Short answer: Jamaica is one of the easiest countries in the Caribbean to marry in. You need to be on the island 24 hours before the ceremony, there is no blood test and no apostille, and the licence itself costs very little. A private villa suits a small wedding — realistically under 30 guests for a ceremony, with only ten able to sleep on site.
We host the occasional wedding, vow renewal and milestone anniversary at Butterfly Hill. This is what we tell people who ask, including the parts that put some of them off.
The legal requirements
Jamaica is refreshingly straightforward compared with much of the region.
- Be in Jamaica at least 24 hours before the ceremony. Most planners suggest arriving two or three days early to complete paperwork without rushing.
- You need a Minister’s Marriage Licence, issued by Jamaica’s Ministry of Justice. It is usually processed within about 24 hours and remains valid for 90 days.
- Documents: certified birth certificates showing your father’s name, valid passports, and a decree absolute or death certificate if either of you has been married before. Documents not in English need translation and notarisation.
- A licensed Jamaican Marriage Officer must perform the ceremony — either a registered minister of religion or a civil officer.
- Two witnesses, both over 18, with valid ID.
- No blood test, no health screening, no apostille on foreign documents.
Requirements do change. Confirm current rules with the Jamaican Ministry of Justice or your nearest Jamaican High Commission before booking flights. We are villa owners, not wedding planners, and this page is a starting point rather than legal advice.
Honest limits of a villa wedding
This is the part most villa websites skip, and it is the part that matters most.
- Butterfly Hill sleeps ten. Anyone beyond that stays elsewhere. For a wedding of thirty, that means arranging accommodation across several properties in Treasure Beach.
- There is no wedding coordinator on site. Our staff will help, and they are very good, but they are a chef, a housekeeper and a groundskeeper — not an events team. For anything beyond a small ceremony and dinner, hire a planner.
- No marquee, dance floor, sound system or event lighting. Those come from suppliers, and suppliers here come from Black River, Santa Cruz or further.
- Treasure Beach is remote. Two and a half to three hours from Montego Bay airport. Every guest, every supplier and every delivery makes that journey.
If you want a hundred guests and a full production, book a resort or a proper wedding venue. Jakes, ten minutes along the coast in Calabash Bay, hosts weddings regularly and does it well. We would genuinely rather point you there than have your day be harder than it needed to be.
What a villa does better than a resort
For the right kind of wedding, the trade goes the other way entirely.
- The whole place is yours. No other guests, no wedding scheduled after yours, nobody asking you to clear the terrace by six.
- You are not on a schedule. Resorts run weddings in slots. Here, the day runs at whatever pace you want.
- Your closest people stay with you. Ten beds means parents, siblings and the wedding party wake up in the same house. That is the part guests remember.
- The chef cooks. Breakfast the morning of, dinner the night before, and the day after when nobody wants to leave.
- The setting needs very little. 2.5 acres of garden, an infinity pool, a rooftop palapa with 360-degree views, and the sea below. Sunset here is around 6pm year-round, which makes ceremony timing easy.
What suits this villa
- Elopements and very small weddings — two of you, or a handful of people.
- Vow renewals — the most common celebration we host.
- Milestone anniversaries and birthdays — a whole house for a family, for a week.
- The days around a wedding held elsewhere — several couples have married at a venue nearby and used the villa for the family and the days either side.
One guest described the property as “great for private weddings, picnic, baby shower, barbecue” — which is about right. It is a house that suits a gathering, not a venue that runs events.
When to do it
Mid-December to April is the driest and most reliable, and the most expensive.
Late April, May and late November are our pick — still dry, noticeably quieter, and better value. If you are bringing guests who are paying their own way, shoulder season is kinder to them.
Avoid September and early October for anything with a fixed date. It is the peak of hurricane season, and a wedding is the wrong thing to gamble on weather with. Take insurance whenever you travel between August and October.
See our month-by-month guide for the detail.
Common questions
How many guests can attend a ceremony here?
Realistically under 30 for a ceremony and dinner in the garden. Only 10 can sleep on site.
Can you arrange a celebrant, flowers or photography?
Our staff can point you to local suppliers, but we do not coordinate weddings. For anything beyond the simplest ceremony, use a planner.
How far ahead should we book?
Eight to twelve months, longer for December and January. You are booking the whole villa, so there is no partial availability.
Is there a separate wedding fee?
Contact us with your dates and numbers. Events beyond a normal stay are quoted individually.
Where do extra guests stay?
Treasure Beach has guesthouses and other villas within a short drive. See our guide to where to stay in Treasure Beach.
Talk to us
Tell us your dates, your numbers and what you have in mind, and we will tell you honestly whether the villa fits. If it does not, we will say so and suggest somewhere that does.