Wedding Tales Crete, Wedding Planner (Chania)

Wedding Tales Crete plans weddings, elopements and proposals across Crete, from the harbour at Chania and the old town of Rethymno to the vineyards around Archanes and the emptier coastline out east. Recent couples travelled in from Germany and from Philadelphia, spent a few days on the island, and went home married.

Small on purpose

Most of the work here is deliberately small. The published wedding packages run from up to 15 guests to 50 or more, with a separate elopement package for couples who want the ceremony to be the two of them, a celebrant and a violin. Same-sex weddings and vow renewals sit on the same service list rather than off to one side.

The island does most of the styling

The portfolio borrows from what is already outside. One Mediterranean wedding was built on terracotta pots, orange roses, proteas and eucalyptus spilling across every table. A beach ceremony used a handmade arch of pampas grass and dried palms, with macramé cushions set down on the pebbles. A proposal above a sea cave was kept to white roses, hydrangeas and green pears. The design stays quiet in each case and the coastline carries the picture.

• Full wedding coordination: planning from the first consultation to the last toast, including budget, venue selection and the running order of the day
• Small weddings: two packages, one built for up to 15 guests and one that scales to 50 or more
• Elopements: the Whispers of Love package, with a small flower arch, a master of ceremony, music, and photography of both the ceremony and a couple's shoot
• Romantic proposals: two packages, from a full styled setup with candles, fairy lights and a tailored menu down to a single candlelit dinner table
• Same-sex weddings and vow renewals: planned on the same terms as everything else on the list
• Legal paperwork: help with the documents for a civil or church wedding, including translations and submissions
• Vendor management: florists, photographers, caterers and musicians booked, paid and held to the timeline
• Guest logistics: accommodation, transfers and welcome events for people flying in

The studio publishes its process in eight steps, which is worth reading before you enquire. It opens with an inquiry form, then a questionnaire about you and the wedding you have in mind, then a call to work out whether it is a good fit. Only after that comes a written cost estimate built around what you described.

If you go ahead there is a short agreement and a deposit to hold the date, followed by a planning timeline you both work to. Venue and supplier shortlists come next, drawn from the studio's own contacts, then the design, then the day itself, with the team running the schedule so you do not have to.

Proposal and elopement couples get 2 to 4 virtual planning meetings before the date. The larger proposal package also includes email support at weekends, which matters more than it sounds when you are arranging a surprise from another time zone.

Crete is big enough that the region changes the wedding. The studio points couples at Chania for the harbour, the pastel houses and the beaches within reach of town, and at Rethymno for the old town and the waterfront venues. Heraklion suits couples who want the archaeology close by, with the vineyards at Archanes sitting just inland.

East Crete is the quieter end, with private beaches and long sea views, and Sitia further out again for couples who want almost nobody else in frame. Guests flying in usually land at Chania or Heraklion, so it is worth choosing the region before the venue.

A good share of the portfolio is proposals rather than weddings, and they are treated as their own product with two packages. The larger one covers the concept, the timing and the plan for holding the surprise together, plus the setup: tables and chairs, candles and fairy lights for the shift from day into dusk, an arch dressed in flowers and fabric, a champagne toast, and a restaurant booking with a tailored menu. The smaller one is a low dinner table styled with florals and candles, in a beachside or nature setting, with a standard reservation.

Both include planning meetings beforehand and photography of the moment itself. One setup ran on white roses, hydrangeas and green pears above the sea, and the couple went down into a sea cave afterwards for the pictures.