Destination Wedding Planning
Name:
Institutional Affiliation:
Weddings are a chance for family and friends to dress up in fancy clothes in a beautiful location and celebrate the union of the new couple. It is the chance for people that haven’t seen each other in a long time to catch up. The pictures are always perfect, showing how happy everyone was on occasion. However, there is some much work that goes into planning a wedding that is never seen by the attendees. It takes months of planning just to be ready for the one most important day in the lives of the couple to be married. If planning a wedding is complex, a destination wedding is infinitely more demanding.
The first issue to consider when planning a destination wedding is the destination. Most people want an exotic and lovely location, which is as it should be (Crous 2017). The wedding destination should hold some significance to the engaged couple. It should be a place that appeals to both of them. The venue, however, has to be practical and take into account the number of guests to be in attendance. There should be enough hotels and space nearby so that all, the guests can have a place to stay.
The second factor in planning a destination wedding is to inform the guests well ahead of the wedding date. This is important so that they can make adequate plans. Destination weddings can be held in a faraway place or somewhere closer home. The guests should have time to plan and see whether they can afford the expense that comes with the destination wedding. These include the cost of traveling and accommodation. Some people may have to take time off work and should get time off in advance. Parents with young children might have to plan on getting someone to watch their children when they are away, so early notice gives them adequate time to figure things out. The guest list should be made early to ensure that all the close family friends and members are invited.
The third thing to consider is to tailor your décor to the locality in which your wedding will take place. For example, choosing a flower that is out of season or that will have to be imported from a different area will only increase expenses. To avoid this, it is crucial to find out which flowers and plants will be in bloom at your destination at the time of the wedding. The fleers will look fresh and lovely, and your pocket will be thankful for it (Bertella 2015). Some brides, however, are very specific and might want their décor imported from a different country; there is no problem with that.
A destination wedding already presents significant financial costs to the guests. With this in mind, the hotels available should be priced within a reasonable range. Many people will be put off if the location only has costly hotels they cannot afford, and they might drop out of attending the wedding at all. The proximity of the hotel to the wedding venue is another crucial consideration. The wedding party should be able to get to the hotel within a few minutes. There should be a shuttle service that will ferry guests to and from the wedding venue. It is unlikely that anyone will be driving themselves, so there should be adequate plans to get guests from the airport to their hotel and the wedding venue.
A professional planner or coordinator is essential for any wedding, not to mention a destination wedding. If the wedding is to be held in a completely different country, there will be barriers such as language and time (Bertella 2017). A wedding planner will help in coordinating what is needed and can even travel to the destination during the planning stage to ensure everything is in order. Sometimes it can be quite expensive to hire a planner. In this case, the availability of an onsite coordinator helps a great deal. They might not take on all the duties of a planner, but they will support the partners to make adequate preparations.
Booking the venue and visiting ahead of the wedding is crucial. Early booking avoids the situation in which the site is reserved for the desired wedding date. A venue that is quite popular can be booked months in advance so the couple and planner should be aware of this and make their reservation well ahead of time. After the booking, be sure to visit at least twice before the wedding to make sure all the details are accurate. The visits allow for planning in terms of décor and other venue details.
The wedding vendors including florists, caterers, and others are an indispensable part of the wedding; they can make or break your day. The décor is an integral part of the wedding, so the vendor hired should be nothing short of professional. The wedding planner and the couple should visit their vendors in person so that they get a firsthand experience of what services they are getting (Crous 2017). The food, cake, and flowers make up a memorable part of the wedding; therefore no pains should be spared. A helpful tip would be t0 seek the advice of people in the wedding venue. The locals might have more information on who provides the best service and has the most competitive prices in town. Being from a different place, the couple may not be privy to most of the details the locals have. Before choosing the vendor, make sure to check their reviews online, and from other people, they have offered services to before. This way, they can get an honest opinion on whom to hire for the big day. In some cases, it is better to go with photographers and makeup artists that you are familiar with to avoid surprises on the wedding day.
Budgeting for the vendors is another factor to take into account. If the engaged couple chooses to bring their wedding specialist such as florists, they must be ready to cover expenses connected with their guests. The couple may overlook this and later get into a misunderstanding on who should pay for their accommodation and travels (Bertella 2017). This should be dealt with before anyone gets on a plane. They must also be put up in a location near the wedding venue so that they can execute their duties at any time as required. Keeping the vendors satisfied and well taken care of will also make sure that they do their job correctly without anything to worry about.
The dress code of the day should be tailored to the destination. No one wants to show up in a loose maxi dress only to find it freezing, the same goes for the wedding dress. The fabric from which the dress is made should be a factor to consider in making the dress. The guests should also be made aware of the weather conditions in the destination. This will help them to pack adequately and ensure that they bring all they will need during their stay such as slippers, sunscreen, and hats among others (Bertella 2015).
Finances are the central determinant of how you want your wedding will be like. To avoid going overboard, it is good to come up with a budget that you have to work within. For example, you should set a limit for each aspect such as food, décor, photography, venue among other things. The legalities of the wedding should also be resolved before the actual wedding day. Sometimes weddings held in a different country are not recognized as legal. The officiant of the wedding should also be cleared to officiate in that particular locality (Crous 2017). The wedding party should also be informed that the wedding will be a destination wedding so that they have time to decide if they will be part of the party. Some of the considerations they will take into account are traveling costs and the time taken off their daily routines.
Having taken into consideration all the aspects of planning a wedding, it is important to realize that not everything will go as planned. There will be mishaps along the way, some flowers may not look the same, or the weather may turn out different than expected. The important thing is to make sure that the guests and the married couple have a great time and create memories to last a lifetime. To ensure that everything goes as well as possible, these tips should be adhered to. A destination wedding is different from any other wedding, and therefore it requires endless hours of coordination and planning. Before choosing a destination wedding, ensure that the financial costs are reasonable to both the wedding party and the guests. A destination wedding is also time-consuming and should be planned months in advance. On the sunny side, destination weddings make for an exquisite and unforgettable experience, one that everyone will talk about for a long time afterward.
References
Crous, Yolanda. (2017, Dec 19)How to Plan A Destination Wedding: 11 Tips to Consider Brides. Retrieved from https://www.brides.com/story/must-know-advice-for-destination-wedding-planningBertella, G. (2017). The emergence of Tuscany as a wedding destination: The role of local wedding planners. Tourism Planning & Development, 14(1), 1-14.
Bertella, G. (2015). Celebrating the family abroad: the wedding tourism experience. Annals of Leisure Research, 18(3), 397-413.
