"Tie the Knot," from Moon Bermuda Planning to say "I do"? Bermuda is a top wedding destination, thanks to its heart-stopping scenery, proximity to North America, and relatively easy marriage requirements. The island dotes on long-held wedding traditions, including romantic moongates (kiss beneath one and a long marriage is assured), horse-drawn carriages, his-and-hers gold and silver cakes, and locations like historic churches, public gardens, clifftops, and beaches that promise highly memorable nuptials. Scores of visitors get married in Bermuda every year, so everyone--from local wedding planners to clergy and hotel staff--is ready to ease prospective brides and grooms through the process. Many guesthouses and hotels have special wedding packages , churches offer chaplains for off-site locations, and even Bermuda's sometimes burdensome bureaucracy has honed the business of getting married into a painless to-do list. Couples must have their "Notice of Intended Marriage" published in Bermuda's newspapers. You can download the form from gotobermuda.com (must be printed on white legal-size paper, 8.5 by 14 inches) or request one from the Registry General (Government Administration Building, 30 Parliament St., Hamilton HM 12, tel. 441/297-7709 or 441/297-7707, registrygeneral.gov.bm ). No blood tests or health certificates are needed, but copies of divorce decrees or death certificates must be submitted with the completed form, along with a cashier's check or bank draft for $354. After the notice is published, a license to marry is granted. It is valid for three months and can be collected from the Registry General office. Civil ceremonies can be performed weekdays or Saturday mornings (10am-11:30am) in the Registry's Marriage Room for $300 (plus $30 for certificate). For more information, call Registry's Kim Minors, or email kminors@gov.bm . Justices of the Peace cannot perform marriages in Bermuda. You must have two witnesses over the age of 18 to any wedding ceremony; these can be provided by the Registry General's office Monday-Friday only. Churches can be booked for a fee, and officiating clergy can be arranged to perform the ceremony on-site or elsewhere. Catholic churches in Bermuda will marry nonresident Catholics if baptismal certificates and other documents are provided in advance (for details, visit catholicbermuda.org and click the International Marriages link). Couples seeking marriage blessings or renewal of vows need to provide copies of their original Catholic church marriage certificate. Professional wedding planners in Bermuda have a good reputation for efficiently coordinating all the details, from flowers and photographers to accommodations and catering. For information, contact Bermuda Bride (tel. 441/232-2344, bermudaweddings.com ); Bermuda Event Solutions (tel. 441/236-9469, weddingsolutions.bm ); The Bridal Suite (tel. 441/292-2025, bridalsuitebermudaweddings.com ); A Wedding in Bermuda (tel. 441/238-6362, aweddinginbermuda.com ); To Have and To Hold Wedding and Event Planning (tel. 441/236-7473, tohaveandtoholdbermuda.com ); or Kreative Koncepts (tel. 441/537-2237, kreativekoncepts.biz ). One of the best resources to help prospective brides and grooms pull together all the details of their big day is the Bermudian Publishing Company's website ( bermudianweddings.com ). It carries advice from wedding planners; contacts for flowers, fashions, cakes, and rentals; bridal blogs sharing useful resources; plus photo features on real Bermuda weddings. Excerpted from Moon Bermuda by Rosemary Jones All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
