Expats weddings in Prague

WHY IS WEDDING IN PRAGUE / CZECH REPUBLIC SO POPULAR FOR EXPATS

Weddings in Prague and the Czech Republic in general have gotten very popular in the last few years for multiple reasons. As I’ve organized many destination and expat weddings in the past, I understand the reason why. Guests are always super excited to spend a few days in Prague and actually get to know the city where you’ve been living for some time. Additionally, the city of Prague is super romantic due to its chateaus, cathedrals, winding cobblestone streets, and plenty of wedding venues with beautiful views.

If you want to see all reasons I came up with “why to organize a wedding in Prague,” check them out here.

It is up to you as a couple to decide to plan your wedding on your own or to hire the services of an experienced wedding agency. Furthermore, you also need to think of your expectations from the agency. Do you want help with only the legal legwork and the day-of coordination or would you like to have full wedding planning services?

Don’t hesitate to contact me for assistance in wedding planning services:

Prague wedding planner Lucie Holá, www.luciehola.cz/en, contact HERE

Expats wedding organized by Lucie Hola, the Prague Wedding Planner, www.luciehola.cz/en

DIY WEDDING OR HIRING A WEDDING PLANNER?

If you are an expat living in Prague, you might be able to organize the wedding yourself. However, you have to have enough time and patience to do so. Some suppliers or venue managers don’t speak English well enough or they don’t speak at all, so it might be a bit difficult. Also, it is very stressful to coordinate a larger wedding where most of the guests are coming from abroad.

Many couples decide to forgo the self-planning journey and hire a professional wedding planner to help them with all of the paperwork, assistance with Czech translations, and other wedding planning duties such as finding the right suppliers.

I always prefer to plan every wedding individually as I feel like each couple is unique and has different expectations, taste, and budget. I like to suggest specific suppliers that I think would suite the style and type of personalities of the couple best. Additionally, I recommend multiple venues options that would best fit the couples wedding vision. Then, we also discuss options of the pre-wedding dinner or after-wedding brunch. I strive to make the whole experience for the couple and guests unique and exciting.

Additionally, I plan other details such as wedding design, wedding prints (save the dates, invitations etc.), web pages in multiple languages, and book options for accommodations for the guests. In depth, the couple and I discuss the flowers, decor, cake, sweets and decoration details. Then of course details such as food, drinks, photographer, videographer, transportation for bride & groom and guests, etc.

If you wish for your wedding to be stress-free and relaxing, I highly recommend hiring a wedding planner. This will allow you to spend as much time with your guests visiting from abroad and simply enjoy the moment.

Expats wedding organized by Lucie Hola, the Prague Wedding Planner, www.luciehola.cz/en

WHEN SHOULD YOU BOOK THE WEDDING AGENCY

It is best to book the agency/planner at least 6 months prior to wedding. The wedding venues are usually booked in advance same as the good quality suppliers.

Then of course you need enough time to manage the paperwork, especially if one or both of the couple are foreign to the Czech Republic.

WEDDING EXPO

There are a few wedding expos happening in Prague other Czech cities during the year. If you are planning to organize the wedding yourself, it might be a place to go to get some contacts.

Personally, I don’t recommend it as I know the best, original or stylish suppliers don’t go to those events. The companies attending are not the ones who will individually plan your wedding; they are “wedding-package” based companies who will not offer you anything unique. I would say the expo is only for the couples who aren’t experienced and aren’t after a stylish wedding. However, it is a good place to go if you are looking for a sale on your weddings rings.

VENUES OPTIONS

There are so many options in terms of the wedding venues in Prague and the Czech countryside. You can look at my favourite venue choices here, but of course there are more. You can choose from palaces, chateaus, restaurants, hotels or gardens. If you are looking for an industrial style venue in Prague, there are some options mostly depending on the amount of guests.

You can choose all-inclusive venue where you hold ceremony, reception and accommodation at the same location. Or you can choose two venues and transport your guests in between by historical tram, historical buses, historical cars, boat or just minibuses.

TIP: in the Czech Republic it is forbidden to play loud music outside after 10:00p.m. so I recommend choosing the location where you can either move inside or the whole is kept inside.

Expats wedding organized by Lucie Hola, the Prague Wedding Planner, www.luciehola.cz/en

GOOD TIP FOR YOU: Czechs believe that May marriages will bring them bad luck so they don’t want to get married in this month. That means that some venues and suppliers might be available compared to other months during the wedding season.

The Czech Republic and especially Prague, is one of the most amazing places to get married. The river, city center, historical buildings, views, great food and drinks, and everything else combined makes for an unforgettable experience for the guests and the couple. For expat weddings, it is the best choice because they can be enjoying all the preparations, meet the suppliers, venues and be part of the whole planning process.

If you are thinking of planning a wedding in Prague or outside Prague and you are considering hiring a wedding planner, don’t hesitate to contact me. I will be more than happy to meet you for a coffee and discuss your ideas and possibilities.

All photos are from an “expats canadian-scottish wedding” I planned in Prague.  Testimonials you can find here.


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Wedding ceremony in Prague, Czech Republic (Destination wedding)

One of the most important moments of the wedding day is the ceremony. In Prague there are many venue options for the wedding ceremony. There are plenty of palaces, gardens, terraces, churches in Prague or even outside Prague.

There are few different ways of getting married in the Czech Republic.

  • CHURCH – there are mostly catholic churches in Prague. You can arrange the ceremony in a church / chapel or cathedral.
  • ALTERNATIVE RELIGION – there are other religions which have different rules than the catholic religion and can be organized outside a church anywhere you desire. They can make the ceremony very beautiful and they are open to your ideas of a ceremony.
  • NON-RELIGIOUS – “standard” non-religious ceremony with registry office can be happening in town hall or in other certain locations. There must be an interpreter present during the ceremony.
  • SYMBOLIC – you can hire someone to arrange the ceremony very beautifully and exactly according to your wishes. Also you don’t have to struggle with the paperwork.

No matter how you decide, make the ceremony enjoyable for both you and your guests. It will be an important beginning to the rest of the wedding day.

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As for a Jewish rabbi, from the research I’ve done in a past, it is possible to organize a wedding in a Jewish synagogue only in the case where both bride and groom are Jewish.

Protestant wedding or orthodox Christianity wedding is also possible in the Czech Republic in specific Churches.

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I often organize symbolic wedding ceremonies. A symbolic wedding ceremony is my favorite for many reasons:

  • You don’t need to worry about the paper work as it is sometimes struggle (many nationalities, etc.)
  • You know in advance who will be doing the ceremony and you can discuss and adjust every word said at the ceremony.
  • You can basically tailor the wedding ceremony as per your wishes
  • It can be done in English only (if you have the official registry office they always do it in Czech with English translation)
  • You can organize the wedding anywhere anytime.

PAPERWORK

Wedding paperwork is usually the trickiest part of wedding planning. After you get all the necessary documents, you will have to have everything translated to Czech by a legal translator and depending on your home country, you may need to get them apostilled/notarized. All the necessary documents confirm that the marriage can be lawfully recognized by the native country.

These are the documents which are mostly requested:

  • Birth certificate.
  • Passport or ID which proves the nationality and identity
  • Certificate of no impediment – you may be able to make a sworn statement at your country’s embassy. Be careful – this document may not be older than 6 months at the time of your marriage.
  • Divorce or death certificate, notarized copy, translated
  • Religious documents if needed, mostly for the church
  • Certificate from Czech Foreign Police no longer than seven days prior wedding. It states that you may legally stay in the Czech Republic.

Depending on the country the documents sometimes need to be apostilled/notarized. Overall documentation will vary by nationality especially if you have more nationalities, permanent residence in another country etc.

Whatever type of ceremony you choose I’m here to plan it for you. Feel free to contact me.

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What is the budget for wedding in Prague / in the Czech Republic

“What is the wedding budget?” This is the most frequent question I get from my clients and I understand why. However, it is very difficult to say the exact amount at the beginning of the planning as it depends on so many factors.

Budget mostly depends on details such as

  • Do you pay rental fee for the wedding venue?
  • How much and what quality of food & beverage will there be to meet your expectations?
  • How many guests are you expecting?
  • Does the venue provide chairs & tables or they have to be rented externally?
  • What quality of suppliers are you expecting?

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I would say the average price for a very nice wedding would be around 200 EUR per person. But honestly, it is super difficult to say as it all depends on so many aspects. Each wedding is different as every couple has different expectations. Therefore, some weddings are cheaper and some weddings are more expensive.

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I always compare it to decorating your house or a flat. You can buy very nice furniture and accessories for a low amount of money, an average cost, more expensive or super expensive. It is all about your expectations, personal taste, and decision on what you want to invest in.

I’m here to propose you plenty of possibilities to choose from and tell you which is the best way for you. I always recommend what to invest in and what is not necessary. If you have a wonderful dream elegant chateau wedding in mind and you have a reasonable budget for it, that is the best of course. Then you can go for the best suppliers and really make the DREAM wedding come true.

If you are planning a wedding in the Czech Republic and you are looking for the wedding planner for your dream wedding, don’t hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,

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Prague wedding planner – why to hire the planner? Which one to choose?

WHY SHOULD YOU HIRE A WEDDING PLANNER? AND IF YOU DO SO – WHICH ONE SHOULD YOU CHOOSE?

Have you ever been on a wedding where no-one was in charge of the organization part, guests weren´t sure where to go or what will be happening, you were a bit hungry and really thirsty? Were you bored and there was not enough entertainment?

Those are some of the reasons why it is good to have the wedding planner. Someone who you pass all the responsibility. The wedding planner is then in charge of everything and everybody. I know that the clients can fully rely on me and don´t have to worry about any details. If they need any advice or help, I´m always there for them. During the whole wedding planning I´m in charge of everything – finding the right venue, negotiations with the wedding venue and suppliers and overall communications with everyone. I´m the only contact person of my clients so I save them plenty of time.

I find it very difficult for the clients to find a proper wedding planner / wedding agency on the Czech market. There are so many of them! One of my client recently told me that he finds it extremely difficult to find out the differences between the wedding agencies and doesn´t know how to pick. How can you tell at the beginning that the person will really be in charge of YOUR wedding, will deal with you during the whole planning process and actually be there on the wedding day? How do you know that the person puts 150% of the energy to your wedding? How do you know that she is a true professional? You don´t. I think you cannot find this out from the internet, you have to live through it :-). Unfortunately there aren´t many good agencies on the market so make sure you pick very carefully.

I always say – just look at the web pages, look at the photos, meet the owner and connect all the impressions to make sure it is the right wedding planner for you.

Make sure you have all this in mind once you are picking the wedding planner:

  • When you meet the owner make sure you click. You will be in touch with this person for the whole time. You want her to be professional, pleasant, reliable and good person all in one.
  • Make sure the wedding planner is true professional and has plenty of experience from the past with good reviews.
  • Don´t let yourself push to anything! You are the client and you should always have the last word.

It is important so that your wedding planner plans the wedding with perfection and focus on detail. She should offer you suppliers according to your taste, ideas and budget. She shouldn´t make mistakes, she needs to give you a lot of advice and put the whole wedding together. Then she needs to coordinate the wedidng day with perfection and smile, needs to resolve problems very quickly without anyone noticing and so on. You see it is not always easy to find out all this from the first impression.

My clients often say that at the beginning they cannot even imagine what I will do as a wedding planner and then during the planning process and after the wedding they are thrilled and say that they would never ever be able to manage it themselves.

So how do you find out if the wedding planner is the one? Try meeting the owner and you will see how it goes!

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