subject: Turks And Caicos Become Latest Caribbean Destination For Cruise Weddings [print this page] Turks and Caicos, a pristine Caribbean nation comprising an idyllic archipelago of inhabited and uninhabited islands are well on their way of becoming one of the Caribbean's leading destinations for romantic cruise weddings after the government took steps to cut the processing time for visitors to obtain a marriage licence.
Ever since the move to cut the length of the waiting period for a marriage licence, the islands seem to be ripping the benefits already as more and more couples have chosen Turks and Caicos as their destination for romantic weddings abroad.
The amendment of the foreign marriage law took effect in July this year and saw the removal of the requirement for visitors to be present in the islands for at least 48 hours before being able to apply for a licence to host destination weddings in Turks and Caicos. The former legislation made it impossible for cruise passenger to get married in the Caribbean islands as their ships only remained in port for around 8 hours.
After the change in Turks and Caicos' wedding requirements the Registrar General's Office soon started receiving several requests from ship passengers wanting to host cruise weddings at the islands and from cruise passengers asking to host beach weddings in Turks and Caicos.
Just last 11th November, a couple of ship passengers used the amended Marriage Ordinance to get married in Turks and Caicos at the Carnival Cruise Centre on Grand Turk. The first ever wedding to be staged at the cruise port was overseen by Turks and Caicos marriage office, Delores Connolly.
Sigrid Lightbourne, Registrar General was delighted to see the change already bearing fruits: This is a very important moment for the community of Grand Turk and the TCI on a whole, as this provision allows the country to engage in a new and exciting area in the tourism industry. Our visitors can now view our beautiful by nature islands as a place where they can celebrate yet another special occasion. Even if they are only here for a few hours they would have created within the Turks and Caicos Islands memories that will last them a lifetime.
