Post # 1
Member
22 posts
Newbee
Hi there,
Well this is my first post so hopefully i do it right! My fiance is South African and after visiting SA many times over the past 5 and a half years we have decided this would be the perfect place to tie the knot!
I was just wondering if anyone else has decided to go the same route as us and how they found planning long distance? We are looking at choosing a venue around the Paarl area or any other nice vineyards we might come across. Can anyone recommend anywhere? Looking at getting married next November but i am actually going over this April so hoping to check out some places while there but only have 2 weeks. My fiance has already seen Palmiet Valley Estate as he was working over there but any suggestions would be great. Even for photographers etc too
Thanks, Caroline 🙂
Post # 3
Member
443 posts
Helper bee
@cazza87: Hello 🙂
I’m a South African bride to be 🙂
What is your budget and what does your guest list look like? I’m hopefully going to be getting married in Paarl as well!!! 😀
Give me details and maybe I can help you out…
Post # 4
Member
22 posts
Newbee
Thanks for replying!
We are looking at around 50 people max for the whole day. We want to keep it small but plan to have a reception back home for those that couldnt come. We arent looking for anything too expensive as we obviously have to pay for flights and have a holiday with the family that has travelled with us as a few havent been before.
Palmiet seemed quite good value for what they were offering. (in comparison to UK prices very good!!) They were roughly around R40,000 but we would have to add on things like photographers, flowers etc. I have no idea what a reasonable price of a wedding would be in SA?! I did see that when i come over in April a place we looked at called Rickety Bridge will have a small wedding exhibition on so was thinking about going there.
Post # 5
Member
443 posts
Helper bee
Hmmm… I’ll have to do some research for you. We’ve mostly been looking at places for a bigger number of guests. A friend recently got married @ le bac estates in Paarl and it’s really pretty out there. Most of the wine estates will cater for that number.
A lot of venues charge a venue fee and then you’ll have to pay per head for food over and above the venue charge. Venue fees for a wine estate wedding in November will probably cost at least R20 000. The average for food seems to be about R350 a head.
Photographers are another story. The pricing range is so wide. I think an average photog pricing is around R10 000 but some photogs charge almost R40000!
Post # 6
Member
443 posts
Helper bee
@cazza87: Ugh… WeddingBee won’t let me edit my post. To give you an idea we are budgeting about R120 000 for 180 guests.
Post # 7
Member
22 posts
Newbee
@ms_protea: Yeah the price lists i have been given so far seem to charge around R350 a head then venue fee on top. Hopefully when i come out i will get a better idea of what to look for and whats a good price. I have heard photographers are quite expensive but R40000 is crazy!
I did email Le Bac however they didnt get back to me 
maybe i will try again
Post # 8
Member
2 posts
Wannabee
Hi there. I am a makeup artist from the Western Cape in South Africa so I get to see many wedding venues. Paarl is really beautiful. Check out Diamant Estate in Paarl. It really is my favourite venue. For a cheaper very beautiful option have a look at Roodezandt in Tulbagh. It is about 30 mins away from Paarl and is just gorgeous. If you are still looking for a makeup artist please cheack out my Facebook page Angela Rea Makeup Artist or my website http://www.angelareamakeupartist.wordpress.com Also if you want any advice for accommodation, photographers, flowers, cakes etc I love helping.
Post # 9
Member
22 posts
Newbee
@Angie100: We havent got anything sorted at the moment…. I have looked at lots of things but it’s so hard when you cant actually see places or meet the people! I have contacted several venues and have had packages etc sent. We have also considered Tulbagh and my fiance actually went to see Morgansvlei a couple weeks ago. We dont want to spend a fortune on our wedding day as we havent got a house yet due to the other half working in SA since beginning of last year (!!) but want it to still be special and perfect in every way possible! If you can recommend anyone that we may need on the day i.e florists, photographers etc that would be amazing! And i will go have a look at your site too as i haven’t got hair or make up organised yet either 
Post # 10
Member
1 posts
Wannabee
Hello! I am a Wedding Photographer from Cape Town. 🙂 If you are looking for a small, intimate wedding, you should defnitely check out Maison Estate in Franschhoek. It is gorgeous! You can have a look at a few images on my website http://www.mariskamuller.co.za/michael-marike/ and here’s the venue’s website – http://www.maisonestate.co.za/weddings-and-events/
Let me know if you are still looking for a wedding photographer… 😉 Maybe we can meet up on your visit to SA this month.
Post # 11
Member
24 posts
Newbee
Hi there.
I am also a UK bride getting married in South Africa. We are getting married at Morgansvlei in January. I hope your other half liked it it’s absolutely stunning. The website photos do not do it any justice so you must go and look yourself although it may be too big (we are looking at 100 guests)
My fiancé is South African too and we looked at a few venues before deciding on this one,
We got engaged in April last year so I have been planning for a while. I am an event manager which probably does help but I do find it hard when you sometimes don’t get responses for a few days leading to weeks at times!
You are doing well to plan in advance some of the South Africans will think you’re mad but you need to plan early to allow for the distance I mean we have 9 months left and I have done most of the planning!
There are a few tips for you that I would have appreciated knowing when I started out!
1) I had no idea that in South Africa you have to draw up a pre-wedding contract. If you are not planning on going to Sa again before the wedding you would do well to visit a lawyer to discuss the options. It’s almost like a pre-nuptial agreement but is there to protect you both in the event of the worst happening. I can add some more details about our trip to the lawyers if you would like.
2) as a UK citizen getting married in SA you will need to produce a CNI (certificate of non-impediment) to the immigration office in South Africa for them to agree that you can marry. Your local register in England can provide this but only a couple of months before the wedding. It basically means that they agree you are not married in England. In my local office they said it will take 1 month to get an appointment and the document takes 23 days to produce so I will book my appointment in November.
3) one of the absolute best decisions I have made is my photographer who was actually recommended to me on this website. Her name is Tiffany Burnham. She is based in Cape Town and is not too long starting up so she is incredible value. She did our engagement shoot when we were there in January and I absolutely love her. Cannot wait to see her again. If your fiance is anything like mine he freezes whenever the camera is pointed at him and she was able to get some beautiful pictures of us. Take a look at her website and tell her I said hi if you contact her! She is a gem! Google tiffany b photography
I can go on and on but if you would like to know any other recommendations or if you have questions let me know. We UK future South African brides need to stick together!
Natalie x
Post # 12
Member
22 posts
Newbee
@natalie_daniels: Thanks for the information, i had no idea about the CNI and also thought the pre-wedding contract was optional! I just got back from SA last night as i was over for a couple weeks visiting my other half. We went to see several venues and my favourite is Palmiet and it works good for our smaller number. Everywhere looks much prettier than on the websites so i’m very glad we went to see them!
I totally agree with you, we had some strange looks when we told people our date haha I guess they have so many places to choose from that there isnt as much of a restriction as compared to the UK. We got told that a year in advance is usually when people start booking things. I plan to go out again in August though so will meet marriage officers etc then so will book the main things while i am there.
We went to a small wedding fair while i was there so got lots of things to look through. My brains a bit fried with all the information i received! We did however buy our wedding rings while there so thats one thing ticked off the list!
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