Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GETTING
married
IN HAWAII
Hawaii is a great place for a wedding. The islands exude romance and natural beauty, and after
the ceremony, you're already on your honeymoon. And the members of your wedding party will
most likely be delighted, as you've given them the perfect excuse for their own island vacation.
More than 20,000 marriages are performed annually on the islands, mostly on Oahu; nearly
half are for couples from somewhere else. The booming wedding business has spawned more
than 70 companies that can help you organize a long-distance event and stage an unforget-
table wedding, Hawaiian-style or your style. However, you can also plan your own island wed-
ding, even from afar, and not spend a fortune doing it.
THE PAPERWORK
The state of Hawaii has some very minimal procedures for obtaining a marriage license. The
first thing you should do is contact the
Honolulu Marriage License Office,
State Department
of Health Building, 1250 Punchbowl St., Honolulu, HI 96813 (
&
808/586-4545;
www.state.hi.us/doh/records/vr_marri.html), which is open Monday through Friday from 8am to
4pm. The office no longer will mail you the brochure Getting Married; you can download it from
the website or contact a marriage-licensing agent closest to where you'll be staying in Hawaii
(also listed on the website).
Once in Hawaii, the prospective bride and groom must go together to the marriage-licensing
agent to get the license, which costs $60 and is good for 30 days. Both parties must be 15
years of age or older (couples 15-17 years old must have proof of age, written consent of both
parents, and written approval of the judge of the family court) and not more closely related than
first cousins.
Gay couples cannot marry in Hawaii. After a protracted legal battle, and much discussion in the
state legislature, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that the state will not issue marriage licenses
to same-sex couples.
PLANNING THE WEDDING
Doing It Yourself
The marriage-licensing agents, who range from state employees to private
individuals, are usually friendly, helpful people who can steer you to a nondenominational min-
ister or marriage performer who's licensed by the state of Hawaii. These marriage performers
are great sources of information for budget weddings. They usually know wonderful places to
have the ceremony for free or for a nominal fee. For the names, addresses, and telephone
numbers of marriage agents in the rural and suburban areas of Oahu, call
&
808/586-4544.
If you don't want to use a wedding planner (see below), but you do want to make arrangements
before you arrive in Hawaii, our best advice is to get a copy of the daily newspapers on the is-
land where you want to have the wedding. People willing and qualified to conduct weddings ad-
vertise in the classifieds. They're great sources of information and know the best ceremony
sites, caterers, florists, and so on. Check out the Honolulu Star Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd.
Using a Wedding Planner
Wedding planners—many of whom are marriage-licensing agents
as well—can arrange everything for you, from a small, private, outdoor affair to a full-blown
