Hello everybody!

I'm so very excited as I'm getting married next September! Is this a crazy thing to do at the end of your first PhD year?

Anyone got married recently? How much did it cost? We are struggling to decide between a venue in N. Wales or somewhere abroad and exotic. The former would be nice as that's where my boyfiend and coincidentally, my mother are from, but the later would be nice as it would mean fewer people, therefore less stress possibly. Neither of us really like beingthe centre of attention (especially not for a whole day) and think that we would hate to have a wedding that goes on for an entire day. Plus it would be very expensive to invite everyone for the whole day, but potentially offensive to invite people to travel to N. Wales just for an evening reception. So we've decided that if we have it in the UK we would get married in the late afternoon and have one party. BUT we can't find a venue we like!

Phew, that was a ramble! What do you guys think? Any suggestions for nice (fairly classy) exotic locations?!

xBx

Aww, that's nice to hear. Congratulations!

No practical advice to give; I always fancied Mexico meself though.

If you want something truly beautiful(and classy), try the Hotel Nacional de Cuba in Havana. It's a beautiful art deco classic hotel - the most famous in Cuba where lots of famous peeps have stayed. But more importantly the gardens are stunning. We were there a couple of years ago and a wedding took place and it was incredible. They had it just before sunset and you could see the old colonial buildings of Havana twinkling in the background, just over the bay - sooooooo good. Plus I know a few UK companies do breaks there, and you could probably get a bargain. One other thing - I think you have to be in Cuba a full week before they let you get married, so you'd need 7-10 days. (Just avoid hurricane season - you'd have to have it the end of Sept to be sure!)

Bobby has relatives in Havana I think?

Congrats

Hello! Cheers guys! Yup, I know the Hotel Nacional very well as my grandparents are Cuban - however, its hurricane season in Sept so Cuba is out!

Hey H, How's it going?! Tell me, was the wedding planning a complete nightmare?!

xBx

Hi Bobby, I didn't do much for the wedding in terms of planning, my parents took care of it but it was a huge wedding (900 people) as well as things happening on the day before and day before that.

However, the week before I got really very stressed which is odd for me. I think if you keep it small and make sure you start planning far in advance, you will be fine.