Local Bride-to-be Sharon Murray and her fiancé Stuart Mitchell married on 21st February this year.
However, instead of getting married in their local town of Aberdeen, they have both decided to marry abroad.

Q - When did you and your fiancé Stuart first meet and when did he propose?

A - Stuart and I met in 1998 at his 21st Birthday Party. Six years later Stuart eventually proposed to me in the beautiful city of Lanzarote in September 2004. I was completely taken by surprise but instantly said Yes.

Q - Why did you decide to marry abroad and have there been any complications?

A - Stuart and I have chosen to marry in Cuba. After travelling the world for a year and seeing many different places, we had our hearts set upon marrying on a beach. We both felt it would be an ideal romantic setting. One of the other reasons why we have decided to get married overseas is because my dad died in 2002 in a tragic accident and for me I feel that it would have been too difficult having the wedding at home.

The staff at Thomas Cook have been fantastic in helping us choose where to go, arranging the wedding co-ordinator who will meet us on arrival and deal with all the arrangements such as flowers, photos, venue, meal, cake etc.They also helped with the documentation required for marrying abroad. We wanted a nice hotel but not too expensive as we didn’t want to put people off joining us. Thomas Cook found the perfect location and hotel in Cuba. Excited with our booking, I decided to do some further research on the hotel via the Trip Advisor website to see if there were any other couples that had married at that particular hotel. I even emailed one girl that had and she kindly let me view her photos. When I saw her photos I knew for sure that we had made the right choice. There haven’t really been any complications so far, it’s been really easy.

Q - How many guests will be attending and how are you and your fiancé feeling about the big day?

A - There are 24 close family and friends joining us for our special day. Stuart and I have chosen to have a large wedding reception when we return at the Copthorne Hotel. We will have a photographer present and a DVD produced of our reception as we want to make it just as special a day for those who cannot make it abroad with us.

Thankfully we are not feeling nervous at all. We are just worried incase we laugh during the vows, or in my case, cry! After the wedding Stuart and I are going to spend some time alone together in Havana, then re-join the group for the remainder of the 2 weeks. I feel that the best thing about getting married abroad is that you get the added bonus of wearing your wedding dress twice, as I will be wearing it at our home reception In Aberdeen!

It is clear to see that Sharon and Stuart are a match made in heaven, where a chance meeting led to a romantic proposal in Lanzarote. The Dedicated 2 Weddings team would like to wish them all the best with their forthcoming wedding and their future together. Read about their big day in the next edition of the Dedicated 2 Weddings Magazine.