“Surely a wedding like that in the Seychelles is sinfully expensive?”
I am confronted with this assumption time and time again. The appropriate answer: No, it’s not! Let me give you a few figures:
The flight from Germany is usually around 900 euros, depending on the time of year and airline. This applies to the outward and return flight together. Personally, I always fly with Emirates from Düsseldorf via Dubai to the Seychelles. The only airline that flies from Germany without a stopover is Condor – but only once a week and only in certain months of the year. Emirates flies daily from all major German airports (and also from Vienna and many other European airports).
Accommodation in the Seychelles is available from around 40 euros per person upwards. And these are by no means “relegations”! For those who want to invest a little (or significantly) more, there are of course also hotel rooms that cost 100 or 500 or even 2,500 euros per person per night. For example, on the absolute dream island Frigate Island Private even the most unusual wishes come true!
“But the actual wedding ceremony must cost an absolute fortune! You have to pay for the beautiful surroundings. And then everything has to be brought to the beach and decorated beautifully and freshly – surely that’s all incredibly expensive?” No, it is not.
The absolute basic package is just 710 euros (as of March 2024). This includes the wedding ceremony including the decorations of your choice, the completion of all formalities and the issuing of an apostille (the document that confirms your marriage and is recognized worldwide). Of course, most couples have extra wishes, such as a delicious wedding cake (my insider tip is the incredibly tasty mango wedding cake!), the bottle of champagne or the coconut cocktail, the professional help of a hairdresser/visagist the morning before the wedding, the ride in the “ox cart” (which I strongly advise against!). You’d better spare yourself and the ox. Better take a cab! I would be happy to discuss the details in person) or the romantic candlelight wedding dinner on the beach under the stars.
For example, the wedding ceremony of Diana and Lars in March 2023 (see photos below) with all the trimmings (decoration, bridal bouquet, flower arrangements for the groom, wedding cake, color concept [selbstverständlich alles exakt nach den Wünschen des Brautpaares!]the delicious Moet champagne or optionally the fresh coconut cocktails, pick-up of the bridal couple at the hotel and later return at the desired time (both routes with the environmentally friendly electric car), presence of the registrar and two super nice, local witnesses, completion of the paperwork before and after the wedding [the wedding couple does not have to worry about anything in advance; all this is done by “my” wedding planner on site!], completion of all formalities at the registry office, handing over the apostille at the bride and groom’s hotel) would cost 965 euros as things stand today (as of March 2024). Depending on what extra wishes you may have (e.g. the services of a hairdresser/visagist, a fruity and delicious wedding cake, the evening candlelight dinner on the beach under the stars – and ideally, of course, my presence as your wedding photographer! Depending on what you want to treat yourself to. Most couples naturally like to treat themselves to a little luxury for their wedding and invest an average of around 1,400 euros with “my” wedding planner, including all his additional services. My services as a photographer are of course not included in his additional services, because you book me separately. The mentioned additional services of the wedding planner are for example the booking of a hairdresser, the making of a beautiful decoration at the wedding location as well as the making of a bridal bouquet, transfer to/from the wedding location etc. You can book my services as a photographer directly through me.
Since the question has already come up several times: No, I am not included in any “wedding package” that you can book with any hotel, tour operator or wedding planner! No, not even if it says “German-speaking photographer”. This probably means a local photographer who speaks a little German. You book me separately and completely detached from the wedding planner.
As you can see, a wedding ceremony in the Seychelles is not an expensive pleasure. Most couples who enquire with me expect to pay at least 2,000 euros for the actual ceremony, including the formalities. And who knows – if you end up with the wrong wedding planner or even a “wedding agency” (of which the bridal couple is usually unaware) is involved, which of course also wants to earn a few hundred euros from the wedding, you will probably get rid of this sum quickly.
The biggest cost factor is probably the accommodation, as most couples want to treat themselves to a particularly beautiful and luxurious hotel for their wedding. On my favorite island of La Digue, for example Le Domaine de L’Orangeraie is the choice of most bridal couples. However, there are other, cheaper accommodations that I would recommend. The price-performance ratio is also right. We would be happy to talk more about this in person.
If you are happy with more basic accommodation (you are usually out and about in the beautiful Seychelles from morning to night anyway and only use your accommodation for overnight stays) and you can enjoy a pizza or one of the tasty meals from the takeaway restaurants (where you can get a delicious main meal for an average of just 5-6 euros!), a 14-day honeymoon including wedding – but without a photographer – can easily be realized for less than 3,000 euros per person! If you want to treat yourself to a great luxury hotel, transfers by helicopter and a great photographer, you will of course have to reckon with completely different figures 😉.
Conclusion: The statement that the cost of a wedding in the Seychelles would go beyond the budget of any “ordinary mortal” and that a wedding in the Seychelles is therefore only for the “rich” is fundamentally wrong. If you calculate the total costs of a wedding with invited guests in Germany, Austria or Switzerland, a wedding in the Seychelles is many times cheaper than a wedding in your home country!
