Amber Brkich and Rob Mariano during Survivor: All-Stars Castaways at Madison Square Garden in New York City ; Amber Mariano and Rob Mariano attend the premiere of CBS' “Survivor” 20th Season on February 10, 2020 in Hollywood.Photo:James Devaney/WireImage ; David Livingston/Getty
James Devaney/WireImage ; David Livingston/Getty
The Traitorsstar andTheAmazing Racecontestant first met in 2003 while competing onSurvivor: All-Stars, the eighth season of thelong-running CBS seriesthat pitted 18 former contestants against one another. Rob and Amber’s alliance-turned-showmance reached its peak when he got down on one knee during the finale and proposed.
“The way our relationship started out is so different than what anybody ever experiences with dating,” Amber toldEntertainment Tonightin 2020. “When you’re onSurvivor, you can’t even brush your teeth, you can’t even brush your hair, you don’t even change your clothes. So we didn’t have this, like almost fake way to impress each other … it was the most real as it gets.”
From their on-screen romance to their life at home, here’s everything to know about Boston Rob Mariano and Amber Mariano’s relationship.
They started dating onSurvivor: All-Starsin 2003
Castaways Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich of the Chapera Mogo tribe.Monty Brinton/CBS Photo Archive via Getty
Monty Brinton/CBS Photo Archive via Getty
After competing on separate, back-to-back seasons ofSurvivor—Amber was a contestant onSurvivor: The Australian Outbackin 2001 and Rob was onSurvivor: Marquesasin 2002 — they were both cast inSurvivor: All-Starsin 2003. Inclips from that season, Amber admitted that flirting with Rob was initially a “complete strategy” move. But eventually, their platonic alliance turned romantic.
“Amber and I have an alliance for obvious reasons,” Rob said in a confessional during the show. “She’s beautiful, obviously.”
Amber echoed those sentiments in a confessional, saying, “You’re not ever supposed to feel secure in this game, but with Rob and I, I feel 99.9% secure.”
Amber beat Rob for the $1 million prize onAll-Stars
Castaways Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich during the last episode during the final tribal council. Image dated December 12, 2003.Monty Brinton/CBS Photo Archive via Getty
Rob and Amber’s alliance proved valuable throughout the series, with the couple outlasting all 16 other contestants. During the final Tribal Council, Amber won the majority of the votes and claimed the million-dollar prize.
Rob later reflected on his aggressive gameplay during the season and how it probably hurt his chances of winning. In January 2025, he told PEOPLE, “I legitimately did everything that I needed to do to get to the end. I cut throats, I killed friendships and I expected them to give it to me at the end.”
Rob proposed to Amber during the liveAll-Starsfinale in 2004
Boston Rob Mariano proposes to Amber Brkich on the set of the Survivor All-stars Finale at Madison Square Garden May 9, 2004 in New York City.Scott Gries/Getty
Scott Gries/Getty
“I’ve seen you at your highest high and your lowest low and between it all we work together as a team to accomplish so much,” Rob said during the episode. “And in the end, I ended up falling in love with you. You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met in my entire life and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
Amber said yes and the couple celebrated their engagement with the rest of the cast.
They married in 2005
Boston Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich on their wedding day on April 16, 2005.Boston Rob Mariano/ Instagram
Boston Rob Mariano/ Instagram
Fans of Rob and Amber’s showmance got to see it all culminate with their televised nuptials.
Rob and Amber Get Marriedpremiered in 2005 and followed theSurvivorcontestants as they planned their dream wedding in The Bahamas in under four weeks. The beach wedding was held on April 16, 2005, and the special aired about a month later.
In honor of their 19th anniversary in 2024, Robshared a black-and-white photofrom their wedding day on Instagram. He jokingly wrote, “19 Years Ago Today someone else got VERY Lucky!!! 😂 #Sarcasm #HappyAnniversary.”
They competed onThe Amazing Race
Rob Mariano and Amber Mariano on ‘The Amazing Race: All-Stars’.Robert Voets/CBS Photo Archive via Getty
Robert Voets/CBS Photo Archive via Getty
In 2005, Rob and Amber competed as a team on the CBS seriesThe Amazing Raceand came in second place. They returned to the show two years later as newlyweds to race around the world for a million dollars once again onAmazing Race: All-Stars.
Rob and Amber have also come back toSurvivoron multiple occasions since their meet-cute. Rob has competed a total of six times in the survival series (winning once in 2011 onRedemption Island) and made his most recent appearance with his wife onSurvivor: Winners at Warin 2019, per hiswebsite.
They filmed another reality show together
Rob Mariano and Amber Mariano.Alexandra Wyman/WireImage
Alexandra Wyman/WireImage
Survival shows aren’t the only genre of reality television the couple have done together.
Rob and Amber filmed a 10-episode series titledRob and Amber: Against the Oddsin 2007. It was set in Las Vegas and documented Rob’s journey to attempt to become a professional poker player.
They have four daughters
Boston Rob Mariano and wife Amber with their daughters Lucia, Carina, Isabetta and Adelina.Boston Rob Mariano/ Instagram
Rob and Amber have four daughters: Lucia, Carina, Isabetta and Adelina. Though they have yet to watch the show and see their parents fall in love on-screen, the girls surprised their parents on the island during a family visit toSurvivor: Winners at War.
“When they were younger, we didn’t want them to. It was a little bit harsh at the end there. But I think they’re old enough now that they could handle it,” Rob told PEOPLE in 2024 of his daughters not yet seeing his and Amber’s love story.
Rob said he loves Amber’s ability to “effortlessly adapt”
Boston Rob Mariano smiles with his wife Amber Brkich Mariano.Boston Rob Mariano/ Instagram
While theSurvivoralum told PEOPLE that he feels “so lucky” that his girls have a mom like Amber, it’s not just her parenting abilities that he admires. Rob also loves that she can “effortlessly adapt to any situation” — something that was clear to him during their time on the competition series.
“There’s a lot of lessons from these reality shows that are applicable in relationships, and that’s the biggest one probably,” Rob said. “There’s constantly going to be things that are coming up, and it feels like people that are able to adapt and kind of go on the fly are the ones who ultimately end up doing the best. That’s Amber and I for sure.”
source: people.com
