How to Plan a Vow Renewal in North Wales
Your vows have carried you this far. Now let's refresh them under a glowing sunset.
Short summer reads…
Renewing your vows is one of the most meaningful ways to celebrate your marriage, and planning one in North Wales is far simpler than planning a wedding. Hi, I'm Leon, an accredited celebrant and professional photographer from North Wales. In this read, I'll take you through everything you need to plan a vow renewal here, from the legal side to choosing your sunset spot and writing your new vows.
Is a vow renewal legally binding?
No, and that's part of the beauty of it. You're already married, so a vow renewal is a celebration of your marriage rather than a legal ceremony. There's no notice to give, no paperwork to file and no need for a licensed venue. Local councils do offer renewal of vows ceremonies, but those take place at a register office or an approved venue. With a celebrant-led ceremony there's no red tape, so you can choose a beach, a headland or a mountainside instead.
One thing worth knowing: some beauty spots are owned or cared for by organisations such as the RSPB, the National Trust or Natural Resources Wales. It's always worth checking whether an organised ceremony needs their permission before you set your heart on a spot.
Step 1: Decide how you'd like to celebrate
At Twilight Ceremonies, there are three ways to celebrate your marriage in the summer:
Renewal of Vows (£450): refresh the vows you made on your wedding day and shape them around your life together now. Included is a personalised sunset ceremony at a location of your choosing, with 10 Polaroid photographs handed to you the same evening.
Milestone Ceremony (from £450): recognise the achievements and life events that bring you happiness, with a personalised sunset ceremony and 10 Polaroid photographs as a keepsake.
Couples Sunset Shoot (from £95): no ceremony, just an evening of candid photography under a setting sun, with 10 Polaroids handed to you the same evening and 60 digital photographs.
You can add optional extras for £50 each, such as a video and audio recording of your ceremony, extra candid digital photographs before and after your ceremony, or drone coverage where the location allows. You'll find all the details on my services page.
Step 2: Choose your sunset spot
Photo: I Love Colour, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
This is one of the loveliest parts of planning. Here are some of the sunset locations you can choose from:
West Shore, Llandudno: home to some of the best sunsets in North Wales. Find a quiet spot in the soft sand and listen to the waves as the sun glazes over the water.
The Great Orme, Llandudno: lush and green in the summer, with a vantage point over West Shore and the occasional goat photobomb. The Marine Drive toll road around the headland is £5.80 per car, and the toll ticket also covers parking at the summit. Walkers and cyclists use it for free.
South Stack Lighthouse, Anglesey: renowned for its fantastic summer sunsets, with grassy clifftops and miles of sea behind you. Parking is run by the RSPB and is free for members; otherwise it's £3.50 for up to an hour or £7.50 for the day.
Trearddur Bay, Anglesey: sweeping beaches and intimate coves, with places to stay nearby so you can spend the evening on Anglesey afterwards.
Penmon, Anglesey: a small, intimate beach with a lighthouse as your backdrop and a real sense of stillness. A small toll applies to drive the final stretch of road.
Snowdonia: for adventurers, a calm lake or a mountainside makes a phenomenal setting as the sun goes down.
Explore them all on my locations page.
Step 3: Time it with the sun
Photo: Hefin Owen from Wales, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Summer evenings in North Wales are long. In Llandudno the sun sets at around 9.30pm in early June, around 9.45pm at midsummer, around 9.10pm at the start of August and around 8pm by the end of August. On Anglesey it sets a few minutes later.
A lovely way to plan your day is to spend a relaxed afternoon somewhere you love while I capture candid photographs in the background. You could then enjoy a picnic before we have your ceremony as the sun goes down. Summer weather in Wales can still change, so we'll always have a back-up spot in mind.
Step 4: Write your new vows
Photo: Antonio Litterio, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
As your marriage grows, so do your priorities and the way you work through life together. Renewing your vows is a chance to bring them up to date. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Read your original vows again, then keep the promises that still ring true and add new ones.
Think about what has changed since your wedding day: a new home, children, adventures or challenges you've come through together.
Re-dedicate your rings, or exchange new ones.
Include a reading, a piece of music or a few words from someone special.
Keep a little humour in there. Your vows should sound like you.
We'll work together through online and face-to-face meetings in the months leading up to summer. You can tune in and out to complete your refreshed vows, knowing there's plenty of time, so it fits around your schedule.
Step 5: Book your discovery call
The first step is a relaxed chat over coffee, either over Zoom or in person, where you can ask any questions before committing to anything. If you already know what you'd like, you can skip the discovery call and reserve your date. I'll send you the booking form and everything you need, and you can share the date you'd like and any ideas you want to focus on.
Want some inspiration first? Read the love stories of couples I've worked with, like Penny and James, who said "I do" beside the lonely tree in Llanberis and can now commemorate their marriage under glowing sunsets. You can also see more about the Twilight Ceremonies experience.
Not married yet? My luxury elopement experience, Elope with Leon, is where these love stories began. And with your Love Story Album from Leon Bagnall Experiences, your vow renewal photographs can sit alongside the rest of your story.
Twilight Ceremonies is exclusively open in the summer months, so let's get chatting and pen you in for a vow renewal beneath a setting sun.
Book Your Twilight Ceremony Here