Weddings in Tenerife

Weddings in Tenerife – The Complete Guide to Getting Married in Tenerife

Getting married in Tenerife sounds wonderfully straightforward. Find a sun-drenched terrace overlooking the Atlantic, invite your favourite people, order enough cava to float a small fishing boat and say "I do". And, to be fair, it can be almost that easy.

Tenerife has become a superb destination for weddings abroad, particularly for couples travelling from the UK and Europe. There are beachfront hotels, private villas, traditional Canarian fincas, banana plantations and luxury resorts, while the island's mild climate makes outdoor celebrations possible throughout much of the year.

But where should you get married? How much does a Tenerife wedding cost? Can British couples legally marry in Tenerife? And how do you organise photographers, flowers, food and 50 relatives when you're sitting several thousand miles away?
Here's what you need to know.

Why get married in Tenerife?

The obvious answer is sunshine. But Tenerife offers rather more than reliably blue holiday photographs.

The island combines dramatic volcanic scenery, Atlantic sunsets, excellent hotels and a huge tourism infrastructure with relatively easy access from Britain and mainland Europe. It also offers an unusually wide choice of wedding settings. You could hold your ceremony overlooking the ocean in Costa Adeje, take over a rural finca surrounded by palms and banana plants, choose a luxury five-star hotel in La Caleta or Alcalá, or head north for something greener and more traditionally Canarian.

Then there's Mount Teide. At 3,715 metres, Spain's highest mountain has an annoying habit of appearing in the background and making everybody else's wedding photographs look slightly inadequate.

Tenerife is particularly good for couples looking for:

• Destination weddings from the UK and Europe
• Winter weddings in the sun
• Beachfront and ocean-view weddings
• Luxury hotel weddings
• Finca and rustic weddings
• Small and intimate weddings
• Elopements
• Vow renewals
• Weddings combined with a family holiday

Can foreigners legally get married in Tenerife?

Yes, foreigners can get married in Tenerife, but whether you can have the legal marriage ceremony in Spain depends on your individual circumstances. This is one area where you shouldn't rely on something you read in a Facebook post at wine o'clock.

Spanish marriage requirements vary according to factors including nationality, residency and the type of ceremony. Documentation can include birth certificates, passports and evidence concerning your marital status, with official translations or legalisation sometimes required. Religious marriages have their own requirements.

For many overseas couples, the simplest solution is therefore to complete the legal marriage formalities in their home country and have a symbolic wedding ceremony in Tenerife. It doesn't make the Tenerife ceremony any less of a wedding. You can still exchange vows and rings, have a celebrant, invite your guests and spend several months arguing about who sits next to cousin Walter. It simply separates the legal paperwork from the celebration.

What are the best places to get married in Tenerife?

There isn't one best Tenerife wedding venue because a wedding for 100 guests needs something very different from an elopement for two. Broadly, you'll find five main choices:

Luxury hotel weddings
Tenerife does luxury hotels pretty damn well. Costa Adeje and La Caleta have some of the island's best-known five-star resorts, while the west coast around Alcalá and Guía de Isora offers spectacular sunset-facing locations. Hotels can be particularly convenient for destination weddings because accommodation, catering, reception spaces and event staff are all available in one place. Your guests can arrive, unpack and largely remain within staggering distance of their beds. For bigger groups, hotel weddings are definitely worth pondering.

Finca weddings
For something more private and distinctly Canarian, look at Tenerife's fincas. These range from traditional country properties to elegant estates and tropical venues surrounded by banana plantations. A finca wedding can also give you greater freedom over decoration, entertainment and the shape of the day than a conventional hotel package. They're particularly worth investigating around the greener north and west of Tenerife, although you'll find excellent finca wedding venues in the south too.

Beach and ocean-view weddings
A Tenerife beach wedding is understandably high on many couples' wish lists. However, don't assume you can pick your favourite stretch of sand, stick 60 chairs on it and ask uncle Dave to keep curious tourists out of the photos. Beaches are public spaces (there are no private beaches in any part of Spain) and events can be subject to permissions and restrictions.
A beachfront hotel, private coastal venue or beach club can therefore be a much easier way to achieve the toes-near-the-sand effect without trying to organise a public beach.

Private villas
A villa can be ideal for a small Tenerife wedding, particularly if privacy matters. Check carefully, though. A villa that happily accommodates ten holidaymakers isn't automatically licensed or suitable for a 50-person wedding with catering vans, music and dad dancing til midnight. Always establish what events are permitted before booking.

Elopements and intimate weddings
If you don't actually need or want 100 guests, Tenerife works pretty well for elopements and small weddings because the scenery does most of the memorable work. An intimate ceremony overlooking the Atlantic followed by dinner at a good restaurant can be every bit as beautiful as a huge formal wedding... and at considerably less cost.

North Tenerife or South Tenerife for a wedding?

South Tenerife generally offers drier, sunnier conditions, large resorts, excellent tourist infrastructure and easy access to many hotels and venues around Costa Adeje, La Caleta, Los Cristianos and the west coast.

North Tenerife is greener and often feels more traditionally Canarian, with historic towns, lush landscapes and beautiful rural properties. But neither is "better".

If your mental picture involves sunset, ocean, cocktails and everybody flying in for a long weekend, the south and west will probably make the shortlist. If you're dreaming of old stone buildings, tropical greenery, vineyards and something removed from the main resorts, look into the north.

When is the best month to get married in Tenerife?

Tenerife is unique among European wedding destinations because weddings can take place throughout the year. Temperatures around the coast remain mild even during winter, although Tenerife has numerous microclimates and conditions can vary substantially around the island. Having said that, southern and western resorts tend to be sunnier and drier than northern areas.

Spring
March to May can be an excellent period, with warm weather without the peak summer heat.

Summer
June to September brings long, warm days and very little rain in the southern resorts. Bear the heat in mind when choosing ceremony times, especially if on the coast. There's a reason locals don't spend August afternoons standing around in three-piece suits.

Autumn
September and October can be good months for a Tenerife wedding, combining warm temperatures with slightly less intense summer heat.

Winter
Winter is one of Tenerife's great advantages. While much of northern Europe is contemplating another four months of drizzle, Tenerife can still offer pleasant outdoor conditions, particularly in the south. No outdoor wedding anywhere comes with a contractual guarantee from the weather gods, though, so always ask your venue about its wet-weather alternative.

How much does a wedding in Tenerife cost?

A ceremony for two, and a three-day celebration for 120 people, aren't really the same product. As a rough indication, small Tenerife wedding packages can begin in the low thousands of euros, while larger celebrations at luxury hotels and private venues can easily run into tens of thousands. Your biggest costs are likely to include:

• Venue hire
• Food and drink
• Wedding planner or coordinator
• Photographer and videographer
• Flowers and decoration
• Celebrant
• Entertainment
• Hair and make-up
• Wedding cake
• Guest transport
• Accommodation

Before comparing prices, check exactly what's included. A €5,000 package containing planning, venue, flowers, photography and a celebrant may ultimately cost less than a €3,000 venue that requires everything else to be organised separately.

Do I need a Tenerife wedding planner?

For most destination weddings, unless you thrive on stress and headaches, we'd strongly consider one. Planning a wedding is complicated enough when the venue is 20 minutes from home. Doing it from another country introduces different suppliers, languages, contracts, regulations and a disturbing number of WhatsApp groups.

A good Tenerife wedding planner can help with venue selection, photographers, flowers, decoration, celebrants, entertainment, transport and the timetable for the day. More importantly, they know which suppliers actually turn up when they're supposed to, and that local knowledge is priceless. However, if you're holding a simple elopement or very small celebration, you may only need coordination rather than full wedding planning.

What does a Tenerife wedding package include?

Packages vary considerably, but they may include some combination of:

• Wedding planning
• On-the-day coordination
• Venue hire
• Celebrant
• Ceremony decoration
• Flowers and bouquet
• Photography
• Hair and make-up
• Wedding cake
• Sound system
• Food and drink

Always compare packages item-by-item rather than simply comparing the headline price.
And always make sure you know what isn't included.

How far ahead should I book a Tenerife wedding?

For a larger destination wedding, 12 to 18 months ahead is sensible, particularly if you want a specific venue or date. Smaller weddings and elopements can sometimes be arranged much more quickly. Remember that you're not only booking a venue, though. Popular photographers, planners, entertainers and other suppliers may also have limited availability.

Give your guests plenty of warning too. A wedding invitation requiring somebody to travel internationally deserves rather more notice than one requiring Bridge Taxis across Bolton.

What will our wedding guests do in Tenerife?

This is where Tenerife has another advantage over many wedding destinations. Your guests are getting a holiday as well as a wedding, so depending on where they're staying, they can spend the surrounding days visiting Mount Teide, whale watching, exploring traditional villages, walking, playing golf, visiting beaches or simply lying beside a swimming pool doing absolutely nothing. Couples increasingly turn destination weddings into several-day celebrations.
You might organise:

• Day one – Welcome drinks
• Day two – Wedding
• Day three – Brunch or beach day
• Day four – Boat trip or excursion for guests who want to join you

What wedding suppliers will I need in Tenerife?

Depending on your venue and package, you may need:

• Wedding planner
• Venue
• Celebrant
• Photographer
• Videographer
• Florist
• Decorator
• Hair stylist
• Make-up artist
• Caterer
• Cake maker
• DJ or live musicians
• Wedding transport
• Guest transfers
• Accommodation

Some venues insist on particular suppliers while others allow you to choose your own. Ask before signing anything.

Tenerife wedding checklist

Once you've decided to get married in Tenerife, tackle the big decisions first:

• Decide whether your legal marriage will take place in Spain or at home.
• Set your approximate budget.
• Estimate the number of guests.
• Choose your preferred month or dates.
• Decide between north, south or west Tenerife.
• Shortlist wedding venues.
• Decide whether you need a wedding planner.
• Check accommodation and flight options for guests.
• Book the key suppliers.
• Plan guest transport and activities.
• Confirm the ceremony and reception timetable.
• Come to Tenerife and enjoy it.

That final step is surprisingly easy to overlook while worrying about chair covers. It's YOUR day, so make the time to enjoy it!

Planning your wedding in Tenerife?

Choosing the island is the easy part. Finding the right venue, wedding planner, photographer and suppliers when you don't live here can take much longer.

My Guide Tenerife is based on the island and works with established and reputable wedding planners, hotels, venues and tourism businesses. Tell us what you're planning and we'll help connect you with Tenerife wedding professionals suited to your wedding, budget and guest numbers.

Email us at joe@myguide-network.com or Whatsapp message on 00 34 676 711 285 with as much or as little information as you know at this stage and we'll put you in touch with the right - and most reputable - experts at no cost.

Wedding date or preferred month
Approximate number of guests
Approximate budget
Preferred location – North / South / West / Not sure

There's no charge to make an enquiry. We may introduce you to a reputable local wedding business based on the information you provide.