From the Serenity Lens
A ceremony overlooking the sea. Dinner beneath the olive trees. A dance floor that brings everyone together long after sunset.
There is plenty to fall in love with when planning a wedding in Greece. But before choosing a venue, there is one conversation worth having: what will the celebration you have in mind actually cost?
The answer depends on more than the destination. A hotel wedding on the Athens Riviera and a private villa celebration on an island may look similar on a mood board, yet require very different budgets.
For couples planning from the UK, US or Canada, understanding those differences early makes the process much easier. You can choose a setting that suits your plans, know what you are committing to and decide where your money will make the greatest difference.
The quick answer: what should you budget?
For a luxury wedding in Greece, I would begin with your guest count.
As an initial guide, food starts at around €125–€250 per person (it can be more), with drinks packages covering the ceremony through to the end of the evening ranging from €80–€170 per person. The drinks price depends on whether you include cocktails and shots alongside wine, beer and soft drinks.
For 80 guests, that puts food and drink alone at approximately €16,400–€33,600. For 100 guests, the range becomes approximately €20,500–€42,000.
Venue hire, design, photography, entertainment and planning still need to be accounted for.
All indicative prices in this guide exclude VAT. Serenity’s planning fee is additional. These figures are starting points for a budget conversation, rather than an all-inclusive wedding quote.
The deciding factor is how many people your budget needs to host. €50,000 for 50 guests can create a very elevated celebration; the same budget for 100 guests requires different choices.
It is also important to distinguish between the cost of the wedding day and the cost of the whole trip. Welcome parties, farewell events and any accommodation you choose to host should have their own allowances.
Where the money goes
The venue: look beyond the hire fee
Venue arrangements vary considerably by location and property.
Some venues have no separate hire fee but work with minimum spends starting around €15,000. Others charge hire fees of €10,000 or more, alongside a minimum spend.
Before adding those figures to your budget, establish what qualifies towards the minimum spend. If your food and drink expenditure counts towards it, the minimum is a spending requirement rather than an entirely separate charge.
The venue’s infrastructure matters too. A hotel or established event venue may already have kitchens, furniture, lighting and an experienced service team. What is included will vary, but those existing facilities can make a significant difference to the overall budget.
A private villa or estate offers privacy, flexibility and the opportunity to create a celebration around the property. It may also require you to bring in everything needed to host the wedding.
That could include catering facilities, power, toilets, furniture, lighting, a dance floor and additional staff. Access for deliveries, installation time and a suitable weather backup also need consideration.
Before booking a villa, confirm that events are permitted, what guest numbers are allowed and whether there are restrictions on music or finishing times.
The useful question is: what will it cost to deliver our wedding here?
A real planning example from Messinia
For one wedding we are currently planning in Messinia, the design work includes a terrace dinner, a separate ceremony setting, lounge seating and spaces for live entertainment. Working through those plans shows how much sits beyond simply reserving a beautiful venue.
We have explored different dining layouts, including curved tables and round arrangements, alongside the positioning of stages, the seating plan and lounge furniture. Each option needs to be considered practically: how much furniture it requires, how guests move through the space, how dinner can be served and what needs to be installed.
These decisions also inform the budget. A change in table layout can affect linen quantities, floral arrangements and furniture hire. Adding a lounge or performance stage introduces further elements to source, deliver and set up. Even within the same venue, different designs can require quite different levels of production.
Alongside that work, we are coordinating hotel room arrangements, exploring musicians for the ceremony and reception, and accounting for two additional events. Each part needs its own scope and costs.
That is why I encourage couples to work through the celebration they want to create before treating the venue quote as their wedding budget. Understanding what your plans require gives you a realistic picture of the total.
Food, drink and service
Food and drink can account for a substantial part of the budget, particularly when you are hosting several events.
Within the €125–€250 per-person food range, your menu, number of courses and service style will influence the price. Drinks packages of €80–€170 per person also need to be compared carefully: the selection and hours of service matter as much as the headline figure.
Ask what is covered. Are arrival drinks, wine with dinner, water, cocktails, bar staff and glassware included? Is late-night food additional? Does the package run until your planned finishing time?
Any service charges, minimum spends and costs for extending the bar should be clear before you commit.
The aim is to create generous hospitality that suits the rhythm of your wedding, with a budget you understand from the outset.
Design, florals and atmosphere
For the level of luxury celebration we are discussing, I would allow a minimum of €10,000 for florals.
The final cost depends on the scale of your plans: ceremony arrangements, tables, installations and floral dressing across several spaces all need consideration. Flower choices, availability and installation requirements also affect the price.
Furniture and lighting should be assessed alongside the florals. Your preferred chairs, tables, linens, lounge pieces and lighting design may require additional hire and production.
A photograph rarely shows all the work behind an idea. A suspended installation, for example, may need specialist rigging, additional crew and access well before guests arrive.
Start with the atmosphere you want to create, then decide which elements will contribute most to it.
Photography, film and entertainment
For the luxury briefs we are discussing, combined photography and videography for one day can start around €10,000 and rise to €20,000 or more, depending on your chosen team, style and coverage.
Consider the hours included, the size of the team, the final deliverables and whether you would also like the welcome evening captured. Travel and accommodation may be additional costs.
Entertainment needs to be considered as a complete booking too. A band’s fee may sit alongside sound equipment, technical support, travel and accommodation. A DJ may need a separate production package.
Check that your venue can accommodate the performance, sound level and finishing time you have in mind.
Planning and coordination
Serenity’s planning fee is additional to the supplier and venue figures outlined here.
The scope may include venue sourcing, supplier selection, negotiation & budget management, design, guest logistics & communication and coordination across several days.
When comparing planning proposals, look at what is covered, how many events are included and how many team members will be present.
For a destination wedding, deliveries, supplier schedules, transfers, setup and the movement of guests all need to fit together. That work should be accounted for from the beginning.
How a wedding becomes a whole weekend
When guests travel a long way, it is natural to want more time together.
A welcome dinner allows everyone to settle in. A farewell lunch gives you a slower moment after the wedding. A boat day can become a highlight of the trip.
As an initial guide, welcome parties can require €8,000–€30,000 for food, drink and DJ, and farewell celebrations can sit within the same range. The guest count, setting, menu and format determine where your plans fall.
Those allowances cover food and drink. Any additional venue fees, styling, entertainment, transport or activities need to be considered separately.
You do not need every event to have the same scale or formality. Decide what each gathering is for, then build its budget around that purpose.
Accommodation and guest arrangements
Indicative accommodation rates can range from approximately €300–€1,200 per room, per night, depending on the property, room category and dates.
Make clear which stays you intend to pay for and which guests will book themselves.
Reserving a room block and committing to a hotel buyout are different financial arrangements. Minimum-night requirements, deposits and responsibility for unbooked rooms need careful attention.
For guests travelling from the US or Canada, accommodation choices and booking information are an important part of planning the wider experience.
The costs worth checking early
Some expenses are easy to miss because they sit outside the most visible parts of the wedding.
VAT and service charges: The prices in this guide exclude VAT. Ask each supplier to confirm the applicable tax and any additional service charges.
Guest transport: Include airport transfers, journeys between hotels and venues, and return transport at the end of the evening.
Supplier travel and accommodation: Check these separately, particularly for island weddings or teams travelling from abroad.
Delivery, setup and collection: Furniture, florals and production equipment may have charges beyond their hire or purchase price.
Additional hours: Understand the cost of extending the bar, entertainment, transport or venue access.
Weather backup: Confirm what an alternative arrangement involves and whether it carries an additional cost.
Currency movements and payment fees: Keep the working budget in euros and account for the cost of paying from overseas.
Leave room for contingency
I would recommend keeping a separate contingency available. For a working budget of €50,000, I would want you to have a further €10,000 in reserve.
This gives you room to manage changes and additional requirements without reallocating money already committed elsewhere.
VAT and planning fees should be included in your financial plan from the outset. Establish the full expected cost first, then keep contingency available beyond it. And remember planning fees are an investment to save you both time and money, wether thats through experienced negotiations, long term vendor relationships or simply not wasting money on suppliers that do not deliver.
How location and timing affect the budget
Greece offers far more choice than its most familiar wedding images suggest.
Santorini and Mykonos may be right for the celebration you imagine. But the Athens Riviera, Halkidiki, the Peloponnese—including Kalamata and the wider Messinia region—and other islands deserve consideration too.
Look beyond the venue photographs. Where will guests stay? How will they arrive? Are the suppliers you need available locally? Does the property have the infrastructure your celebration requires?
A setting I would recommend: The Danai, Halkidiki
One property I would recommend considering is The Danai in Halkidiki. For couples drawn to greenery, sea views and a more intimate resort setting, its gardens, private sandy beach, suites and villas offer a beautiful foundation for a wedding celebration.
What appeals to me from a planning perspective is the opportunity to give each part of the celebration its own atmosphere while keeping the experience connected. The Danai offers settings for events on the beach, in its vineyard and gardens, and at its villas, creating possibilities for a welcome evening, wedding day and time together afterwards. The arrangements would depend on your guest numbers, dates and the spaces reserved.
When considering the budget, I would look at the value of that whole experience: accommodation, dining and celebration spaces within one property, and the potential to simplify movement between events. For guests travelling from the US or Canada, having time to settle in and enjoy the destination can be an important part of what you are hosting.
My recommendation would be to explore the complete proposal early, including accommodation commitments, event-space exclusivity and production requirements. That gives you a meaningful picture of how The Danai could work for your celebration.
Choosing your date
Timing can affect venue and accommodation prices, but a date outside peak summer does not automatically make every part of the wedding less expensive.
Weather, flight connections, daylight hours and seasonal openings belong in the decision alongside price. The best date is one that works for the whole celebration.
Legal or symbolic ceremony?
If you plan to marry legally in Greece, allow for the relevant documents, authentication, translations and administrative costs. Confirm the requirements with the municipality where you intend to marry and the relevant Greek consulate.
Alternatively, you can complete the legal marriage at home and hold a symbolic ceremony in Greece.
Either choice can give you a meaningful celebration. Decide early, so the paperwork and its timeline are part of the plan.
Spending well, through the Serenity lens
My advice is to establish your priorities and guest count before committing to the details.
If your budget is fixed, the number of people you host has a direct effect on what is available for everything else. Food and drink increase with each guest; larger numbers may also require more tables, transport and service staff.
From there, decide what matters most to you. That might be the food, live music, a particular setting, floral design or having everyone together for several days.
Cost those priorities early. Then look at where the rest of the celebration can be simplified while still feeling personal and generous.
The most useful budget supports the experience you want and gives you confidence in the commitments you make. With the full picture established early, you can enjoy choosing the details, knowing how they fit together.
Planning your wedding in Greece with Serenity
Whether you are drawn to an island celebration, a private estate or a coastal hotel, Serenity can help you explore the options and understand the budget behind them.
We begin with your priorities, your guest list and the experience you want to create, then work through the setting and practical details.