Weddings in exotic destinations are undoubtedly one of the biggest trends of recent years. The motivation for such a decision tends to be different - the desire to celebrate a wedding just for the two of you, to combine the wedding with a honeymoon or simply to get beautiful photos. Aleksandra and Alexey also wanted a small wedding, so they became husband and wife on the exotic island of Mauritius.

To the beach when it's cold in Latvia

"We wanted to celebrate our special day only with our family. I had always dreamed of a wedding by the sea, and my husband also liked this idea. So when we got engaged, we decided that we would do it. We started looking for information in which countries we could organize a wedding that would also be official. Since we wanted to get married when it is cold in Latvia, Europe was not relevant. On the other hand, to get to, for example, Bora Bora an island where you can get married officially, you have to fly for at least 25 hours, which seemed too long to us. And since we wanted our parents to be there as well, we looked for a place that would also serve as a diverse sight. In Mauritius, you can find everything - both a beautiful sea and other places that you definitely need to see - waterfalls, national parks and many other exotic places of interest," says Aleksandra.

High class hotels with wedding coordinators in them

Aleksandra and Aleksej already knew in advance that they wanted their parents to be present at the wedding. Since Mauritian legislation allows it, they were also the witnesses of their children's marriages. On the other hand, thinking about the dates to fly and get married, both decided to extend the feeling of celebration. "Our trip was one big celebration as we welcomed the New Year during that time and also celebrated my birthday. We were interested to know that most hotels do not organize weddings between December 25th and January 5th because it is a very busy time when the official hotels are also closed. After we booked the plane tickets, we started looking for a hotel to host the wedding. The hotels offer wedding services that include flowers for the bride, massages, breakfast on terraces the next morning and other things that are meant for couples. You can also book a wedding musician, a photographer, a hairdresser on the spot, and there is often a wedding coordinator on site who checks that everything is going as planned. Although there were other hotels on offer, I am glad that it was included in the Small Luxury Hotels of the World list fantastic, and everyone knew we had a wedding, as anyone from the reception could help me,” says Alexandra. Although the photographer could also be booked at the hotel where the two got married, Aleksandra wanted a professional whose work she could see already before that, as well as read reviews about him. That is why the photographer was searched on social networks, as a result of which Aleksandra and Alexey found their real wedding photographers - Focus Photography, Darya and Johnny Richardson. "They were great. We communicated in advance and discussed what we expected from the photos," says Aleksandra.

Formalities must be completed in time

For those couples who have decided to go their own way and get married outside of Latvia, Aleksandra and Aleksejs advise to complete all the necessary formalities in time. "If you want to officially get married in Mauritius, you must send the documents three months before the chosen wedding date. The documents must be translated and officially approved. We had no problems with the formalities, everything went well in Mauritius itself," remembers Aleksandra. She calls the most beautiful moment on her wedding day the moment when they both stood by the flower arch and realized that their dream had come true.  Even other hotel guests watched the beautiful wedding ceremony from their rooms and later congratulated the new couple.

Photo Focus Photography