Can a Captain marry us at sea?

We were married in Portland, Or. in 2004 (but the state disregarded those marriages within a few months. If a ship is within the waters of a country (like Canada) that legally recognizes gay marriage, can the Captian perform gay marriages? will they? What about in International waters?

Just curious if anyone knows. Even though it still wouldn't be recognized in the US...at least it would be considered legal elsewhere.

Ship's Captain's don't even marry str8 folks nowadays - that went the way of the original "Love Boat"...

I see weddings happening in the chapels all the time on ships. Who is performing those ceremonies if it's not the Captain?

If it's officiated by the Captain, it's usually a Renewal of Vows ceremony - not a wedding...

A couple of related articles:

http://marriage.about.com/cs/marriagelicenses/ht/marriedatsea.htm

http://marriage.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=marriage&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.*****.com%2Fwedding_cruises.cfm

Brian is correct. Usually its a RENEWAL of vows that a captain officiates, not a marriage. Some companies do have ships that will perform a wedding but usually the couple brings along their own clergy, or there is clergy on staff that will officiate, but the role of captain doing it is all but gone.

BUT...........................................The good news is, you CAN get married while on your cruise....how do I know? Well, I did it two years ago on the same itinerary.

1. you need to file an application for a marriage certificate. We did this in Vancouver. We flew up to Seattle the day before, drove to Vancouver filled out and filed all the necessary paperwork, then drove back the next morning. The people at the offices in Vancouver were VERY nice, and supportive. They even took pictures of us while we were signing away.

2. you need an officiant : http://www.vs.gov.bc.ca/cgi-bin/vs_search_internet.cgi?VSS_TABLE=TDatMrgOff

We used Russ Hamilton. He is VERY professional and experienced. He also picked out a very nice location for our ceremony in Nanaimo. It was on the water in the forest preserve...there was no -one around but us and nature. It was very touching for us. He is one of two commissioners we found on the island in the area.

Russ Hamilton

5288 Lost Lake Road

Nanaimo, V9T-5E5

756-4567

cell 714-5068

fax 756-7716

You will also need two witnesses.

Alnog with:

The marriage licenses are good for 90 days so my personal recommendation is

that they not be purchased until just a few days prior to your ceremony.

There are 2 good reasons for this A) less chance to be misplaced but more

importantly B) so that you have a window in which to make some alternate

plans in the event of an illness, accident or heaven forbid a death in the

family.

The following is information the license issuers will require.

Surnames of Bride and Groom:

Full Given Names:

Marital Status:

Birth Dates:

Birth Places:

Only one member of the couple needs to apply for the license, but you will

be asked to provide identification for both the bride and the groom. The

license will be issued at the time of application. Marriage Licenses are not

refundable.

• Anyone over 19 years of age is eligible to apply for a marriage

license in British Columbia.

• Anyone under 19 years of age must first obtain the consent of both

parents. Your local Marriage License Issuer has the required consent forms.

• No one under the age of 16 years can be married without the consent

of the Supreme or County Court.

• You do not have to be a B.C. resident in order to be married here,

but the license is only valid in this province.

• Blood tests are not required under B.C. legislation.

• If one or both of the intended parties was recently divorced (within

the last 31 days), proof of divorce must be provided.

• No license may be issued until a divorce has been finalized by the

courts (this is normally 31 days after the divorce decree has been issued by

the courts).

In most cases a rehearsal is not necessary however this is entirely up to

you.

The fee can be paid on the day of your ceremony; I do not need a deposit.

With respect to this, as I often have multiple weddings in a day it would be

appreciated if the required fee can be paid when you give me the marriage

license, just prior to your wedding.

My only request is that if you decide not to proceed as we have arranged I

should be the second person you tell, right after your fiancé of course.

In order to assist you with budgeting the cost of your wedding, I provide

the following cost summary.

Basic wedding cost ……………………. $75.00

GST ………………………….…………...$5.25

Mileage .45 per kilometer …………….$10.00

Rehearsal (If you want one)……………$25.00 plus an additional mileage

charge

Rather than recording and calculating kilometers and related cost I have

adopted a practice of charging everyone a flat rate of $10.00 for an

attendance in the City of Nanaimo. This works out to be very fair for all.

I always get asked about gratuities and must advise that a gratuity is

absolutely and entirely at your discretion.

Thank you very much for contacting me to participate in your celebration,

I'm delighted.

Hope that helps a bit, and have a happy wedding!!!

Dave:eek:

Ships that do have marriage ceremonies on board usually only do them on departure day before allowing other passengers to board. They usually have something on their website about who to contact or what they offer and allow.

We did a commitment ceremony while in port in Maui in January 2006. I worked with someone that performed gay marraiges a few months prior to the cruise. We brought our tuxes with us, a limo met us at the ship. We stopped and did a little sightseeing prior, then went to the beach for the ceremony. The reverand and photographer met us at the beach. Afterward we stopped for lunch, did a little shopping, then on to a luau to celebrate! It was a wonderful experience and we have great photos.

This company helped make all the arrangements. They also did straight ceremonies as well, and had a checklist of things that needed to be completed and the timeframes to get them done in, such as licenses and any other outside services that were required. I'm sure that there are similar organizations in most areas if you search for them.