Et Voila answers the most frequently asked questions
about getting married in France
What are the legalities around getting married in
France?
In order to get legally married in France you need to
be a resident for at least 40 days before the wedding.
A religious wedding is not a legal marriage in France,
all couples must get married at city hall before their
religious blessing.
If, as most destination couples, you are not eligible for a
legal marriage in France, the best option is to get legally
married in the UK before flying to France. For a religious
wedding in France you would have to prove that you have
been legally married in the UK. If you are not willing to
have a religious wedding, a symbolic ceremony is a great
alternative. We would then recommend that you hire the
services of a professional celebrant to help you create
your bespoke wedding ceremony.
What is the best time of year to get married in France?
Well, it all depends on where you are getting married!
For a south of France wedding, the warmer months are
May to September, July and August being usually quite
hot and high touristic season.
Paris is nice all year round, so you should choose your
season depending on the style of wedding you are after.
A winter wedding in Paris can be really lovely and you
and your guests can spend a few days there doing some
shopping and spending a lot of time in the cafés…
The South West is very enjoyable from spring to autumn,
then it can get really cold in Dordogne, while the weather
is usually quite sunny around Bordeaux most of the year.
I personally prefer the Basque Country in the summer,
but the weather can be really nice there up until October.
What budgets do you usually work with for a wedding
in France?
There is no such thing as a typical wedding budget, as
Photo Credit: Romain Negre
there are many variables to an event budget. The first
element to consider is the location of your wedding:
a wedding on the Riviera and a wedding in Dordogne
are definitely not the same thing! Vendors and venues
in Dordogne will tend to be less expensive. Then the
budget required will depend on the style you would like
to achieve for your wedding. Whether you are after a
relaxed affair with little decoration or a venue filled with
gorgeous blooms will have an impact on your wedding
budget. Entertainment is also an important component:
a DJ does not cost the same as a ten piece band…
At Et Voila we usually work with budgets from £25,000
for intimate weddings with less than 50 guests and from
about £50,000 for 100 guests. Most budgets we manage ?\?H[?^?\???0??? ??H\?H???\??H\ H ? ???\??[?[?H?Y?] ??Y? [?\??? ?Y[???Y?]\??X[\? [? H?Y?\?\?X??H X\?H???\?]]H ???X? \???[?[?]X[?] ??YY][?? \???[?[?]X[???[ ][?????\?]]H ? ? \?[?[XZ[? ??]?H \?H?[ ?\??\?? [?\? ?Y[?? [??[? [?\??YY ?????X???[??KS]\?H?[?]Y?]??[H?Y[???[?
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