With a record wedding season just around the corner, couples everywhere are scrambling to get their affairs in order. Across the United States and Canada, venues, photographers and calligraphers are doing their best to meet the high demand for services. In a market where local weddings are already difficult to plan, one would think that a destination wedding is out of the question. Despite this assumption, Italy's capital region of Lazio has something else in mind. 

As many countries begin to experiment with loosening pandemic restrictions, the American and Canadian wedding industries have begun to boom. However, the wedding industry in Italy has not seen the same level of recovery. In order to combat this problem, the region of Lazio is offering financial incentives to couples who plan to tie the knot there. 

In Lazio With Love 

The Republic of Italy is divided into 20 administrative regions. Stretching from the nation's western coastline into its central interior, the Lazio region is known for its beaches, mountains, and castle. It is also home to Rome, Italy's capital and largest city. 

Italy was hit particularly hard during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the past two years, Lazio has experienced a 60% decline in couples tying the knot. In order to address this decline, Lazio has earmarked €10 million of pandemic relief funds for a program called "Nel Lazio con Amore" or In Lazio With Love. 

This initiative is open to foreigners and Italian citizens alike. Couples who decide to wed in the region of Lazio will be entitled to €2,000 in reimbursement for wedding expenses. Participating couples need only submit five wedding receipts to the local government, and the funds can be used for everything from catering costs to photographers. 

The Economy of Lazio

Lazio's picturesque landscape and historical sites have made it a popular location for destination weddings over the years. Perhaps the most famous example of this was Tom Cruise's marriage to Katie Holmes at a castle in Bracciano called Orsini-Odescalchi. The overlap of the wedding industry with travel and tourism is crucial to the local economy, and the disruption brought about by the global pandemic has made things particularly difficult for the region.

Considering that Lazio boasts the second largest economy of any administrative region in Italy, it is not hard to see how the wedding industry factors into the area's overall economic health. A sharp decline in the number of weddings in the area undoubtedly has serious effects on employment in Lazio. Fewer weddings mean less work for small businesses and independent contractors. Additionally, a decline in the wedding industry adversely impacts the livelihood of venue staff, culinary workers, tailors, and seamstresses. This initiative is an attempt to get these practitioners back to work and ensure thier future for years to come. 

Destination Weddings in 2022? 

Weddings are large investments in the best of times, and destination weddings come with an even larger price tag. Still, Lazio is betting big on attracting couples from abroad to help revitalize the local industry. Couples with the interest and means to get married in Lazio must do so before December 31, 2022. In order to claim their refund, couples must submit their wedding receipts to the local government by the end of January 2023. The most important thing to remember is that any receipts submitted must reflect services from a local wedding provider. 

While the long-term impact of the Nel Lazio con Amore is yet to be seen, it is a welcome sign. Government investment in the local wedding industry is a step toward ensuring that quality wedding ceremonies remain accessible to all who want them.