Princess Märtha Louise and Shaman Durek Verrett’s wedding festivities have kicked off in Norway.
On Aug. 29, celebrations for the upcoming nuptials of King Harald and Queen Sonja’s daughter to the “6th generation shaman” from California, whose connections include celebrities like Nina Dobrev and Gwyneth Paltrow, kicked off. Princess Märtha Louise, 52, and Durek, 49, are getting married at Hotel Union in Geiranger on Saturday, Aug. 31, and they got the party started on Thursday in the coastal town of Alesund.
Hello! magazine is exclusively covering the nuptials, and the outlet previously announced that the first pre-wedding event would be a welcome party with a “‘sexy and cool’ dress code” in the garden of Hotel 1904.
The fun continued on Aug. 30 when guests boarded a boat for a trip along the Geiranger Fjord, a Unesco World Heritage Site. Photos showed the bride and groom arriving for the outing, with Märtha Louise sporting a black leather ensemble with a colorful shirt and boots while Durek opted for a brown outfit and sunglasses.
Princess Martha Louise and Derek Verrett take part in a pre-wedding event on Aug. 30, 2024.
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Princess Märtha Louise’s younger brother Crown Prince Haakon, his wife Crown Princess Mette-Marit, their 20-year-old daughter Princess Ingrid Alexandra and their 18-year-old son Prince Sverre Magnus also joined the pre-wedding celebration.
Märtha Louise’s family wasn’t the only royal presence on the guest list. Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands also joined the couple for day two of their wedding festivities.
Hello! said that a “Latin American-themed pre-wedding party” would be held at Hotel Union that Friday.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit attends Princess Martha Louise and Derek Verrett’s pre-wedding event on Aug. 30, 2024.
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“We are incredibly happy to be able to celebrate our love in Geiranger’s beautiful surroundings,” Märtha Louise wrote on Instagram last year. “It means a lot to us to gather our loved ones in a place so rich in history and intense nature experiences. Geiranged is the perfect place to embrace our love.”
The main event, the Aug. 31 wedding ceremony, will also happen at the historic hotel, with a wedding breakfast and reception to follow. Durek previously revealed they would be married by Parish Priest Margit Lovise Holte with Reverend Michael Beckwith delivering a greeting.
The wedding will have about 350 in attendance, and of her big day, Märtha Louise told Hello! magazine, “It feels amazing to be marrying Durek, and I’m so happy the day is almost here. The surroundings are gorgeous — it’s one of the most beautiful places I know.”
She added, “Even if there are a few glitches, we can still gaze at the stunning scenery.”
(From left) Prince Sverre Magnus, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Crown Prince Haakon, Queen Sonja and King Harald on Norway’s National Day on May 17, 2022 in Oslo, Norway.
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On Aug. 26, the Royal House of Norway confirmed which family members would attend the nuptials. The court said that King Harald and Queen Sonja, both 87, would attend the wedding in Geiranger. The announcement added that Crown Prince Haakon would attend the event with his wife and children, as would King Harald’s sister, Princess Astrid.
Marius Borg Høiby, Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s son from a previous relationship, was not mentioned. Marius, 27, was reportedly arrested in Oslo on Aug. 4 in alleged connection to an incident involving a woman in her 20s and has since apologized in a statement to the Norwegian Broadcasting Company (NRK).
“The royal family is looking forward to being guests at Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett’s wedding,” the statement said, adding that “the royal ship Norway will be used as accommodation during the wedding,” apparently referring to the Royal Yacht. The official ship is owned by the King, typically used from May through September and maintained by the Royal Norwegian Navy.
The Norwegian Royal Yacht in Oslo, Norway on May 14, 2024.
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It was previously reported that some Norwegian royals wouldn’t join some of the wedding pictures due to exclusive arrangements with Hello! and Netflix that Princess Märtha Louise and Durek allegedly arranged. The Royal House of Norway’s head of communications, Guri Varpe, previously told the NRK that the royals would refrain from being photographed and filmed by the two outlets when other press won’t have access.
The wedding will be Princess Märtha Louise’s second marriage. She was previously married to late author and playwright Ari Behn, with whom she shares daughters Maud Angelica, 21, Leah Isadora, 19, and Emma Tallulah, 15.
The former couple wed in 2002 and announced their split in 2016, with their divorce finalized the following year. In 2019, Behn died by suicide at age 47. Following her ex’s death, Märtha Louise spoke about the challenges of navigating depression.
Princess Märtha Louise and Durek took their relationship public in May 2019 and announced their engagement in June 2022, revealing in September 2023 that they would marry in Geiranger the following August.
