Elena Valemarriage celebrant Enquire

Prices and booking

Prices.

The price on each ceremony is the price on your invoice. Below that is what’s included anyway, the few extras, and the rules about deposits and dates, written so you don’t need a lawyer to read them.

The four ceremonies and their prices

Travel within 40 km of Northcote is included; anywhere further is quoted before you book, so it’s on the invoice from the start.

Compare the four ceremonies

Included in every legal ceremony.

Whichever of the first three you choose, all of this comes with it. Vow renewals get the same list minus the legal paperwork, since there’s nothing to lodge.

The microphone is the thing couples forget to ask about, and the thing everyone in the back row will be grateful for.

  • A free first chat, about an hour, in person around Melbourne or on a video call
  • Help filling in your Notice of Intended Marriage, and witnessing it in person or by video
  • The separate in-person meetings the law now requires: a few minutes with each of you, at our first in-person catch-up, the rehearsal, or a short coffee before the day
  • All the legal paperwork, signed on the day and lodged with Births, Deaths and Marriages Victoria within 14 days
  • A PA system with wireless microphones, and Bluetooth for your music
  • A signing table and two chairs
  • A keepsake certificate to take home on the day
  • Me, arriving 45 minutes early to set up the sound and find your witnesses
  • Unlimited emails, including the late-night ones

The few things that cost extra.

Most couples pay the ceremony price and nothing else. These are the exceptions, and you’ll know about any of them before you pay a deposit.

  • Rehearsal for Small and simple

    $150

    About half an hour at your venue, on a weekday evening in the week before. Thirty people need less rehearsing, so it’s shorter than the 45 minutes in the full ceremony, where the rehearsal is included within 40 km.

  • Travel beyond 40 km of Northcote

    Quoted

    Quoted before you book, based on the drive. As a rough guide, a Yarra Valley winery is usually about $80, and the far end of the Mornington Peninsula about $120.

  • Ordering your marriage certificate

    $59.10+ post

    Once your marriage is registered, I can apply to BDM Victoria for the official certificate and post it on. You’ll need it to change your name on a passport or licence. You’re just as welcome to order it yourself online.

    The BDM fee is $59.10 as at October 2026. It changes each financial year, and express post costs extra.

Booking and paying.

Short version: $300 holds your date, and the rest is due two weeks before. The longer version is here, in plain words, and it’s the same for everyone.

The deposit
$300 holds your date. It comes off the total, so it isn’t an extra cost. It is non-refundable, because once your date is in my diary, I say no to other couples.
The balance
Due two weeks before the wedding. I send the invoice about a month out, and one reminder a week before it’s due.
Changing your date
Tell me as soon as you know. If I’m free on the new date, your deposit moves with you at no cost. If I’m not, I’ll help you find a celebrant I’d trust with my own family.
Cancelling
The deposit stays with me, and if you cancel before the balance is due, that’s all it costs you. Inside the last two weeks your ceremony is written and the day is gone, but if something serious has happened, write to me anyway and we’ll work something out.
If I’m sick
If I’m ever too sick to stand up, a celebrant I trust steps in with your script, and I tell you myself.
Busy Saturdays
Peak Saturdays cost the same. They just go first. October, November, March and April are the busiest months, so if you want a Saturday in one of those, ask early.
Elena, smiling, in a brown linen jacket in a garden
I write every quote and send every invoice myself.

“Elena was upfront about the cost from our first chat, and the invoice matched the quote exactly. She explained the deposit and the balance, answered every email within a day or two, and the ceremony itself was lovely. Highly recommend.”

R & T, Thornbury

Things other people look after.

A celebrant is one person with a microphone and a folder. These belong to other people, and I’m happy to point you towards good ones.

  • Venue hire. Ask the venue. If it’s a backyard, ask whoever mows it.
  • Park permits. The council, Parks Victoria or the Royal Botanic Gardens, depending on the park. The Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne always need a booking, City of Melbourne parks need one for 50 or more guests or a bookable site, and Parks Victoria asks for at least eight weeks. Sort it before the invitations go out.
  • Guest chairs and an arbour. A hire company, or your venue. I bring the two chairs for the signing table.
  • Flowers. A florist, or a friend who’s good with them.
  • Confetti. Check with the venue first, because plenty of parks ban it. Ask whether dried petals are allowed.
  • An MC for the reception. I don’t MC receptions, but I can recommend people who do. A friend who’s good at talking often does it best.

Fees and permit rules are general information only; check bdm.vic.gov.au, ag.gov.au or the park manager.

Questions about a price? Ask before you book.

The first chat is free, and there’s no obligation. The deposit only comes up if we both want to go ahead.

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