I have just arrived back from the USA, after visiting suppliers and specialist bridal shops in Florida. Weddings are huge there, with some couples spending $80,000.00 on their Big Day! £40,000.00 is a lot to spend on a medium-size wedding, but services are generally more expensive than they are here in the UK.

There are some beautiful places to marry; especially outside in Florida (the weather lends itself better over there!). One venue which we have used is Cypress Gardens – it has an old colonial style house as its backdrop, with a beautiful white canopy/gazebo by the lake, which is licensed for marriages.

Another favourite is the Disney Grand Floridian and Spa, on the lagoon in Walt Disney World. There are several areas to be married on this site, but none quite as special as the White Wedding Chapel. Here you can arrive in a Cinderella style glass coach and live the fairytale for a day. Yes it is very expensive, but beautiful, if you like that sort of thing.

Las Vegas is still very popular, you can just ‘pop in’ and be married in a Wedding Chapel. I have heard that there is also a “Drive through Wedding Service”; however I didn’t manage to find it! The hotels are typically licensed too – some couples get married on the steps of a bridge in St Mark’s Square, in the middle of the Venetian Hotel! Not my idea of romance – but it was very popular, I saw three couples there in one day!

Perhaps the most popular destinations for weddings abroad though are the Caribbean islands. Here and other beach type resorts are still the number one choice for my clients, and it’s easy to see why. They boast beautiful romantic destinations, entwined in a wonderful honeymoon and generally they are reasonably priced – what more could you ask for?