Getting Married — or Just Celebrating — at a Private Villa in Croatia

We got married at Villa Marim. That is probably the most direct answer to the question of whether a private villa in Croatia is the right place for a celebration. We knew the villa better than anyone — we had built it, worked on the construction site, furnished every room. And when it came to choosing where to get married, there was no discussion.

The terrace above the rock. The Adriatic below. The tables Hans had made in his workshop. Angelika had prepared every detail — the linens, the flowers, the arrangement of the chairs. The wine came from Katunar cellar in Vrbnik, ten minutes away. In the evening the light on the sea was the same light that made us build this place in the first place.

Since then, Villa Marim has hosted other weddings. Villa Moana has been the setting for milestone birthdays and proposals. The Estate has had groups of 14 arriving to celebrate together. Every time, the question we get is the same: what is it actually like to celebrate at a private villa, and how do you do it?

What a villa celebration is — and is not

A hotel wedding venue is a package. There is a coordinator, a fixed menu, a list of approved suppliers, a room hire fee, and a timeline you are expected to follow. The venue has done it hundreds of times. You are the hundredth couple.

A villa celebration is different at the foundation. The villa is yours for the duration of your stay — not for an evening, but for the week. You wake up in the same place where you celebrated the night before. Your closest people are sleeping in the rooms down the corridor. In the morning you swim together. At dinner you eat at the table Hans made, overlooking the sea where you said your vows. The boundary between the celebration and the rest of life disappears, which is the point.

What this requires on your side: some planning and direct communication with us. There is no venue coordinator to call. You talk to us — to Benjamin — and we arrange everything directly with the people we trust. That is both simpler and more personal than a hotel's event department.

What can be arranged

Private chef dinner. For a celebration dinner, we arrange one of two chefs we work with — both experienced with large groups and special menus. A 5-course dinner for 14 guests on the Estate terrace, with Žlahtina wine and Adriatic fish, is a completely different experience from a restaurant booking. Tell us the occasion and the dietary requirements and we handle the rest.

Flowers and decoration. We work with a florist in Vrbnik who knows the villas. She has done weddings, anniversaries, and birthdays here. The aesthetic is local and Mediterranean — olive branches, lavender, sea tones — not the generic hotel style. We introduce you and she takes it from there.

Wine from the cellar. For a celebration, we strongly recommend visiting Katunar winery before the event — tasting with the winemaker, choosing your bottles. They will deliver directly to the villa. Žlahtina on a Croatian terrace is a specific kind of pleasure that most guests never forget.

In-villa spa and massage. The morning of a wedding or birthday, we can arrange a therapist at the villa — classic relaxation, sports, or medical massage, for one guest or the whole group, whatever the occasion requires. Villa Marim has a sauna and jacuzzi built into the rock; Villa Moana has a barrel sauna and whirlpool that work beautifully for a group morning.

Airport transfers. If guests are arriving from different airports or cities, we coordinate all of it. One message from you with the flight details; we arrange the drivers, track the flights, and make sure everyone arrives at the villa together.

What about the ceremony itself?

For civil ceremonies in Croatia, a notary must be present — this is a straightforward legal requirement that your municipality or the Croatian embassy can guide you through. We can recommend a local legal contact who has handled villa ceremonies before. For symbolic ceremonies or renewal of vows, there is no legal process involved — you simply need a celebrant and a terrace, and we have both.

Our honest advice: keep the ceremony small and the dinner large. The most powerful moments at Villa Marim have been the ones where a couple stood on the rock above the sea with the people who matter most, said what they needed to say, and then sat down to dinner together. The setting does most of the work.

Capacity and which villa to choose

Villa Marim sleeps up to 8 guests and is the right choice for an intimate celebration — a wedding party, a milestone birthday for a close group. The rock setting, the private sea access, and the SPA area make it particularly suited to moments that require atmosphere.

Villa Moana and Villa Manatis sit next to each other in Vrbnik. Booked together as the Estate, they accommodate 14 overnight guests. For a birthday weekend with a large family group, a group of close friends celebrating together, or any occasion that benefits from having everyone under one roof — the Estate is the right choice. The two pools, the sand court, the sauna and whirlpool: everything becomes a shared playground for the duration of the stay.

When to book

The summer months on Krk — July and August — fill up earliest. If you are planning a celebration during peak season, write to us at least 6 months in advance. June and September are in many ways better for celebrations: warm enough for everything, quieter on the island, softer light. May is genuinely beautiful and availability is usually better.

Villa celebration at a glance

• Overnight capacity: Villa Marim up to 8 guests; Villa Moana and Villa Manatis up to 7 each; both Vrbnik villas together as the Estate up to 14.
• Daytime guests: the terraces and gardens comfortably host 20–30 people for a ceremony, a long lunch or a dinner.
• Ceremony: symbolic ceremonies and vow renewals take place directly at the villa; for a legally binding civil ceremony a notary must be present — we can recommend a local legal contact.
• Arranged through us: private chef, florist from Vrbnik, Žlahtina from the Katunar cellar, in-villa massage, airport transfers for the whole party.
• Venue fee: none. The celebration is part of your stay, and every extra is quoted in writing before you confirm it.
• Lead time: at least 6 months for July and August; May, June and September are quieter and usually easier to secure.

How the planning works

It starts with one message — the occasion, the number of guests, the dates you have in mind. We reply with what is realistically available and which villa we would recommend. Once the dates are held, we introduce you to the chef and the florist, coordinate the transfers as your guests book their flights, and agree the final numbers with you before arrival. There is no coordinator between you and the people doing the work. That is the whole point.

Before you write, you can check live availability and prices for all three villas.