With its rich and diverse cultural heritage, Africa is a land where marriage traditions may seem bizarre, romantic, lavish or peculiar. Perhaps even all of these things simultaneously.

In some African traditions, a young girl's family may arrange her marriage many years before she is old enough to wed, in others, prospective grooms must pay his for his future wife with sheep or cattle.

Wedding ceremonies in Africa are grand affairs, often lasting many days. They are festivals celebrating not only the union of man and wife but also that of their respective families. Entire villages might celebrate together and in certain instances, weddings may involve many couples who tie the knot simultaneously in a sort of mass wedding.

Marriage is a sacred institution the world over, and especially so in Africa.

Besides the rich tradition of African weddings, the continent also offers a wide range of very unique wedding locations. Choose from sandy beaches, mountain-tops, the unspoilt bushveld or the historic winelands - wherever your dream wedding location, Africa has an option for you.

More specifically, Southern Africa as a region holds within it a superbly varied range of experiences. With the warm Indian Ocean along its east coast and the cool Atlantic along the west, with sandy deserts and snow ski resorts, with lush forests and expansive grasslands, this particular corner of the globe must certainly be one of the most diverse on the planet.

Perhaps the most unique of all these options, the African Safari wedding is something you simply cannot experience anywhere else in the world.

Drawing on the mystique of African explorations of a bygone era, an African safari affords the opportunity for visitors to experience the splendours of the African bush and get a feel for the warm hospitality of the people who live on and love the African continent.

A wedding in one of Southern Africa's fantastic private game lodges provides a combination of awe-inspiring natural beauty with an authentic African adventure feel. That it does this while maintaining the standards of lavish extravagance for which such private game lodges are renowned makes the entire experience that much more phenomenal. In South Africa, private game lodges like Sabi Sabi, Ulusaba, Londolozi and Shamwari are extremely popular wedding and honeymoon venues.

Besides their world-class cuisine and fantastic luxury accommodation, the private African lodge's offer game viewing possibilities unlike anything in any other part of the world.

How many people get to boast at their 10th anniversary that among the guests at their wedding was the king of the African bushveld? Perhaps his roar might be the distant accompaniment to the string quartet as the deep red African sun sinks beyond the horizon.

A South African Honeymoon

Another of benefit of tying the knot at an African Game lodge is that you will already be at one of the world's premium honeymoon locations. No worrying about rushing off to that airport for a flight or any of the other travel trials that many honeymooners face. As soon as you've both said “I do" you're already on honeymoon!

Peace, privacy and tranquillity in stunningly beautiful surroundings; half the recipe for a perfect honeymoon. And the other half? Well, that's entirely up to the newlyweds!

A wedding is one of the biggest days of your life. An African Safari could be one of the best experiences of your life. By combining the two, you unlock the potential to create a day that will last forever in the memory and be worthy of the title, “The Greatest Day Of Our Lives".