Weddings on St. Thomas
St. Thomas wedding venues run from a $250 ceremony on the sand at Magens Bay, the Magens Bay Authority's fee, to a resort beach the Ritz-Carlton sets for 350, and most venues quote only on request, as of October 2026. You book the venue or a planner directly, and the marriage license comes from the Superior Court for $200 in two fees as of October 2026.
Written by Virgin Islands Villas · Updated Oct 2026
The operators, side by side
| Name | What | Departs from | Group size | Rates | Phone | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas | Resort with a beach, a terrace, a pool terrace and a ballroom for ceremonies and receptions; plans by request form, no prices published. | Great Bay, East End | up to 350 (beach reception); ballroom 220 | — | (340) 775-3333 | Oct 2026 |
| Secret Harbour Beach Resort | Two oceanfront ceremony sites, daytime 10 am to 4 pm and sunset 4 pm to 7 pm; its coordinator or your own. | Nazareth, East End | up to 75 | Packages $1,500 (coordination, beach site fee, officiant) to $29,500 (50 guests); rooms booked separately | 800-524-2250 | Oct 2026 |
| The Hideaway at Hull Bay | Private estate with five event spaces, among them a farm, a lawn and the beach, booked as a full, partial or shared buyout. | Hull Bay, north side | 125 seated, 150 standing; sleeps 36 | — | (340) 642-8400 | Oct 2026 |
| Bolongo Bay Beach Resort | Beach resort with wedding and vow renewal packages; the vow renewal includes the officiant and the beach-site fee. Prices on request. | Bolongo Bay, south shore | — | — | (340) 775-1800 | Oct 2026 |
| Magens Bay Authority, Magens Bay | The public beach park; weddings by its fee, open 7 am to 5:30 pm. | Magens Bay, north side | — | $250 wedding or vow renewal; pavilion $150 a day | (340) 777-6300 | Oct 2026 |
| Magens Bay Authority, Smith Bay Park | The Authority's second beach park, at Lindquist Beach, with two pavilions for rent. | Lindquist Beach, East End | — | $250 wedding or vow renewal | (340) 777-6300 | Oct 2026 |
| Magens Bay Beach Club | Chair and cabana rentals on the beach, with catering, event planning and coordination for weddings. Event prices on request. | Magens Bay | — | Chairs $20 to $30 a day, two-person cabana $100; group setups $150 plus 18%; events on request | (340) 714-5326 | Oct 2026 |
| Sol at Mafolie | Hotel restaurant over the harbor that takes wedding dinners and celebrations. Prices on request. | Mafolie, above Charlotte Amalie | — | — | (340) 774-2790 | Oct 2026 |
| The VI Cat | Large catamaran chartered privately for weddings and events, with a snorkel or a sunset sail and dining. | Marriott's Frenchman's Cove dock | 30 to 80 | — | (340) 690-2287 | Oct 2026 |
| Island Mike Weddings | Officiant and planner: packages add photography, coordination and an arch; he puts most venues' site fees at $100 to $600 or more. | St. Thomas packages; St. John priced separately | — | $495 to $1,495 a package; venue fees extra | (340) 201-6069 | Oct 2026 |
| Irie Matrimony | Wedding planning, design and rentals; the coordinator Secret Harbour names on its wedding page. | St. Thomas | — | Wedding management from $1,500; design from $2,500; full-service coordination from $3,500 | (340) 690-4117 | Oct 2026 |
How to choose a St. Thomas wedding venue
Start with the head count. Secret Harbour on the East End takes up to 75 guests on two beach sites; the Hideaway at Hull Bay seats 125 on its lawns, farm or beach; the Ritz-Carlton lists a beach reception for 350 and a ballroom for 220. The VI Cat takes 30 to 80 aboard a catamaran.
Then decide who runs the day: a resort's coordinator, or a planner who brings the officiant and books the site. Island Mike Weddings' packages run from $495 to $1,495 as of October 2026, venue fee extra.
What St. Thomas wedding packages leave out
The tradeoff: most venues publish no price. Of the eleven names here, four print a wedding price: the Magens Bay Authority, Secret Harbour, Island Mike Weddings and Irie Matrimony. Secret Harbour's packages run from $1,500 to $29,500 for 50 guests as of October 2026, with the rooms booked separately; the Ritz-Carlton and Bolongo Bay quote on request, and the Hideaway sells the estate as a buyout. Ask each for the site fee and the rain plan before comparing.
A villa is a different question. Whether a house takes an event is the owner's call, and each villa page's house rules show it: not allowed, allowed with the owner's approval, or welcome. Give the head count in your first note to the owner.
The marriage license, as the court states it
The Superior Court of the Virgin Islands issues the license. As of October 2026 it charges a $100 non-refundable application fee and a $100 license fee, takes the application by e-filing or in person, posts it for public examination for eight days, and asks a previously married applicant for a certified divorce decree or death certificate.
As of October 2026, a Saturday, Sunday or holiday pick-up costs $150 more per couple, by arrangement, and a judge will marry you for $400, weekdays at 8:30 am on St. Thomas. The court's rule, as of the same month, is that whoever officiates returns the signed license within ten days.
Weddings on Magens Bay and Lindquist Beach
The two beach parks the Magens Bay Authority runs, Magens Bay and Smith Bay Park at Lindquist Beach, charge $250 for a wedding or vow renewal, as of October 2026, plus $7 entry for each non-resident guest 12 and over. A pavilion at Magens Bay is $150 a day, and the parks are open 7 am to 5:30 pm, both as of October 2026.
In late November the sun sets at 5:42 pm, by our calculation for Charlotte Amalie, twelve minutes after the gates close. A beach-park wedding is a daytime wedding.
Questions about weddings on St. Thomas
- How long does it take to get a marriage license in St. Thomas?
- More than eight days: the Superior Court posts every application for public examination for eight days, as of October 2026, and the clerk tells you when the license is ready.
- Is a wedding on St. Thomas legal in Massachusetts?
- St. Thomas is a US territory, and a wedding there is licensed under Virgin Islands law by the territory's Superior Court. Its Family Division sells certified copies with the court's seal at $3 each, as of October 2026.
- What to wear to a wedding in St. Thomas?
- For the couple's license appointment, the court sets the rule: business casual, and no shorts or slippers in the Family Division, as of October 2026. For the wedding itself, ask the couple.
- Can you get married on a public beach on St. Thomas?
- Yes, at Magens Bay and Lindquist Beach, for the Magens Bay Authority's $250 fee as of October 2026; the parks close at 5:30 pm. A resort beach is booked through the resort.
Sources: Superior Court of the Virgin Islands (checked Oct 9, 2026) · Magens Bay Authority (checked Oct 9, 2026)