Although it might seem a bit extreme to most, in Cyprus it generally takes a year in order to plan a wedding. What people don’t realize is that the dates that couples have to choose from are quite limited for a number of reasons.
First of all, the church does not perform wedding ceremonies throughout the year and the majority of wedding ceremonies in Cyprus are religious ones. Wedding ceremonies are not performed during lent (40 days before Christmas, 50 days before Easter and the first 15 days of August) or on Fridays (with the exception of the first Friday after Easter).
Couples don’t want to have their wedding on a week day as that is not very convenient for their guests. Most people work until the late afternoon and in order to be able to wake up and go to work the next day, they will probably not want to party and celebrate until the early morning hours. Sundays are also not preferred for the same reason.
So that leaves us with the Saturdays. There are 52 Saturdays in a year. Taking into account that lent takes up 105 days of the year… that leaves 37 Saturdays to fight for!
1. Reception & Dinner venue
Surely the church is more important than the party right? Wrong. There are hundreds of churches to choose from but there aren’t as many reception and dinner venues. Availability usually determines the wedding date.
2. Church – date and time!
Speak with the priest and make sure he has noted down the date and time. Bear in mind that there might be a wedding before or after yours and you might need to make allowances for any delays that might cause.
3. Photographer
Most photographers can’t do two weddings in the same day, or if they can its usually a 2nd crew without the main photographer… so if you know who you want book the date early!
4. Florist
Although booking your florist or decorator might not be as urgent as the above, it is important that you give yourself enough time to review each individual quote and pricing. Florists and decorators vary in the duties that they undertake and some are more flexible than others.
5. Wedding dress
Three to four months seems to be the average time needed for a wedding dress to be ordered or made. Add to that the amount of time you will need to pick the one that’s right for you, to select fabric etc. and say 2 weeks for it to be adjusted before the big day… I’d say allow 5 months minimum.
6. DJ or other entertainment
7. Lokoumia
Select a few places and go visit their stores. Ask for a sample and ask to see what types of wrapping they offer. No need to book the final amount – after all you probably won’t know exactly how many you will need until a few weeks before the wedding day.
8. Invitations and other printing
9. Honeymoon
10. Stefana
11. Wedding bands
12. Bonbonieres
