The Reality of Planning a Wedding in Italy from the UK

Planning a marriage in Italy from the UK might sound like a frightening and overwhelming task, or it would sound like essentially the most exciting thing you may possibly do. To inform the reality, it’s more likely to be each! Many couples embark on the marriage planning process stuffed with enthusiasm, and quickly stumble across unexpected hurdles which might be specific to wedding planning in Italy. As expert destination wedding planners with over a decade’s experience in Italy, we’ve seen a thing or two – and we’ve put together this guide to the reality of planning your Italian wedding from right here within the UK.

You’ll find our advice on whether or to not work with a marriage planner (and deciding where they must be based), and five unexpected things you need to be aware of before you start based on our experience.

Side note: we also work with English speaking couples from world wide, particularly the US and Europe!

Do you wish a marriage planner if planning a marriage in Italy from the UK?

The short answer is an emphatic yes but, as UK-based Italian destination wedding planners, we might say that wouldn’t we? Our top three reasons planning a marriage in Italy from the UK is a lot easier with an authority planner in your side are as follows…

Working on the belief that you simply’ve never planned a marriage before, it’s hard to grasp the quantity of hours and energy that may go into it. Add within the indisputable fact that you’re marrying in another country and you’ll be able to easily 1.5x that. Just as you wouldn’t perform dentistry on your individual teeth or install a brand new kitchen yourself, we don’t recommend attempting to plan such a crucial life event with no prior knowledge either. Especially in Italy – you’ll be able to jump ahead to our 5 unexpected things to concentrate on when planning a marriage in Italy to see why.

Secondly, as wedding planning professionals we have now a pre-existing bank of contacts and suppliers in Italy – people we trust and have worked with before, and due to this fact people we all know will deliver beyond expectation in your wedding day. As a pair approaching supplier searching in Italy, you simply won’t have the identical access or options.

‘Michelle accessed suppliers that I couldn’t even get to reply the phone or send me a quote.’ – Mother of the Bride, recent Elegante by Michelle J wedding

Finally, you’ll definitely must take not less than a few trips to Italy throughout the planning process – I all the time accompany my couples on a venue viewing trip, and one other detailed planning trip on the minimum – and organising an efficient itinerary for these visits is vital. Going together with your wedding planner means you get to have all of the enjoyable experiences of menu tasting, absorbing the atmosphere of those magical Italian wedding venues, and tasting the wine selection at various beach clubs (research to your welcome party, after all), while we ask all of the relevant questions, scour your contracts for issues, and make the very best use of our time to progress your planning journey.

Must you hire a UK-based or local Italian planner when planning a marriage in Italy from the UK?

Deciding whether to work with a UK-based or local Italian planner is more of a private selection, but we’re going to advocate for selecting someone in your property country. Planning a marriage in Italy from the UK with a planner near home has the next benefits:

We speak English, so there’s no communication barrier*
We keep familiar working hours and are easy to achieve via phone and email
It’s easy for us to fulfill up repeatedly throughout the planning process
We’re experienced and acquainted with travelling to, from and around Italy as visitors, and so are well placed to provide help to and your guests with advice on transport and accommodation

*Did : once you work with Elegante by Michelle J to plan an Italian wedding from the UK, we work closely with our Italian planning associate as our ‘boots on the bottom’ – the very best of each worlds!

5 unexpected things to concentrate on when planning a marriage in Italy from the UK

Italy makes people fall head over heels in love (myself included) and having your wedding there’s the epitome of romance. Nonetheless, couples are sometimes surprised after they begin the planning process and certain things will not be as they expect. We’ve outlined 5 unexpected things to concentrate on when planning a marriage in Italy from the UK, to make the road to your unforgettable celebrations somewhat smoother.

High-End, Italian Style

What does luxury mean to you? In the event you’re from London you most likely associate 5* with the likes of the Savoy hotel – silver service, all of the mod cons and a curated aesthetic. In Italy, luxury accommodation can feel and appear different to what we’re used to – their very own charming version of high end. While the main cities will normally host well-known luxury hotels (the 4 Seasons, for instance), many top-class properties retain an authenticity that exudes its own very specific style of charm.

In the event you’re in search of a marriage venue that really feels Italian, be prepared for the usual of mod cons and residential comforts to be different – it’s splendour and excellence, just in the way in which only the Italians could possibly achieve.

Take a take a look at this Savoy hotel wedding we planned earlier in 2024.

Browse our 2023 portfolio of Tuscan weddings.

Seasonality

Naturally, most couples love the thought of getting married in the peak of summer. In the event you’re planning a marriage in Italy from the UK on a winter’s morning, fascinated with how lovely it’ll be in the midst of August in Florence, our advice is: don’t! The rationale for that is twofold.

Firstly, it gets hot. It would look like an incredible idea once you’re cuddling a cup of tea under a blanket, but the truth of being wearing your finest wedding day outfit with makeup running down your face when it’s 35 degrees in your wedding day isn’t a lot fun.

Secondly, in case your wedding is going down in a tourist hotspot equivalent to one in all the Lakes or a city like Rome or Venice, you’re going to be competing with hordes of tourists who also need to stay in the identical hotels, eat at the identical restaurants and even perhaps go searching the realm near your venue.

We recommend selecting the stunning shoulder season months like May/June or September/October, when the weather is ideal and the college holidays are over – you and your guests can be more comfortable and relaxed.

Alternative and Standard of Suppliers

We’re going to be very frank with this one, and say that in Italy (particularly within the more rural or distant areas) you just can’t expect the identical variety or standard of wedding suppliers that you simply find within the UK, US or Australia. The marriage industry in Italy hasn’t expanded or developed at the identical rate as ours, and couples often find that there are less options to pick from inside a selected category (e.g. florists or make up artists).

To be clear, we’re not saying that suppliers in Italy aren’t pretty much as good as within the UK – removed from it! We work with some truly world-class wedding suppliers on our couples’ celebrations in Italy, achieving incredible results with wow factor. The very fact is though, there aren’t as a lot of them and the choices for more bespoke or personal items is restricted. Lots of our couples decide to fly in not less than a few of their suppliers from the UK, as we’re often unable to fulfill all our requirements using solely local vendors.

Differences in Supplier Roles

As regards to suppliers, it’s not unusual to search out that those in Italy can have very different ideas about who does what at your wedding. Examples of this include florists who’re also liable for all of the decor at your wedding (candles, signage etc), strict lists of suppliers which might be allowed to work at a selected venue, and even the role of your wedding planner. This is just not necessarily a nasty thing, it just means everybody must be very clear about who does what, when and learn how to avoid any confusion or mix ups on the massive day.

Cultural Differences

Finally, when planning a marriage in Italy from the UK it’s essential to do not forget that you’re not operating with British customs, traditions and cultural norms. You’ll must respect and accommodate the Italian way of working, which implies embracing long lunch breaks, different working hours and attitudes, and disparities in expected timelines.

Hiring expert help (in the shape of a destination wedding planner) will assist with any language or cultural barriers and differences. We’ve been working in Italy for over a decade, and are well used to and versed in what must occur to make sure a harmonious and enjoyable experience for everybody involved!

Planning a marriage in Italy from the UK is an exciting experience, and one we love to provide our couples. In the event you’re in search of expert wedding planning support so as to add somewhat dolce vita to your Italian wedding, get in contact below – we’re booking for 2025 and 2026 dates.