With an abundance of beautiful natural settings and traditional churches, choosing to wed in Samoa promises the most memorable experience for your big day which will be tailored to you, your partner, and everything you had both ever hoped for. Here are some of the best and most romantic ways to get married in Samoa.
Many Samoan resorts and venues are well-versed in hosting beautiful tropical island weddings for visitors, so why not tap into their extensive knowledge and luxurious facilities and services to make your day easy, relaxed, and extra special? At a resort wedding, you and your guests could gather in perfectly manicured gardens, by the pool, or in front of the ocean while your choice of the finest of food and drink will served exactly as you wish.
Most resorts that host weddings aim to make your experience as straightforward as possible by offering a full wedding planner service. A resort wedding planner in Samoa will take care of every detail, from the flowers to the marriage licence. Importantly, getting married in a resort also gives you the option of including accommodation for you and your guests.
While most resorts offer personalised packages to match exactly what you imagine for your special day, spend some time researching different resorts to find out which one will be perfect for you and your fiancé. With so much choice around the islands, every location and resort has its own unique character, charm, and features, from spa facilities to sporting prowess.
If you have your own ideas for what you’d like your big day in paradise to look like but don’t know how to make it happen, you can bring them to life with the help of a local wedding planner. Perhaps you fancy a wedding on a secluded beach or by an inland waterfall away from your resort – anything is possible with the help of a local expert to guide you.
Working alongside your wedding planner, you can create a bespoke event for you, your family, and your friends – and if you’re in need of some inspiration, help and advice will always be on hand. The best part is, hiring a local wedding planner means you can do as much or as little as you like when it comes to the finer, grittier details of planning your wedding. Your wedding planner will gather all the information you need to arrange your marriage licence and make easy decisions about the day itself, or you can leave it entirely up to them.
With a bit of research, there’s nothing stopping you from planning your entire Samoan wedding yourself. Before you arrive, you can jump online to find all the local services you’ll need to make your special day a reality – from venue operators and caterers to churches and celebrants, it’s all there.
While you’ll always be able to make connections with local contacts by phone or email, it’s also advisable to take a research trip to Samoa before you visit to get married. An initial trip to Samoa will allow you to get a real feel for the many different location and venue options while getting to know all the people involved in your big day and settling the fine details.
While many people will want their big day to be – well – big, a huge vivacious celebration with lots of people isn’t for everyone. In fact, many couples are attracted to Samoa as the ideal place to get married because it’s perfect for the most romantic and intimate of weddings involving just the bride and groom or a small group of guests. What could be dreamier than escaping together to a tropical island to say your vows on a dramatic clifftop overlooking the Pacific Ocean or on a picture-perfect beach with no one else around.
If you’re planning a private ceremony with only close family or even just yourselves, all you need to do is find a location, celebrant, and ensure the paperwork for your marriage licence is in order – then you can pack your bags and start thinking about your exquisite honeymoon.
Injecting a touch of Samoan tradition into your wedding makes perfect sense when you’re holding a ceremony in this beautiful Pacific Island. After all, the Samoan people know how to do a wedding, and do it well.
Traditional lavalava are worn by the groom and groomsmen (and any guests who wish to join in) at a Samoan wedding. Brides also wear a customary pale or headdress while the groom wears a floral necklace (ula).
Samoans are all about family, and with so many guests invited to celebrate, there’s usually more than one cake at every wedding to ensure everyone gets a slice. Meanwhile, a traditional umu meal (above-ground stone oven) is prepared to feed the guests and usually includes meat, seafood, and vegetables.
From the impressive Siva Afi (fire knife dance) to the more elegant and flowing Siva performed by women, Samoans love to dance to the beat of drums and clapping as a way to celebrate special occasions.
