Church or Civil Ceremony?
In England and Wales you have to decide between three options before any wedding planning can start: the choice between a religious wedding ceremony, a civil wedding in a licensed building or a civil wedding in a register office. Once this decision has been made, you can then set the wedding date.
Setting the date of your wedding
Your wedding date may be determined by the availability of your church, register office or reception venue so it's a good idea to make enquiries before making a final decision on your date.
If you want to have your wedding on a summer Saturday, you may have to book your ceremony and reception venues a year in advance – some of the most popular places need to be booked up to two years in advance! If you decide on a Sunday, weekday or winter wedding you may have fewer problems with booking ahead. On days other than Saturday, many of the core wedding suppliers offer discounts. However, this may mean that your guests will have to take time off work to attend so they will need as much advance notice as possible.
