Planning My Dream Wedding in a Villa in Santorini

I always knew I didn’t want a traditional wedding. Big halls and velvet-covered chairs never spoke to me. I wanted something that felt like us—intimate, beautiful, and filled with natural charm. That’s how the idea of tying the knot in Santorini came about. And not just anywhere in Santorini, but in one of those gorgeous wedding villas perched on the cliffs, with the sea stretching endlessly below. The kind of setting that feels like it was made for love stories.

Now that the whole thing has happened (and yes, I’m still glowing from it), I wanted to share the journey—how I went from browsing inspiration boards to standing barefoot under the golden Greek sun, saying “I do.”

Why Santorini?

I think I fell in love with the island long before I visited. The blue domes, the sunsets, the narrow white alleys—every photo looked like it came from a dream. But when we finally arrived for our planning trip, I realized Santorini is so much more than Instagram snippets. There’s a romance in the air that’s impossible to explain until you’re there.

It’s not just the views (though, let’s be real, they’re spectacular). It’s the energy. The calm. The light. Everything about the island feels like it belongs to a fairytale. So when we started looking into wedding villas in Santorini, I knew we were on the right path.

Finding the Right Villa

There are a lot of options when it comes to wedding villas Santorini offers. Some are modern and minimal, others are more traditional and carved into the cliffside. Our priority was privacy—we didn’t want to share our day with curious tourists walking by. That helped narrow things down.

Most villas that host weddings offer multi-day stays, which was perfect for us. We wanted a place where we could not only have the ceremony and dinner, but also stay with our closest friends and family. Kind of like a wedding-meets-holiday scenario. And many of these villas come with terraces designed for hosting, which made logistics so much easier.

We worked with a local coordinator (highly recommended—don’t try to do it all yourself from afar!) who helped us scout wedding locations and figure out practicalities like access, guest capacity, and legal paperwork.

The Legal Bits (Spoiler: It’s Not So Scary)

Speaking of paperwork: marrying in Greece requires a bit of planning ahead, but it’s very doable. You’ll need to gather documents from your home country, have them translated and apostilled, and send them to the municipality where your wedding will be registered. It sounded intimidating at first, but once we got a checklist, it felt very manageable.

We chose a symbolic ceremony for the actual day (less stress, more emotion), and did the legal paperwork back home. Some couples choose the opposite, and that’s fine too—it depends on what you want from the day.

Designing the Day

One of the best things about wedding villas in Santorini is that you don’t need to go overboard with decorations. The island gives you a stunning canvas. For our ceremony, we kept it simple: a floral arch, a few lanterns, and soft music playing in the background. The view did the rest.

Dinner was served under the stars. Long tables, white linens, local wine, and a Mediterranean feast. I remember looking around and thinking: this is exactly what I dreamed of.

Tips I Wish I’d Known Earlier

1. Visit the island before booking if you can. Photos are great, but seeing the space in person helps with everything from layout decisions to lighting.

2. Think about the wind. Santorini gets breezy, especially in the afternoons. We scheduled our ceremony around sunset, which helped a lot.

3. Work with locals. Whether it’s a planner, florist, or photographer, people who know the island make all the difference.

4. Pack wisely. I brought a second dress for the reception—a flowy, lighter one—and I was so glad I did. Dancing in a structured gown isn’t fun.

   
   

If you're even considering a destination wedding, Santorini should be on your radar. And for something truly intimate and magical, wedding villas in Santorini offer a setting that’s impossible to replicate. There’s something about waking up in the same place you’ll get married, having your people around you, and knowing that for a few days, that corner of the world is yours.