Boutique offers an integral, professionalised, customised and turnkey service to make sure that you have the wedding of your dreams and that you can enjoy every single moment of your most special day!
What does Catalonia Weddings Boutique (CWB) make different?
- Based in London & Catalonia: CWB operates from both London & Catalonia. The management is based in the UK & the execution in Catalonia.
- Knowledge of the Spanish Wedding Market and Catalonia: CWB has a close relationship with a wide range of amazing and high quality venues such as 5 star luxury and charming hotels, medieval castles, monasteries, typical Catalan villas and, much more, that will ensure the best possible service in the location of the your choice. Moreover, CWB has native know-how of the region’s culture, tradition, landscapes, gastronomy & legalities.
- Customized Service: CWB works with a reduced number of couples to offer the highest quality service. According to this, CWB doesn’t offer standard packages but all weddings are tailored to the couples’ preferences.
- Transparency & Closeness: CWB always listens to the couples’ ideas to make sure that the wedding fulfils their expectations. The way CWB works is 100% transparent.
- Professional Background: CWB is managed by Angela Valtueña, an expert in marketing, communication and event organisation with more than 10 years of professional experience. CWB brings a professional approach to wedding organisation.
Some tips when planning your wedding in Spain
Here are some tips that will guide you in planning your wedding in Catalonia:
- Weather: Catalonia provides flexibility when it comes to choosing your wedding day thanks to its benign climate, with many warm sunny days throughout the year and a low average rainfall. Spring and autumn are seasons of colour and contrast, with moderate temperatures (13-17ºC) and temperatures in summer are a pleasant 25ºC, although they can rise to above 30ºC. However, it’s not recommended holding your wedding during July or August because it’s too warm, it’s peak season and it’s overcrowded.
- Legalities: In Spain, both civil and religious weddings are legally recognised. However, civil ceremonies require a minimum period of residency in Spain (2 years roughly). For this reason, it would be convenient that you formalise your marriage at a Registry Office in your country of residence beforehand and then celebrate the symbolic or blessing wedding ceremony in Spain. This option is very popular even among the Spaniards who decide to hold the legal civil ceremony at a non-glamorous City Hall on a different day. Then their “real” wedding day usually takes place in a beautiful venue, the place where both the symbolic ceremony and the banquet will be held.
- Languages: Catalan people speak Catalan and Spanish. Unfortunately, nowadays there are still a lot of them that cannot speak English.
- Professional advice: It’s very important to have professional and native advice when you are planning your wedding in Spain/Catalonia. It’s crucial to know the language, the legalities and bureaucracy, the venues and all kind of suppliers who can give an answer to your needs.
- Timing: 1 year in advance should be enough to plan your wedding in Spain as long as you are sure about what you want. You must bear in mind that you should visit Catalonia, preferably 2 times, before your wedding in order to select the venue and the church (if it’s religious) in the first instance and later on for the décor, tasting menu or the hair trial. But, this is not mandatory and it depends on your availability.
- Slump in the euro: Due to the economic crisis, now is a good time to get married in Spain. Regardless of the current situation, getting married in Spain/Catalonia is more cost-effective than doing it in the UK.
If you want more information about getting married in Spain or if you need more reasons to make the decision, please, do not hesitate to contact me. I will be more than happy to answer all of them. Trust Catalonia Weddings Boutique and your wedding day will be an amazing, different and sunny experience in Spain!!
Contact Details
Angela Valtueña
Managing Director
Catalonia Weddings Boutique Ltd
Email. angela.valtuena@cataloniaweddings.com
Tele. +44 (0) 7794 868 002 // +34 675 953 251
Skype: cataloniaweddings
Web: www.cataloniaweddingsboutique.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cataloniaweddingsboutique
Twitter: cataloniaWED
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