Are you looking for a warm and sunny, naturally beautiful destination for your wedding? Why not tie the knot in the Algarve, on the southern coast of Portugal?
This beautiful part of Europe is a very popular location for destination weddings. The Algarve region is well known for getting approximately 3,000 hours of sunshine per year, which makes the chances very good that your wedding day will be sunny and warm, especially in the high season.
This region has some truly luxurious and elegant facilities which can accommodate everything from a huge wedding celebration to an intimate get-together of your friends and family. There are also plenty of cheap flights from the UK offered by discount airlines such as Jet2 and Ryanair, making it easy for your entire family to afford to attend your wedding.
Here are some tips that will help ensure that your Algarve destination wedding goes smoothly:
- Start planning your wedding early to give yourself lots of time to sort out all of the details. Also, you can ask the hotel, resort or restaurant if they give discounts for early bookings.
- When it comes to weather in the Algarve, this region is beautiful and sunny all year round. However, December – February are the wettest months and are slightly cooler, especially in the evenings. July and August are the hottest months and the temperature will be above 30 degrees Celsius and the beaches will be crowded. The ideal climate for a wedding would be in the shoulder seasons of spring or autumn when the conditions will be just right.
- Your guests might want to bring you wedding gifts, but you will not want to work out the logistics of bringing everything back from the Algarve. You could suggest that your guests donate to your honeymoon fund instead.
- If you are flying to Faro with a discount airline, be aware that they often have very strict requirements regarding how much baggage weight you will be allowed and they can charge you steep fees if you go over.
- You will need to apply for a wedding license in Portugal, so make sure that you have this process underway well before your wedding date. The Portugal Civil Registry Code has very specific requirements you must meet. You will need to submit your documents such as birth certificates and passports, so you will need to get started on this process well in advance.
- It is a good idea to take a quick trip down to the Algarve to look around at your wedding venue before the big day, so that you can make sure that it is exactly what you want.
- It can be much easier to have all of your guests stay in the same accommodation, as this will result in fewer transport fees and create an atmosphere for your guests to mingle.
- While your guests are in the Algarve, they might enjoy participating in some of the fun activities available here, from golf to spa days to boat trips.
- The stunning beaches and peaceful historical fishing villages of the Algarve make for a great backdrop for wedding photos. Why not take photos in the daytime as well as at sunset, so that you can capture a full range of different moods?
These are just a few tips to keep in mind when you are planning your dream wedding in the beautiful Algarve. The best thing about getting married in the Algarve is that when the festivities are over, you are already in the perfect place to start enjoying your honeymoon.
Are you considering a destination wedding at Vale do Lobo or another beautiful Algarve resort? Here are some tips to help with planning.