5 out of 5 stars and 154 reviews
5
(154)Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Carmel Valley
About this vendor
Based in Monterey, CA, Monterey Ceremonies by Zia is a non-denominational wedding officiant dedicated to leading one-of-a-kind ceremonies. Zia's approach to officiating is modern and personal. She aims to capture each couple's unique relationship while bringing her signature humor and joy to the occasion.
Zia has always had a gift for supporting people through some of life's most monumental moments. For years she worked as a certified chaplain in a large hospital in Northern California, helping families navigate grief and sickness. After marrying, she became inspired by the power a wedding ceremony can have in setting the tone for a long and healthy partnership. Shortly after, Zia committed herself to a life of full-time officiating, and she hasn't looked back since.
Monterey Ceremonies by Zia offers day-of wedding officiant services, rehearsals, and premarital counseling. She'll take the time to talk through your values and get to know your story so that she can provide a ceremony that feels reflective of you and your partner. While no two ceremonies she leads are ever the same, they are always joyful occasions sure to be remembered fondly by loved ones for years to come.
Details
Business Attributes
- Woman-owned Business
Ceremony Types
- Civil Union
- Commitment Ceremony
- Elopement
- Interfaith Ceremony
- Non-Religious Ceremony
- Religious Ceremony
Religious Affiliations
- Baha'i Faith
- Buddhist
- Christian
- Catholic
- Protestant
- Quaker
Wedding Activities
- After The Wedding
- Newlywed Life
- Premarital Counseling
- Wedding
- Ceremony
Awards and Affiliations
Reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.
5
out of 5.0154 reviews
Review photos
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If you want a magical, intentional, and heartfelt ceremony, look no further than Zia Shapiro!
The several meetings we had in preparation for the big day were always delightful and...
truly illuminating! We had a vision for what we wanted but having time to iron out the details with Zia made all the difference. She helped us with every aspect of the ceremony, down to even writing our team vows! And though we may have started as strangers, we felt like we had known her for years by the time the big day came around.
We treasure her radiant spirit and all the magic she brings!
Zia was an absolutely lovely officiant. She spent so much time getting to know my wife and I before our big day. So much so, that many of our guests thought she was a member of the...
family! She provided a warm, comforting atmosphere for the ceremony and was an integral part of what made our wedding day so special.
Need to discover your perfect wedding ceremony? Call Zia!
Among many wedding aspects, trying to figure out my wife’s and my ideal ceremony was a new and foreign concept. We are so...
glad that we found Zia to help us discover our ceremony.
She has the experience and open mind to present options in the structure of the ceremony that gave my wife and I enough ideas to choose from and be able take it to the next step in personalizing it for ourselves.
She also gave fantastic guidance on how we could do our vows. What we ended up doing was perfect, we poured our souls into our vows, but I truly don’t know if we could have gotten there without the slight nudges and feedback that we got from Zia.
In the mix of chaos that surrounds planning a wedding, Zia gave us the calm and baseline that we didn’t know we needed
Very nice officiant and helped us out on our big day. She’s personable and easy to get ahold of. A good vendor to use and overall got the job done (:
Zia was wonderful! She was very responsive throughout the process, and delivered a truly sweet and touching ceremony. Highly recommend her for anyone getting married in the greater...
Monterey area!
Zia was wonderful to work with and put together an absolutely beautiful, personalized ceremony. She guided us through each step of developing our ceremony, and it came together in ...
a awe-inspiring way. Thank you, Zia!
We absolutely loved working with Zia and are thrilled to recommend her as an officiant!
We found Zia through The Knot and were looking for an Officiant near the Santa Cruz area, ...
who provided customized, non-denominational services.
We met with her and instantly knew she was the perfect fit! She was kind, humorous, and very invested in getting to know our story and what was important to us in a ceremony.
We met with her a few times leading up to the ceremony and she helped us craft our vows, customize the ceremony, and add our love story- including our hopes and wishes for our marriage.
The day of, she was very professional and led a wonderful ceremony with the perfect blend of love, humor, and thoughtfulness that we desired. She customized the whole ceremony to us and we were fighting back tears throughout, as it was so well done.
After the ceremony, many of our guests remarked how much they liked her and loved the ceremony! They all noted that it was the best ceremony they had been to and wouldn’t forget it.
We would highly recommend Zia as an officiant. She is thoughtful, professional, and wonderful at crafting personal ceremonies.
Thank you again, Zia! ❤️
Zia was wonderful to work with. She made us feel special during the preparation leading up to our wedding ceremony. Wonderful communicator, and cheerful demeanor. She is truly a gr...
eat and joyful soul, and we would recommend her to anyone looking for that spark at their ceremony.
We truly cannot recommend Zia enough! From the very beginning, she was incredibly warm-hearted, supportive, and so easy to work with. She took the time to get to know us and our st...
ory, and crafted the most beautiful, heartfelt ceremony that felt so personal and full of love.
She was also extremely flexible and accommodating with our schedule, which made the planning process feel stress-free and enjoyable. Her presence brought such a sense of calm and joy to our day — and it was clear that she genuinely cared about us and our journey.
We felt seen, celebrated, and supported every step of the way. Working with her was an absolute gift, and we’re so grateful to have had her as part of such an important moment in our lives. If you’re looking for someone incredible to officiate your ceremony, look no further — she’s everything you could hope for and more.
Zia was absolutely wonderful to work with. We met over Zoom for a few sessions, where she helped us write our team vows, and perfectly craft our ceremony. By the time we met in per...
son for the rehearsal, it was like meeting an old friend. We had some last minute family health issues, and she rolled with the punches, and made last minute changes that seemed like a part of it forever. Multiple people asked us after the ceremony how long we had known her, and if she was a family friend, because of how well she knew us, and how great the ceremony was. (Neither my husband or I are religious, but he has a lot of Catholic family that we didn't want to offend.
If I had to describe her, she was like a woodland nymph that came out of a tree, wore an amazing blue suit, married two people in love in a perfect ceremony, took care of all the paperwork, and drifted back to the forest to continue to make people happy. 100/10 would recommend to everybody. (photo from rehearsal - wedding photos aren't back yet)
Zia provided a wonderful ceremony for us in Santa Cruz Redwoods. Everything felt special and tailored to us - and she was wonderful. During the preparations, she really got to know...
us which helped to put us at ease during the ceremony and all of the writing exercises we did under Zia's guidance brought us even closer together. Communication with Zia was always easy and she was flexible working with a very short timeline we provided (oops). Her care and thoughtfulness was evident in every step of the process and we are really happy we chose her as our officiant!
Zia was so helpful and thoughtful with our ceremony. We reached out to her with a much shorter schedule to work through than she was used to but she made it work regardless. She wa...
s super flexible and had a lot of amazing insight into what would make a memorable wedding. She made our ceremony amazing, and she really helped us make it special without being too cliche. I would highly recommend Zia to anyone getting married in the Monterey area!
Zia officiated our wedding on 11/2/24. We truly had the best experience with Zia! She has wonderful communication, made time to meet with multiple times to make sure our ceremony w...
as memorable and included our love story. We even got reviews from our guests saying it felt like Zia had known us our entire relationship! Zia wrote the most beautiful ceremonies for us and it will forever be one of our favorite parts of our wedding! Thank you Zia for everything!😊
Zia was amazing. She made our wedding ceremony spectacular and memorable. She was also great to work with, very flexible, and such a great listener to really capture our story in s...
uch a beautiful way. Highly recommend her.
Zia was amazing, she helped my fiancee and I through each step of the process, with everything from getting our license, to walking us through every step of the ceremony. We couldn...
t recommend her highly enough to anyone looking for an officiant that thoroughly cares about your wedding. Thanks again Zia!!
We had the absolute pleasure of having Zia as our wedding officiant, and we couldn't be happier with our choice. From the very first interaction, Zia was incredibly friendly and ea...
sy to talk to. She genuinely cared about ensuring our ceremony was exactly what we envisioned.
We had several Zoom calls with Zia to go over our custom vows, and her guidance and support during these sessions were invaluable. She made the whole process smooth and enjoyable, and we felt very prepared for the big day.
What truly stood out was how Zia went above and beyond to create a customized order of events for our ceremony. She was very accommodating of our preferences, making sure every detail was perfect. Her dedication and attention to detail made our ceremony truly special and personal.
My wife and I found Zia at the end of our wedding planning when our original officiant had to cancel, and it could not have worked out better for us. Zia worked with us to craft th...
e perfect ceremony through multiple Zoom sessions. She really took the time to get to know us as a couple, and it showed because everyone we talked to mentioned how touching our ceremony was. We highly recommend Zia!
Zia is AMAZING! She was a delight to work with and she made our special moment unforgettable! I would recommend!
Zia was highly recommended by our venue. She surpassed our expectations by miles. Going through the process of planning our wedding could have been extremely stressful but Zia hel...
ped us every step of the way. She really made us feel supported in tailoring our ceremony to fit what we really wanted to convey to each other, our friends and our families.
Zia was such a pleasure to work with! We were able to book with her on short notice because our original venue and officiant was no longer available. In that short amount of time s...
he made sure to meet with us and ask us about our relationship and tailored a beautiful ceremony for us. When we met her, her demeanor was so calming and kind. I’m so glad we found her!
Zia gave a wonderfully heartfelt blessing ceremony for our twins that was impeccably personalized, thoughtful, and brought many of us to tears. I absolutely loved working with her,...
creating this perfect memory, and wouldn't hesitate to book her again. Thanks for everything, Zia!
Working with Zia was magical. She was so personal and I love that we felt very comfortable and prepared for our wedding day. Highly suggest Zia!!!
Zia made our ceremony very personal, including guests into the ceremony. She was professional as the doorbell rang and door was opened right next to her while marrying us and she w...
as unwavering in her duties.
We loved all of our meetings with Zia, heading up to our big event. By the time of the ceremony, it felt like we were good friends. Zia has a special way with words, and knows ho...
w to personalize the messaging in a way that's meaningful to you and your partner. We highly recommend, Zia!
Zia was amazing to work with! She took her time getting to know my and my partner's wants and needs and tailored the planning experience around them. She was accepting of all our i...
deas, both traditional and untraditional, and the entire ceremony planning was very collaborative and meaningful. Zia was very attentive, caring, and fun. Our ceremony was absolutely magical. I highly recommend Zia's services!!
Zia officiated our wedding a few months ago and we had a great experience with her. Zia's dedication to her role was immediately apparent, bringing a warmth and thoughtfulness that...
resonated with us from the beginning. She has a lot of experience and has her own structured program for creating the wedding ceremony and vows, which was great since we didn't really know where to start. We met with her twice via zoom to go over the ceremony and our vows. She also offered advice on obtaining a marriage license. She was always very easy to communicate with and organized. Her ceremonies have a very distinct and memorable style and we were happy that our ceremony was unique. Throughout the entire process we felt like we were in good hands and would highly recommend zia as a wedding officiant!
Zia is such an amazing person. She was very easy to work with during the entire process. We met with Zia virtually multiple times prior to the ceremony to ensure she had all the in...
formation to prepare for our ceremony. I liked that she provided various options for ceremony structure. She really takes time to get to know her couples to make the ceremony personalized. The ceremony was delivered so well and was truly beautiful. I highly recommend Zia!
When my now Wife and I were looking for an officiant we had a couple things that were important to us. 1 - being inclusive. 2 - understanding we are not traditional.
And then we ...
met Zia.
We knew immediately we were safe in her hands and our ceremony was important. Zia worked with us in all capacities to ensure our ceremony was exactly how we wanted. Add more, take out sections, whichever.
The day of our ceremony you could feel the radiant energy that Zia is. She brought so much joy and love.
I could not recommend anyone better. You will forever love your choice having Zia officiate your ceremony.
Zia was our wedding officiant last month. She did a wonderful job marrying my husband and I. She personalized our ceremony just as we planned. She was professional, organized, and ...
very detailed in her work. She met with us online for multiple sessions and took the time to get to know us. She gives you homework, but every homework question was worth the end result. Our ceremony felt special and I will cherish the memories she helped us create. I would recommend her to any couple getting married in the Carmel area.
Zia helped us create an absolutely unforgettable wedding day. We deeply appreciate the thoughtfulness, thoroughness, and heart Zia poured into our ceremony. It was a pleasure worki...
ng with her in the months leading up to the wedding day; her dependability and meaningful communication put us at ease during what could be a stressful time period. Likewise, everyone we've spoken to has been so complimentary of Zia's passion and personalization. It was the most important part of our day and she absolutely nailed it.
Zia was a perfect fit for our elopement ceremony this past September in Garrapata State Park! She brought such as a calm and focused energy that helped us to do the same on such a ...
busy day. Zia's meetings leading up to the ceremony were an awesome way for us to get to know her as an officiant and to reminisce about our story as a couple. Also, she was very easy to communicate with and flexible.
Zia was very thorough in the process of creating our ceremony. She asked us detailed questions to help personalize our ceremony and showcase our story as a couple. She even asked m...
y husband's family questions regarding his culture and used special touches throughout the ceremony.
Zia was incredible to work with, from our first zoom session all the way till our wedding day. Zia made it clear that she was on our side and would be available for us as a resourc...
e when we needed her. She really made us feel so special by getting to know us as individuals and our love story, perfectly crafting it for our ceremony. Zia is very professional and brings such a calming presence to our meetings. Even though my partner and I don't follow a specific religion, Zia took our lead and made us feel so comfortable in our decisions for our ceremony.
After our ceremony, my guests came up to me and said that was one of the best ceremonies they've ever witnessed and loved Zia as an officiant. I would absolutely recommend Zia to any couple looking for a traditional religious ceremony or non- religious ceremony.
It was a pleasure to get to know Zia over the last few months leading up to our wedding. We did both the counseling and ceremony with her and it was an amazing experience. She did ...
a great job of capturing our personalities and styles in the ceremony and made it an amazing day. We would highly recommend Zia!
Our ceremony was beautiful
We are working with Zia for pre-marital counseling and also for our ceremony. Zia is super supportive, a great listener, and is helping us navigate the stress of planning a wedding...
. We are so excited for her to officiate our wedding this summer and are so glad we found her. We would recommend Zia to any couple looking for an experienced officiant and doesn't know where to start.
Zia was amazing! She performed my son’s wedding in a beautiful outdoor setting in Monterey this past. March. Zia made a great effort to get to know my son and daughter in law and t...
hus was able to truly personalize their ceremony! It was an interfaith ceremony and everyone felt respected and included. Our family and friends commented that it was the nicest wedding they had ever attended because they learned so much about the couple and their story! Brava Zia!
Zia officiated our wedding in March 2023 and we could have not asked for a more perfect ceremony and officiant! Zia worked tirelessly with us to craft the most personal, intimate, ...
and memorable ceremony. We incorporated elements from our Jewish/Catholic heritages and Zia helped us every step of the way, making sure we had the perfect mixture of both cultures. Zia was kind, personable, and so much fun throughout the entire process and made us feel so comfortable! We received so many amazing compliments on our ceremony from our friends and family. Thank you Zia!
Zia was an amazing officiant who really took the time to get to know us and personalize our experience. She was excellent with planning, including modifying our premarital counseli...
ng plan and rescheduling to fit everything into a hectic schedule. Everyone at the wedding commented on how personal and memorable it was, and Zia's ceremony was a big part of that.
Zia was our officiant for our elopement at Pebble Beach. Zia was absolutely wonderful to work with leading up to our wedding, and it was a great pleasure to have her as part of ou...
r special day. Zia brought warmth and peace to our ceremony and we would highly recommend her to anyone looking for an officiant.
Zia was a fantastic officiant. She made our day so memorable and meaningful. She helped us with our vows and added some things we hadn't even thought of. We would highly recomme...
nd Zia! Thank you!
Zia was everything you dream of as a wedding officiant!
She was so welcoming at our first meeting, thoughtful in her questions to learn more about my parent's love story, flexible...
with scheduling follow-up meetings, incredibly attentive to the details which reflected in the ceremony, and just a pure joy to be around. Her energy provided my parents and my guests a sense of comfort and ease during a beautiful officiated renewal of vows ceremony. I could not have asked for a better experience for everyone! Thank you, Zia!
Zia was amazing! She was really part of our team throughout the whole process and all the way through our special day. We can't thank Zia enough for being there for us and guiding ...
us along every step of the way. The whole time she made us feel at ease, gave us advice, and took special care. She was very patient and caring. She also customized and made our ceremony unique to how we wanted it. We would highly recommend Zia!
Zia was such a pleasure to work with from beginning to end. She took time to get to know us, and really captured our vision for our ceremony. Zia is personable, professional and fa...
ntastic at what she does. During our small beach wedding ceremony in Carmel, she made all of us laugh and tear up multiple times. We couldn’t have asked for a more special ceremony and Zia was a big part of that. We are over the moon with how it all turned out. She also helped make the marriage license process a breeze.
Zia is absolutely amazing. She spent so much time personalizing our ceremony to us, and made it so special and intimate. She is a joy to work with, and so easy to talk to. I highly...
recommend her.
Zia was fantastic and went above and beyond in making our ceremony incredibly special!!!
From the moment we started working together she was very thoughtful and comfortable to wor...
k with. Zia is very clear and thoughtful with how she communicates, plans and conducts a ceremony. We felt that she was personally invested in making our ceremony a success in the planning stages all the way through our wedding day. Our family and guests also loved some of the special and unique suggestions she suggested adding to make our ceremony memorable. It was truly special working with Zia on our ceremony!
We would highly recommend her to anyone looking for an officiant!
Zia was amazing!!! She provided guidance every step of the way and was very hands on. She truly cared about what we envisioned for our wedding ceremony and went above and beyond. I...
n addition, she helped us with our vows since we decided to do our own. We are extremely happy with how Zia led our ceremony so beautifully. Our only regret is that we didn't record it, because it was just so amazing.
Absolutely loved the way Zia guided us through crafting our vows and a ceremony that felt personal and significant to us as a couple. Zia was very communicative, attentive, and hel...
d the space for us to make our elopement better than we could have imagined.
It was wonderful working with Zia as our wedding officiant. My (now) husband and I had no idea how to prep for our wedding ceremony or even what we wanted it to be like! But Zia h...
elped us plan our ceremony in a way that was deeply meaningful for us. Zia was professional, prepared, and I felt secure in her hands leading up to the wedding, and on the big day. As expected, the wedding day was a whirlwind, but Zia had a way of making sure we were 'present' for each moment of our ceremony. I am so grateful that we found Zia, and could not have asked for a better experience.
Zia is a truly wonderful officiant. Not only was she our officiant, but she helped us through the process of getting our marriage license paperwork sorted, and was our premarital c...
ounselor as well, and this was a great decision. During the counseling, Zia was extremely knowledgeable, patient, kind, and empathetic throughout the entire process. Zia truly took the time to get to know us and guide us through the entire counseling process. This made the actual officiating of our ceremony all the better. She worked with us tirelessly to help us craft our vows and customize the readings for our ceremony. When it came to the actual ceremony, Zia exuded the same warmth which she had shown to us in our one-on-one counseling sessions. Her presence was like having a familiar friend to guide us through our special moment. She was even kind enough to bless our ceremony with a brief song. We are grateful and overjoyed to have had Zia as our officiant, and would shout her praises from the rooftops, and recommend her to anyone and everyone.
Contact
26384 Carmel Rancho Lane Suite 203 E, Carmel, CA | Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Carmel Valley
Monterey Ceremonies By Zia's photos