Five Top Mistakes in Planning Your Destination Wedding
Planning a destination wedding? A lot of issues can make your life more difficult, but not if you take into consideration a few important things.
- Not letting guests know about your plans enough in advance
You want certain people there to witness your YESes and then to party the entire night. They are your family and closest friends, former university colleagues from overseas and maybe your boss. But they are also spouses, friends, employees or business owners and parents. They need to have enough notice about your event in order to be able to plan ahead, ask for time off, book plane tickets and accommodation and fit the expenses in their budget. On your end, you will also need to have a realistic number of confirmed guests to be able to plan properly for a venue, budget right and avoid disappointments. That is why it’s best to let people know one year to nine months in advance or at least a minimum of six months. You also need to take into consideration school vacations and other holidays that may be important, whether for your guests or at the destination.
- Factor extra days & costs into their budget
The wedding ceremony and party will most likely be on the same day – but guests will most probably come at least one night before. Hosting a true destination wedding means you will also take care of guests BEFORE and AFTER the main event, by planning a welcome dinner, an after wedding brunche and even activities in between or a post-wedding destination exploration trip. You will decide as a couple what you want to cover in terms of expenses (Only the wedding party? Accommodation the night of? The entire weekend?), but make sure you let all of your guests know what they can expect. If you decide to have the photographer and videographer also attend the welcome dinner or book a DJ also for the first night, don’t forget to count all of these details towards your final budget. You will need to cover not only their fee, but also their transportation, accommodation and meals.
- Not paying attention to the weather
Dancing under the stars is a marvelous idea, but what if it rains? Never risk your big event. If the venue you want does not have enough capacity to move your number of guests indoor, book a tent or always have an alternative option. The chances of rain may be slim in July, but you never know, and finding a last minute tent to book may prove to be close to impossible.
- Too much DIY
Sometimes you fall down the Pinterest rabbit hole and decide that you can make a lot of the wedding decorations AND the guest favors. After all, isn’t a personal touch lovely? It is, but it will also make your life more complicated than needed. They will need to be sourced, worked on, wrapped and shipped to the destination and then managed there by you or someone else. Your work may not fit with the décor of the venue or with what the florists prepared and may even arrive broken. You also need to consider if you have enough time to plan everything and make things by hand. If it is important to you, however, just make sure it works with your workload and everything else you have planned.
- Trying to do it all and letting other people’s opinions carry too much weight
You will only have a few days at the destination and many people to see and engage with. Time will pass very quickly and as a bride and groom, there are very many things you need to do (preparations, hair & make-up, photoshoots). Do not over-plan and make sure you leave time in the schedule to eat and rest (and ENJOY!). The same goes with the party planning and vendors: choose what you are comfortable with in terms of traditions, budget and look. If you try to please everyone or go big for the sake of #theGram, you may end up overtired, overbudgeted and disappointed.
Get “The Ultimate Guide to Planning and Enjoying your Destination Wedding in Romania” guide now and learn exactly how you can plan your event like a professional. You will receive the best advice about how to choose your venue and your vendors and how to make the event unforgettable for all of your friends and family who have traveled to celebrate with you.
Photo Credit: Razvan Lupan