Legal vs. Symbolic Ceremonies in Mexico

[Alexsgirl99]

Hello!  My fiance and I are looking at the Dreams Riviera Cancun in Riviera Maya, Mexico.  We have been wondering whether or not we should opt for the legal ceremony.  It seems like a bit of a pain in the a**, but I don't really care for the idea of getting married in the courthouse...plus it seems odd to pay all that money for a wedding package when it's a "pretend" wedding.  I'm just curious as to whether or not anyone had an opinion on the matter one way or the other- opinions drawing from personal experience would be most appreciated!  

Also, if anyone has any reviews of Dreams Riviera Cancun I'd love to hear them as well.    Thanks!

[buddhakahn]

I can recommend Sharon Van Bramer with Caribbean-CancunWedding.com. My friends had her as an English-speaking wedding planner and loved the attention to details and knowledge of the civil ceremony legalities. Her prices were excellent as well!

[P2PBride]

Hi there!

 

I know exactly what you mean. I agree that civil wedding is more work, and more expensive, with the blood test and translations of docs.   We decided to sign at the court of justice US, and do the symbolic ceremony in Mexico. I know it's not ideal, but I figure we'll be busy running around over there, so the less things to do, the better! =). 

 

Good luck! 

[Cdunn514]

I had the same feelings as you are, we have decided to get married legally in the US first, we will celebrate our date in Mexico as our anniversary though and we are not telling anyone. I that that ceremony will be the one that counts the other stuff is just paper work. The more I thought about it the more it just seemed like too much of a hassle to get married legally down there.

[JordannaMarie]

Do you have to show proof of being "legally" married in order to have the symbolic wedding? What we were thinking of doing is having the symbolic wedding in Mexico, then doing the "legal" stuff once we get back to Canada.  That way, our wedding in Mexico would feel more real (I was also afraid I would feel like we were having a pretend wedding), and then we could have our grandparents at the "legal" ceremony here in Canada, since they won't be able to make it to Mexico.  They would at least feel like they were a part of it, and we could even show them videos of the wedding in Mexico...

[AllieH]

We have had the same debate. I was leaning towards the JP here in the states, and then the symbolic ceremony there. We'd celebrate the Mexico wedding as our anniversary of course. 

 

My fiancé decided the matter - he thinks the JP and then symbolic ceremony in Mexico is anti-climatic, and just shook his head at me when we talked about it. He wants to do the legal ceremony - get it all done at the same place. Since he's not very picky about 95% of the wedding planning, and this is one thing he prefers, that's what we're going to do. 

 

I won't pretend to be thrilled about the blood test idea - I hate needles... but our relationship is about compromise. I want a destination wedding, he wants to do the legalities where ever we have the ceremony. So there you have it! 

 

 

 

[kelnces]

Does anyone know if the civil ceremony's language is different than the legal ceremony in Mexico?  We are currently having the same  conversation and wouldnt want our Mexico wedding (if only a civil) to not have the I now pronounce you husband and wife, or you may now kiss the bride portion.  We too are nervous about the needles and the timeline to have everything translated and accepted back in the states.  Any input or feedback would be really appreciated as we're about 6 weeks from our wedding so we have to decide soon!

[JaziandSwag]

I am going the leagal route...mainly because I want to be married on my wedding day!  Not a few days before or after :-)

[JaziandSwag]

But no offense to those who choose to go that route ;-)

[AllieH]

FWIW...we have (already) changed our minds. or rather, I managed to convince my FI that the JP here in the US will just be paperwork. We won't exchange rings or vows when we do that. Just sign the papers needed to file with the County/State.

 

Whew...needle avoided (plus the need to be there 3 business days ahead of our wedding date, and the pre-scripted ceremony). 

Originally Posted by AllieH 

We have had the same debate. I was leaning towards the JP here in the states, and then the symbolic ceremony there. We'd celebrate the Mexico wedding as our anniversary of course. 

 

My fiancé decided the matter - he thinks the JP and then symbolic ceremony in Mexico is anti-climatic, and just shook his head at me when we talked about it. He wants to do the legal ceremony - get it all done at the same place. Since he's not very picky about 95% of the wedding planning, and this is one thing he prefers, that's what we're going to do. 

 

I won't pretend to be thrilled about the blood test idea - I hate needles... but our relationship is about compromise. I want a destination wedding, he wants to do the legalities where ever we have the ceremony. So there you have it!