More information: Zivilstandsamt Andelfingen

The small pavilion in the park of the castle of Andelfingen was built in 1854 by Baron Sulzer-Wart and is available in the high-season months from May to September for civil ceremonies. There is enough room for a small guest list, but definitely not for a large one. This is reflected by the small number of parking available which is shared by the visitors to the garden and the cemetery. The somewhat romantic pavilion is not unpopular, but enough time is provided between ceremonies so the marriage parties do not collide.

In the remaining months the ceremonies are held in the Schlossstube, since the pavilion does not have heating.

Be aware that video-recordings of the ceremony are not allowed.

View from the park to the pavilion

The entrance to the pavilion

The inside of the pavilion is the ceremony room, here seen from the entrance

More info: Marriage Registry Office Bremgarten

The historic, quaint and photogenic town of Bremgarten has four official ceremony locales for marriages, each of which have quite a different atmosphere.

In the old Rathaus there are the intimate Gewölbekeller with just a few seats and the large Stadtratsaal. Just a few steps away from the Rathaus is an old fountain where a toast or small reception can be held, weather permitting. The marriage registry office can provide stand-up tables.

A few minutes away by foot is the old Zeughaus which contains the largest ceremony hall in Bremgarten, capable of seating more than 100 people. The large square in front of the building can be used for a reception in good weather and the Trotte next door as a fallback in case of rain. Use the “Obertor” car park both for the Rathaus and the Zeughaus.

On the other side of the Reuss river you’ll find the rather high-ceilinged inner choir in the Kapuziner-Church (just next to the Moskito-Restaurant serving Mexican cuisine). Such rooms within a church are rare for civil ceremonies in Switzerland. In the enclosed cloister garden a reception is possible. Use the “Casino” parking next door.

Saturday ceremonies are available.

The Rathaus of Bremgarten

Gewölbekeller in the Rathaus

Gewölbekeller, view from the entrance

Gewölbekeller, view from the opposite side

Stadtratsaal in the Rathaus

The Stadtratsaal with the entrance on the left

Stadtratsaal, ceremony table

Innerer Chor in the Kapuzinerkirche

The Kapuziner church, with the entrance to the ceremony room at right

Kapuziner church, ceremony room

Kapuziner church, ceremony room

Altes Zeughaus

The old Zeughaus. The large entrance door can be used if needed

Ceremony hall in the Zeughaus; the piano at right may be used

Ceremony hall in the Zeughaus; the ceremony table at center

The attributes “castle” and “lake” of Schloss Greifensee do tickle the fantasy a bit, and both are true. Although not quite in the suggested opulence. The castle is nice although somewhat unexciting. Nevertheless, it is quite popular for ceremonies, which does call for a busy but unhurried schedule in the summer. The Landvogtstube, the ceremony room, is in the first floor. It’s size is modest, being suited for smaller to medium weddings. A reception can be held in the small castle garden – weather permitting – which must be reserved ahead of time. The garden is encircled with walls which provide privacy. On the ground floor and in some of the rooms of the upper floor there are additional possibilities for a catered event. Public parking is available just minutes by foot away.

More Info: Schloss Greifensee

Outside view of the Schloss, entrance at center. The covered windows in the 1st floor left belong to the ceremony room

The staircase leading to the ceremony room

The ceremony table

The guest area with the entrance at the right

Since quite a while already Zurich has several other ceremony locations available in addition to the official ceremony locale in the Stadthaus. One of those is the Zunfthaus zur Waag. Being in the old town of Zurich on the Münsterhof, this historic building offers all of three rooms for ceremonies. The Zunftsaal on the 3rd floor is the largest, followed by the Zunftstube (medium) and the rather intimate Waagstübli for the short guest list – which are both on the 2nd floor. Catering is possible in the house itself and in several locations in the vicinity. If you’d like to pass the traditional wood atmosphere of the Waag for a more classically elegant look then just across the square you’ll find the fantastic rooms of the Zunfthaus zur Meisen.

More Info: Zunfthaus zur Waag

The Zunfthaus zur Waag

The staircase leading up to the ceremony rooms

Zunftsaal

Ceremony table, Zunftsaal

There is s room for a lot of guests in the Zunftsaal, both seated or standing

The Zunftsaal seen from the entrance

Zunftstube

Enough space also in the medium Zunftstube

Entrance of the Zunftstube

Waagstübli

The small and intimate Waagstübli

The guest area of the Waagstübli

The new Gemeindehaus (town hall) on the Alte Landstrasse in Thalwil is prim and modern. The same can be said of the ceremony room on the second floor. The room itself is not very big, but sufficiently roomy for the typical wedding party which consists of close relatives and friends. The adjacent car-park is convenient. The only unflattering aspect are the yellow walls, which give every photo a color cast.

More Info: Thalwil Marriage Registry Office

Gemeindehaus Thalwil from the outside

The airy and bright staircase

View from the ceremony table to the guest area

The nicely decorated ceremony table

The villa built between 1864 und 1866 by the Schulthess family right on Lake Zug in Cham is used as a restaurant, cultural center and ceremony locale for weddings. The Villette combines several desirable features of a ceremony location: the house is elegant, it lies at the lake in the middle of a beautiful park, it has a restaurant for toasts and receptions and Saturday ceremonies are possible! The ceremony room is well-equipped: There is a ring pillow and a music center to play any CD you would bring along. Each ceremony is budgeted for 30 minutes duration.

This is why the Villette is a popular marriage destination, which results in the possibility of several wedding parties being on the villa premises at the same time. However, the entrance and exit of the ceremony room are separate, so you don’t directly get to see the previous or next wedding parties. The trip by train is convinient since the Cham station is just a few minutes away by foot. You can use the car-parks 5-10 minutes walking distance away, since the Villette doesn’t offer any parking itself.

More Info: Restaurant Villette, Cham

(The church tower does not belong to the Villette but is beyong the rail tracks which pass behind the Villette)

The Villette as seen from the lake

View from the Villette onto the park and Lake Zug

Entrance hall of the Villette on the ground floor

The ceremony room as seen from the entrance. The exit is to the right

View from the ceremony table into the room and the entrance

The ceremony room is in the old town hall in the historic old town of Bülach. The long room offers a lot of space.

Website: Bülach civil marriage registry office

Town hall of Bülach from the outside

The ceremony table and the old tiled oven in the room dating 1673

The ceremony table and the entrance in center

Decoration above the entrance

The town hall of Baden houses the Tagsatzungssal, originally built in 1497. In Canton Argovia it is a popular location and hence booked out quickly on special wedding dates. The room is large and is big enough to accomodate big wedding parties with seats. The interior is traditional with a dark-wood mood created by the walls, ceiling and floor all covered with wood.

The nearest parking is Theaterplatz, 5 minutes by foot. A reception can be held on the same floor or in one of the restaurants nearby (for example the “Roter Turm”, where you can toast and celebrate right on the street if the weather is good).

More Info: Tagssatzungssaal Baden

Baden's town hall

Tagsatzungssaal - ceremony table

Left wall, seen from the entrance

The guest area

The huge Portraitsaal (portrait hall) in the town hall of Lucerne is probably one of the most impressive if not beautiful wedding-ceremony halls in Switzerland, and also one of the largest. Even the largest wedding parties should fit into the room. The locale is open to weddings on only one day each week and costs a surcharge over a wedding held at the regular locale in Lucerne. Due to it’s popularity and limited availability, the ceremony duration is short – unless you book the last ceremony slot before lunch. The entrance to the ceremony room is on the rear (tower-side) of the building and access is by a wide spiral staircase.

Website: Lucerne Marriage Registry Office

Lucerne town hall (large building with tower) as seen from the other side of the river

The Portraitsaal, where the ceremonies take place, with view onto the ceremony table

The ceremony table with white ring cushion

More Information: Website Lindengut

As the only official ceremony locale in the city of Winterthur, the ceremony room in Museum Lindengut on Römerstrasse 8 is well booked; also in Winter there can be a lot of ceremonies taking place. Even though the room on the first floor is quite large, it only has a handful of chairs. The rest of the maximum of 20 allowed guests must stand.

The beautiful and elegant room is decorated with old wall paintings of scenic locations of Canton Zurich. There is a waiting room on the ground floor for the guests till they are called for their turn.

Behind the villa is a beautiful park which can be used after the ceremony and if the weather is appropriate for a toast or for photos. You are not allowed to throw rice outside the villa.

Adlerstrasse running to the left of the villa can be used by the bridal couple to disembark and embark by car. There are some parking spots reserved for the couple, although they are not guaranteed to be free. Just few minutes by foot there is the public garage of Winterthur Versicherung.

Front view of Museum Lindengut on Römerstrasse

The rear view of the villa. The ceremony room is on the 1st floor, center

The entrance hall and the stairs leading to the ceremony room

To the right the entrance to the ceremony room

The ceremony room in Museum Lindengut, Winterthur

Each of the rooms of Schloss Schadau near Thun is gorgeous. If you walk up the fantastic stone spiral staircase from the entrance hall, you’ll find the Rougemont Room where marriage ceremonies take place in the first floor, where the Marriage Registry Office of Thun conducts ceremonies several times each week. The room can hold up to 70 people. Schadau is also a restaurant, which is rather convenient, since everything from a toast, a reception or a dinner can be served in-house. If a boat trip on Lake Thun is planned after the ceremony, there’s a pier right at the castle.

More Info: Website of Schloss Schadau

Schloss Schadau, lake side, with white tent for dining

Schloss Schadau, entrance hall

Ceremonies take place in the Rougemont Room

The ceremony room is located on the first floor of the Ortsmuseum (local museum) of Thalwil. The room is of medium size, although chairs are scarce, so most of the guests will need to stand. In front of the building is an open space where a recption or toast can be held. Just next door is the Thailwiler Trotte, which is an alternative in case of bad weather.

More Info: Ortsmuseum Thalwil

Thalwiler Ortsmuseum from outside

Thalwilerstube, ceremony table. On the right is an old tile-oven

Thalwilerstube seen from the entrance

In the town hall of Sursee, which dates from the 16th century, are several rooms where civil ceremonies take place. The Bürgersaal is the largest, where even large wedding parties have enough seating place.

Website: Sursee Marriage Registry Office

Sursee town hall

The entrance

The ceremony room

The wedding couple sits on the left, the witnesses on the right

The Marriage Registry Office in Zug is in the town hall at Kolinplatz. The ceremony room is small but pretty and elegant. Only a handful of guests fit into it (see the second picture: the room’s wall is right after the chairs on the right). It has classical period furniture and is located centrally (use Casino parking). The couch instead of two separate chairs for the wedding couple is a beautiful detail, rarely found elsewhere, see the picture below).

Website: Zug Wedding Registry Office.

Zug Townhall

The ceremony room seen from the entrance

The former house of writer C.F. Meyer is now a museum, and is also available for civil ceremoies.

More Info: C.F.Meyer-Haus, Kilchberg.

The view onto Lake Zurich from across the road

C.F.Meyer House with the entrance

The ceremony table

The ceremony room in the C.F.Meyer house

The room where the ceremony takes place is on the ground floor. The door at left is the entrance, on the right is the exit to the garden – which first leads to a covered verandah, where it is possible to have a toast in case of rain. The room is large enough for bigger wedding parties.

The house has a large garden

The centrally located Weding Register Office on the Dorfplatz in Arlesheim makes a neat, classically elegant impression. The ceremony room is on the first floor, where also large wedding parties can be accomodated. Ventilation takes care of a fresh supply of oxygen, despite the somewhat tight seating. A small HiFi is available for music and half an hour are budgeted per wedding. The locale is not unpopular and so you will probably meet other wedding parties in the high season. A reception with apero is possible on the beautiful town square, which also features a water-fountain. There are other possibilities as well nearby. Several private parking houses as well as public parking (even some white fields which are free) are available in the near vicinity.

More Infos: Wedding Registry Office Arlesheim

The building on town square with fountain

The decorated ceremony table

The guest area. The black chairs foreground belong to the wedding couple and the witnesses.

In the presence of 50 guests, Boris Becker and Lilly Kerssenberg tied the knot in the Segantini-Museum in St. Moritz on 12. June 2009.

The museum is available since 2009 for civil ceremonies. Reservations are to be made over the Marriage Registry Office of St. Moritz and the cost is 1000 CHF as of 2009. The ceremonies take place in the Kuppelsaal (dome hall).

More Infos: Website of the Segantini Museum

Segantini Museum - Panorama picture of the Kuppelsaal

Street view of the museum

(Pictures with kind permission of the Segantini Museum)