A Perfect Gay Wedding In South Africa

South Africa is one of our top wedding and honeymoon destinations

You’re planning a wedding and honeymoon, and you want somewhere that can actually carry both. South Africa is unusually good at that.

You can get married overlooking the Atlantic in Cape Town, among the vineyards of Franschhoek, or at a safari lodge with the bush stretching out behind you. Then the honeymoon can begin without changing countries. A few days in the city can become a Winelands stay, a safari, and then a final stretch on the coast.

That range is what makes South Africa such a good wedding destination. You are not tied to one version of romance, and you do not have to choose between food, wildlife, beaches and beautiful hotels. You can build all of it into one trip, which is particularly useful when you are already asking friends and family to travel a long way for the wedding.

Can gay couples get married in South Africa?

Yes, of course. Under the 1996 Constitution, protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation was enshrined in South African law. Gay marriage was introduced in 2006, several years before it was legalised in many European countries.

You can have a full, legal wedding ceremony in South Africa. There is no minimum residency requirement for foreign nationals, but you should confirm the paperwork with the marriage officer performing the ceremony before you travel. As a foreigner, you’ll normally need valid identification and documentation or a declaration confirming there is no legal impediment to your marriage. Exact requirements can vary according to nationality.

Supposing you’re a divorcee, you’ll need to provide proof of termination of your previous marriage or marriages (get you). Gay couples can marry in South Africa with the same legal recognition as straight couples. State marriage officers can no longer refuse to conduct same-sex civil unions on grounds of conscience, religion or belief, following the repeal of that exemption in 2020.

We have great contacts with gay-friendly hotels and lodges in South Africa, so you’ll have no trouble on that score.

You also won’t need blood tests before you marry. South Africa has no blood testing requirement for foreign nationals getting married there.

Getting married in Cape Town

Cape Town is the most cosmopolitan city in Africa and the region’s de facto gay capital. Table Mountain looms over the city. It makes for quite a dramatic backdrop. When you ascend Table Mountain you’ll be greeted with some of the finest views in the world. You can take quite spectacular wedding photos with the mountain in the background.

One of our favourite wedding destinations in Cape Town is The Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa. It’s a luxury seafront hotel in a secluded setting near Camps Bay. The hotel has its own wedding coordinators so you’ll be in safe hands. It’s one of the most popular wedding venues in Cape Town for both gay and straight couples. You can get married in the hotel’s gardens surrounded by uninterrupted views of Table Mountain. It’s a 20-minute drive from The Twelve Apostles to the V&A Waterfront.

Combining South Africa with Mauritius

Supposing you’d prefer a twin-centre itinerary, combining South Africa with Mauritius is ideal. It’s around a four-hour flight from Johannesburg to Mauritius. You can enjoy the cultural buzz of Cape Town, pursue the Big Five on safari and then unwind on a perfect beach in Mauritius, ideally while staying somewhere like Sugar Beach.

If you combine the two, we’d usually suggest starting in South Africa and ending in Mauritius, so the trip finishes with a few days by the Indian Ocean. Mauritius works year-round, although January to March tends to be hotter, more humid and wetter, with a higher chance of tropical storms.

Mauritius is the top luxury island destination in the Indian Ocean and it’s an excellent choice for a honeymoon. As well as boasting world-class luxury hotels, it’s a dream destination for foodies. The One & Only Le Saint Geran has a Michelin-starred restaurant that emerged as part of a £41 million refurbishment. You can also try classic Mauritian cuisine on the southwest of the island at Le Chateau de Bel Ombre. There’s more to Mauritius than hotels, food and beaches. You can explore the buzzing capital of Port Louis, take a hike in Black River Gorges National Park and, if you’re feeling daring, ride an ATV to the waterfalls.

Safari weddings in South Africa

No trip to South Africa is complete without a safari adventure at one of the major parks. Pursuing the Big Five through the bush is one of the major bucket list experiences. You come face to face with some of the most spectacular wildlife on earth. South Africa has many of the finest luxury safari lodges in the region. Enjoying a bottle of champagne in your private hot tub with giraffes and zebras nearby is quite an experience. In short, a safari wedding in South Africa is impossibly romantic.

The Eastern Cape is malaria-free, so you do not need malaria medication there. Kruger National Park, however, is in a malaria-risk area. There is no routine malaria jab for travellers; current guidance recommends preventive medication for Kruger, alongside mosquito precautions, so speak to your doctor or travel clinic before you go.

Kruger National Park is vast, covering almost 20,000 square kilometres. It’s the most famous park in South Africa and offers some of the country’s best safari experiences. If you would rather avoid a malaria-risk area, the Eastern Cape is the obvious alternative. Its private reserves are smaller and game viewing can be excellent, but sightings of the Big Five can never be guaranteed. Shamwari Private Game Reserve is a great choice for a safari wedding in South Africa’s Eastern Cape.

A Winelands wedding in South Africa

Wine lovers will want to taste South Africa’s finest. It’s roughly an hour and a half drive from Cape Town to Franschhoek in the Western Cape. This is the gastronomy capital of South Africa. It’s full of charming Dutch colonial architecture. Franschhoek’s wine culture derives from the Huguenots – Protestant exiles from France who were welcomed to the Cape by the Dutch. They brought their French winemaking expertise with them and it has flourished to this day. You’ll want to explore the gabled homesteads of Franschhoek and take a tour of the wine estates.

If you’re planning to get married in the Winelands, Babylonstoren is a great choice. Founded by design guru Karen Roos, it combines the classic Dutch colonial aesthetic with a modern twist. It’s surrounded by some of the finest private gardens in the Winelands.