Sara & Pierre

The couple

Sara and Pierre live in Switzerland, but Ibiza is close to a second home: the family has a house on the island and they spend a good part of the year there. They asked for a wedding that felt like the Ibiza they know, natural rather than flashy, with room for a party that would not stop at midnight. Planned by Bliss Ibiza Weddings, it became a three-day weekend in several places.

It opened with a rehearsal dinner for 140 guests in the garden of the family house, which looks out over the tower where Pierre had proposed. The couple drove up in a Land Rover dressed with flowers. Guests found a chill-out corner, a long table laid with fresh herbs, a barbecue buffet with a jamón station at the entrance, a guitarist, and a DJ who played until midnight.

The ceremony

On the day, Sara got ready in the tower suite at Fincadelica with her mother and bridesmaids, while Pierre made her a light lunch and spent the afternoon at the pool with friends. The estate is large enough for the two of them to prepare separately without meeting.

The ceremony took place in the church of San Lorenzo, about five minutes away by car. Because it was high summer, guests were met outside with water stations before going in. A flower arch framed the church door, large blooms lined the aisle, and Sara walked in with her father. Afterwards came a shower of petals and a performance of ball pagès, the island's traditional dance, by a local folk group; the couple joined in. A glass of champagne, and then everyone returned to the finca for drinks by the pool, with canapés, cocktails, live music and the first speeches.

Dinner and party

Dinner was laid in the garden on two tables, each close to 30 metres long, with a separate table for the couple. Instead of numbers, each table carried a symbol that guests matched against the seating plan. An MC announced the newlyweds, guests waved their napkins in welcome, and Sara and Pierre danced in to "A Lover's Holiday" by Change.

Three courses and a few speeches later, the cake was cut and the dance floor behind the tables opened. A band flown in from Italy played until around midnight. Then the party moved to the finca's cave, with a chill-out area set up outside it, and carried on until the early morning. A post-wedding gathering at Cala Bonita closed the weekend.

The details

• A flower-dressed Land Rover for the arrival at the rehearsal dinner
• Fresh herbs in place of formal centrepieces on the long table
• Symbols, not numbers, on the tables
• Ball pagès outside the church, a nod to Ibiza's traditions

Good to know

A church a few minutes from the venue keeps transfers short and the day relaxed; in July and August, water and shade outside the church matter as much as the flowers. If you want to dance late, choose a venue with an indoor space where the party can move once outdoor music has to stop, as the cave does here. For church paperwork, see church and religious ceremonies, and for the area, the north.