Wedding story · Colegio de las Vizcaínas, Mexico City

A Wedding at Colegio de las Vizcaínas, Mexico City, and a Guide to Planning Yours

Alexandra and Jose: a rehearsal dinner in a rooftop vineyard, a ceremony in a baroque chapel, and 950 guests in the heart of Mexico City.

A wedding with 950 guests in the Patio Principal of Colegio de las Vizcaínas, Mexico City, seen from the upper arcades under stage lights

Colegio de las Vizcaínas is not a wedding venue that happens to be beautiful. It is a working school, a museum, and one of the great baroque buildings of the Americas, and on certain nights it opens its courtyards to a wedding.

I’m a documentary wedding photographer based in Querétaro, two hours from Mexico City. I photographed Alexandra and Jose’s wedding here, and this post is two things. First, their story, the way I lived it. Then, a practical guide for couples considering Vizcaínas: the history, the spaces, the cost, the season, and how to plan a day here that photographs itself.

Alexandra and Jose: a wedding at Vizcaínas

Alexandra and Jose got married in March, in the heart of Mexico City’s dry season, with 950 guests. It was a wedding in three places: a vineyard on a rooftop, a hotel on Paseo de la Reforma, and a baroque palace in the Centro Histórico.

Alexandra and Jose are Mexican, and so was most of the room: about one guest in ten came from the US or from abroad, and everyone else came from Mexico City and the rest of the country.

The night before: a vineyard on a rooftop

The rehearsal dinner was the night before, at Vinícola Urbana, a vineyard planted on a fifth-floor terrace on Avenida Masaryk, in Polanco. A group of wine lovers created it with the enologist Hugo D’Acosta: about 300 vines of Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Tempranillo and Malbec, growing in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world. At the time, it was the only vineyard in Mexico City, and the grapes for its wines came from the Valle de Guadalupe.

Vines, a city skyline at dusk, and two families meeting the people they are about to become family with. It’s a good place to start a wedding story.

The rooftop vineyard at Vinícola Urbana in Polanco, lit in orange and red for a rehearsal dinner in Mexico City — The rooftop vineyard of Vinícola Urbana, in Polanco, the night before the wedding.

The bride, in a red dress, and the groom smiling at each other in front of a colorful mural at their rehearsal dinner — Alexandra and Jose at their rehearsal dinner in Mexico City.

The bride and groom close together with glasses of wine, talking with friends on the rooftop terrace — Alexandra and Jose at their rehearsal dinner in Mexico City.

Guests gathered under string lights at a rehearsal dinner in a rooftop vineyard, seen from above — A rehearsal dinner under string lights, five floors above Avenida Masaryk.

A cook in a white cap and embroidered blouse preparing food at a clay bowl as guests talk behind her at the rehearsal dinner — Dinner served around the comal.

Guests serving themselves around a comal as a cook in a white cap prepares Mexican food at the rehearsal dinner — Dinner served around the comal.

The bride in a red strapless dress holding a clay plate in line for food with friends — The bride in line for dinner, and friends greeting each other.

A woman in a blue dress hugging a man in a pink shirt as friends greet each other at the rehearsal dinner — The bride in line for dinner, and friends greeting each other.

Friends laughing among the green vines of a rooftop vineyard in Polanco — Among the vines of a vineyard in the middle of the city.

A man smiling on the phone, seen through the green vine leaves of the rooftop vineyard — Among the vines of a vineyard in the middle of the city.

Friends talking in a circle with drinks on the rooftop terrace of Vinícola Urbana in Mexico City — Two families and their friends on the rooftop.

A group of friends smiling together in front of a colorful mural at the rehearsal dinner — Two families and their friends on the rooftop.

A man giving a speech with a vintage microphone as guests listen at the Mexico City rehearsal dinner — The first speech of the weekend.

Getting ready at the St. Regis

On the wedding day, Alexandra and Jose got ready at the St. Regis Mexico City, on Paseo de la Reforma, before crossing the city to the Centro Histórico.

A white wedding dress hanging in a suite at the St. Regis Mexico City while two women talk on the sofa — Getting ready at the St. Regis Mexico City, above Paseo de la Reforma.

Two women pointing out at the towers of Paseo de la Reforma from a high window at the St. Regis Mexico City — Getting ready at the St. Regis Mexico City, above Paseo de la Reforma.

A patterned lattice screen filling the frame, with the bride having her makeup done at a bright window of the St. Regis — Morning light in the suite.

Makeup artists working on the bride in a suite at the St. Regis Mexico City as a man carries a tuxedo on a hanger — Makeup, hair and waiting.

Bridesmaids relaxing and doing their makeup in a suite at the St. Regis Mexico City — Makeup, hair and waiting.

The bride in a light blue shirt opening a gift with a big red bow while a friend holds the box — A gift, and the earrings.

Two bridesmaids putting earrings on the bride as she smiles, getting ready for her Mexico City wedding — A gift, and the earrings.

Women standing on the sofa to take down the wedding dress in the suite, the bride seen from behind in the foreground — The wedding dress comes down from the wall.

Bridesmaids lifting the wedding dress over the bride against a bright window at the St. Regis — The wedding dress comes down from the wall.

Bridesmaids clapping and cheering as the bride stands in her dress in front of the city — Bridesmaids cheering the bride with the city behind them.

The bride in her strapless dress with bridesmaids at her side, the rooftops of Mexico City in the window — The dress, the veil and the view of Mexico City.

The bride and an older woman in lace opening the long veil in front of a bright window — The dress, the veil and the view of Mexico City.

The groom alone at the far end of a dark room, looking out of a window over Mexico City — Two windows and a corridor before the ceremony.

Two girls carrying the train of the bride’s dress down a dark hotel corridor, the bride reflected in a mirror — Two windows and a corridor before the ceremony.

A man and two girls spreading the long train around the bride in a dark hallway — The veil and the train, on the way out of the hotel.

The long train of the wedding dress sweeping through the elevator hall of the St. Regis Mexico City — The veil and the train, on the way out of the hotel.

The bride in her veil reaching out to a man in the back of the car on the way to the Centro Histórico — From the St. Regis to the Centro Histórico.

The ceremony in the chapel

The ceremony took place in the chapel of Vizcaínas, under its five gilded baroque altarpieces. It’s a space built to make people feel small and moved at the same time, and it does both.

The chapel couldn’t hold everyone. About 250 guests sat inside; the rest of the 950 followed the ceremony outside, on a giant screen. For a few minutes, hundreds of people stood together in a colonial courtyard, watching two people say yes on a screen, and then turned to welcome them when they came out.

The bride adjusting the groom’s jacket beneath the stone arcades of Colegio de las Vizcaínas — Arriving at Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

A woman in a red dress fixing the bride’s skirt on the stone steps of Vizcaínas as men in tuxedos look on — Arriving at Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

The bride lifting her wide skirt on the stairs of Vizcaínas as the groom helps her and a woman adjusts the hem — The dress, and the family, in the courtyards of Vizcaínas.

The bride and groom standing with their family and a priest on the stone floor of a courtyard at Vizcaínas — The dress, and the family, in the courtyards of Vizcaínas.

The bride seen through a dark colonial doorway at Colegio de las Vizcaínas, a courtyard behind her — The bride before her wedding ceremony at Vizcaínas.

The bride and groom surrounded by family and bridesmaids in the baroque chapel of Vizcaínas — The ceremony in the baroque chapel of Vizcaínas.

The bride and groom holding hands before the priest, a gilded altarpiece glowing behind them — The ceremony in the baroque chapel of Vizcaínas.

Two women in bright dresses laying the veil over the kneeling couple during a Catholic wedding ceremony in Mexico City — A Catholic wedding ceremony in the Centro Histórico of Mexico City.

The couple seated at the front of the chapel, with the guests and the arched nave behind them — A Catholic wedding ceremony in the Centro Histórico of Mexico City.

The groom raising the bride’s hand in celebration on the red carpet of the chapel after the ceremony — Married, on the red carpet of the chapel.

950 guests in a baroque palace

After the ceremony, the celebration moved to the Patio Principal, the great courtyard at the center of the building, under a high canopy stretched above the arcades. With 950 guests, every arcade was full: people leaning on the stone columns, waiters crossing between them, the music rising up to the roof. As night fell, the courtyard turned from stone to light.

The bride among the candlelit tables in the Patio Principal, with the colonial arcades lit in green behind her — The reception in the Patio Principal of Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

The bride and her family laughing at a long table with candles and white flowers at the reception — The reception in the Patio Principal of Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

The bride raising her arm at the head table under hanging branches and flowers, candles in front of her — The bride at the head table.

During the speeches, before the dancing started, I stopped for a second and thought: oh my God, 950 people is a lot. Then I remembered that my way of working doesn’t change. Ten guests or a thousand, I try to catch what’s happening around me. I photograph the people who matter most, and when there’s a crowd, I photograph what I find in front of the camera. I can’t photograph everyone. It was powerful all the same.

A speech under a spotlight at the wedding reception, the arcades of Colegio de las Vizcaínas lit in gold behind — The speeches, with the arcades lit behind them.

Guests raising their glasses in a toast across a candlelit table — A toast, and the guests at the edge of the dance floor.

Guests in evening dress clapping and smiling at the edge of the dance floor — A toast, and the guests at the edge of the dance floor.

For this wedding I hired another photographer for one job: the social photos. In Mexico, when you point a camera at people, they look at you, smile and hug each other for the picture. Families want those photos, and someone should take them. That left me free for everything else.

During the first dance, I ran like Usain Bolt to the stairs. They’re endless and exhausting, and they took me up to the arcades on the upper floor, where I had about 15 seconds for wide panoramic photos of the whole courtyard. Then I ran back down, as fast as I could, for the last 30 seconds or a minute of the dance.

The bride and groom in their first dance under spotlights in the Patio Principal — The first dance in the Patio Principal.

Panoramic view from the upper arcades of the first dance, on a floor printed with roses, with guests all around — The first dance from the upper arcades: my 15 seconds up there.

The bride and groom dancing hand in hand, her arm in the air, on the crowded dance floor — When the dancing started.

Friends hugging the groom and laughing on the dance floor, a burst of golden light above them — When the dancing started.

A guest in a tuxedo on the floor with his legs in the air, in the middle of the dancing — A Mexico City wedding party at full volume.

A crowd of wedding guests laughing and pressing toward the camera in red light — A Mexico City wedding party at full volume.

Men in tuxedos hugging and shouting in a tight circle on the dance floor — Friends on the floor, and the couple under blue light.

The bride and groom reaching for each other under blue light, a robot helmet looming behind them — Friends on the floor, and the couple under blue light.

The bride with her arms out in the middle of the dancing crowd, under red and green lights — The bride in the middle of it all.

A performer in a metallic robot helmet carried on the shoulders of guests at the wedding party — The show, and the crowd.

A man in a tuxedo lifted above the crowd under purple stage lights — The show, and the crowd.

A guest lying on the dance floor among laughing friends, a woman in a sequined dress above him — Nobody was sitting down anymore.

The bride and groom lifted above the dark crowd under stage lights in the Patio Principal of Vizcaínas — Nobody was sitting down anymore.

Guests with their hands in the air against bright stage lights at the end of the wedding party — The end of the night at Vizcaínas.

Men in tuxedos dancing together in front of stage lights in the courtyard of Vizcaínas — The end of the night at Vizcaínas.

What is Colegio de las Vizcaínas?

Its full name is Colegio de San Ignacio de Loyola Vizcaínas. A religious brotherhood, the Cofradía de Nuestra Señora de Aránzazu, founded it in 1732 to take in and protect the girls and widows of colonial Mexico City. The first stone was laid in 1734, and the building, which fills an entire city block in the Centro Histórico, was finished in the 1750s.

It has been a school ever since. Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, one of the heroines of Mexican independence, studied here, and it still teaches students from preschool to high school. Part of the building is a museum, with a collection of colonial paintings and religious objects.

All four facades are covered in tezontle, the dark red volcanic stone of old Mexico City, with pale stone around the doors and windows. Inside there are eleven courtyards, many still with their original tiles. It is considered the best-preserved baroque building in the city.

One thing worth knowing: renting the building for events helps pay for its conservation and for the school’s scholarship program. A wedding here helps keep the place standing.

Who gets married here

For decades, Vizcaínas has been the setting for Mexico’s society weddings: members of the families of Carlos Slim and Ricardo Salinas Pliego, the singers Lucero and Manuel Mijares, Miss Universe Ximena Navarrete. The building has also hosted the King of Spain and a concert by Elton John in the main courtyard. It is, in short, the room Mexico City uses when it wants to impress.

The bride and groom walking along the stone arcades of a courtyard at Colegio de las Vizcaínas — The stone arcades and warm walls of Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

An older couple in formal dress sitting on a stone bench against a warm peach wall at Vizcaínas — The stone arcades and warm walls of Colegio de las Vizcaínas.

The spaces: courtyards, chapel and halls

The venue offers six spaces for events: the Patio Principal, the Patio de los Arcos, the Patio de los Capellanes, the Patio de los Azulejos, the Sala Aránzazu and the chapel. Most weddings use more than one: a ceremony in one place, a cocktail hour in another, and dinner and dancing in the main courtyard.

The Patio Principal

The main courtyard is the heart of the building and the largest space, able to hold up to about 1,200 people. It is surrounded by stone arcades and open to the sky. It’s where Alexandra and Jose celebrated with their 950 guests.

What matters for the photos: a courtyard is a box of light. High walls, open sky above. In the late afternoon the sun leaves the floor early and the light becomes soft and even, bouncing off the stone. At night it’s the opposite: dark tezontle swallows light, and the arcades disappear unless someone lights them. Ask your lighting designer to light the architecture, not just the tables. It’s the difference between a party in a palace and a party in a tent.

Beams of light crossing the lit arcades of the Patio Principal above the dancing guests — The arcades of the Patio Principal, lit for the party.

The bride and groom alone on the upper gallery at night, the lit courtyard behind them — The upper gallery at night, above the Patio Principal.

The chapel

The chapel is in the Churrigueresque style, the most ornate form of Mexican baroque, with five gilded altarpieces made by José Joaquín de Sáyagos in the late 18th century. The most remarkable are dedicated to Our Lady of Loreto and Saint Joseph.

It holds a few hundred people, not a thousand. At Alexandra and Jose’s wedding, about 250 guests sat inside, and everyone else watched on a giant screen outside. If your guest list is bigger than the chapel, plan for it from the start.

What matters for the photos: gold altarpieces and a dim interior. It’s dramatic and beautiful, and it rewards a photographer who works with the available light instead of flashing over it.

The gilded Churrigueresque altarpieces of the chapel of Colegio de las Vizcaínas during a wedding — The five gilded altarpieces of the chapel of Vizcaínas.

The smaller courtyards and the Sala Aránzazu

The Patio de los Arcos, the Patio de los Capellanes and the Patio de los Azulejos are smaller and more intimate. They work for a cocktail hour before guests are led into the main courtyard, or for a smaller wedding on its own. The Sala Aránzazu is an indoor hall. Ask the venue for the capacity of each one.

What matters for the photos: moving guests from a small courtyard into the big one is a moment. Plan it, and the reveal of the Patio Principal becomes part of the story.

The bride and five bridesmaids in bright dresses clowning against a white wall in a courtyard at Vizcaínas — Smaller spaces in the building, away from the crowd.

The bride and groom resting on gilded chairs in a small salon with a red carpet — Smaller spaces in the building, away from the crowd.

How much does a wedding at Vizcaínas cost?

Vizcaínas doesn’t publish its rates. Mexican press has reported that renting the main courtyard for a wedding costs around 500,000 Mexican pesos, and that dates must be reserved about a year in advance.

The rental is only the space. Catering, bar, furniture, flowers, lighting, sound, entertainment and everything else come from your planner and your vendors, so the venue fee is only a fraction of the final budget. For a production of this scale in a protected historic building, an experienced planner is not optional. Ideally, one who has already worked at Vizcaínas.

When to get married at Vizcaínas

Mexico City’s dry season runs from November through April, with warm days and cool evenings. That’s the safest window for a wedding in an open-air courtyard. Alexandra and Jose chose March, right in the middle of it.

From late spring through early autumn is the rainy season, when afternoon storms are common. A summer wedding at Vizcaínas is still possible, but the Patio Principal is open to the sky: ask the venue and your planner about a canopy, and decide early. Alexandra and Jose had one even in March, high enough to leave the courtyard feeling open. A good canopy keeps the arcades visible; a bad one turns the courtyard into a ballroom.

A high canopy with clear panels over the Patio Principal, leaving the colonial arcades in full view — A high canopy over the Patio Principal, with the arcades still in view.

Where your guests stay

Vizcaínas is in the Centro Histórico, a few blocks from the Alameda and the Zócalo, so your guests can stay in the heart of the old city. Nearby options include the Gran Hotel Ciudad de México, with its views of the Zócalo; Downtown México, a historic building with a rooftop; and the Hilton Mexico City Reforma on Avenida Juárez.

The luxury hotels on Paseo de la Reforma, like the St. Regis, where Alexandra and Jose got ready, and the Four Seasons, are a short taxi ride away. They’re a good choice if you want the wedding weekend split between two Mexico Citys: the modern one on Reforma and the old one around the Zócalo.

Mexico City International Airport (MEX) has direct flights from most major US cities. Plan transport for the night: a shuttle from the hotels to Vizcaínas and back is simpler than a hundred taxis at one in the morning.

Legal, religious or symbolic ceremony

In Mexico, only a civil marriage performed by the Registro Civil (civil registry) is legally valid. A religious or symbolic ceremony can be beautiful, but it has no legal effect on its own, and it isn’t recognized in the US without the civil ceremony.

Requirements and fees change by state, so the source to trust is the Registro Civil of Mexico City. In general, foreigners need a valid passport, an apostilled birth certificate translated into Spanish and, if previously married, proof that the previous marriage has ended. Many couples handle the legal part at home and celebrate in Mexico City with a religious or symbolic ceremony. A Catholic ceremony in the chapel has its own paperwork through the Church; your planner will know the process. Read the US Embassy’s guidance on marriage in Mexico before you decide.

Planning a day that photographs itself

I don’t pose and I don’t direct. I pay attention. At a place like Vizcaínas, where the building is so strong it could steal the show, that matters even more: the architecture should hold the story, not replace it. Here is what I’d tell any couple:

Make the night before count. A rehearsal dinner somewhere with its own character, like a rooftop vineyard, gives your story a first chapter.
If your guest list is bigger than the chapel, plan the overflow. A screen outside works, as long as the guests outside feel part of the ceremony and not like an afterthought. Think about where they stand, what they see, and the moment the doors open.
Ask for time in the building before the guests arrive. An empty courtyard with arcades on every side is one of the most beautiful places in Mexico City to be alone together for ten minutes.
Leave a gap between the ceremony and the reception. The walk from the chapel to the courtyard, the first hugs, the first drink: that’s where the best photographs happen.
Light the architecture. At night, the stone needs light to exist in the photos.
Plan the crossing. From Reforma to the Centro Histórico, traffic decides. Give the trip more time than you think it needs.

Questions to ask Vizcaínas before you book

Which spaces are included in the rental, and what is the capacity of each one?
How many guests can sit in the chapel, and can the ceremony be shown on a screen in a courtyard?
What is the rain plan for the Patio Principal? Is a canopy allowed, and who installs it?
Can we bring our own caterer and vendors, or is there an approved list?
Do you have any rules or fees for outside photographers and videographers? What time can they access the building?
What time must the music end, and what time do vendors load in and out?
How do we book the chapel, and what does a religious ceremony require?
Since Vizcaínas is a working school, are there dates or days of the week that aren’t available?
Is there parking or valet service for guests?

Planning a wedding at Vizcaínas?

If you’re planning a wedding at Colegio de las Vizcaínas or anywhere in Mexico City, and you want photographs of what really happened, I’d love to hear your story.

Let’s talk

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