Wedding venues in Bruges

Getting married in Bruges

You can have your civil wedding in Bruges if at least one of you is registered there. There are three places to choose from: the Gothic Hall of the town hall on the Burg, with its wall paintings and vaulted ceiling; the community centre in Zeebrugge; and, from April to September, the beach at Zeebrugge, at Beach Club Banana Moon.

At the town hall, weddings take place on Tuesday and Saturday mornings between 10 am and noon, and on Friday afternoons between 1.30 and 4.30 pm. In Zeebrugge they are on Fridays at 5.30 pm and Saturdays at 9 am; on the beach, on one Friday morning a month between 9 am and noon. You can hold an option on the place, date and time up to a year ahead. The marriage notice is given no earlier than 6 months and 14 days and no later than 14 days before the wedding: online with itsme or your eID if you are both Belgian, otherwise by appointment at the Huis van de Bruggeling, Frank Van Ackerpromenade 2. Witnesses are optional; you may name up to four, each at least 18.

Arrive a quarter of an hour early and report to the red desk in the town hall's entrance hall; there is a lift. Vows may take no more than five minutes, and a personal message for the ceremony must be sent in at least 14 days ahead. Afterwards the hall has to be cleared straight away for the next couple; photos can be taken on the stairs, and your guests can congratulate you in the entrance hall. Throwing rice, confetti or petals is not allowed, even if they are biodegradable. For the town hall and the beach you receive parking permits, valid from half an hour before to half an hour after the ceremony; near the community centre in Zeebrugge there is plenty of free parking.

Bruges is the capital of West Flanders and lies about 15 km from the North Sea. Its historic centre has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000, and the municipality also takes in Zeebrugge and villages such as Sint-Andries, Assebroek, Koolkerke and Lissewege. The station is on the south-west edge of the centre, with at least one intercity train an hour to Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp, among others. Cars are kept out of the centre as far as possible, with car parks on the edge of town.