Many couples dream of having a destination wedding. You and your partner can recite your vows on the beach, on top of a mountain, or in your favorite city. It will feel like a vacation with all the people you love.
However, it can be stressful. Planning a wedding is already a very tiring task. If you are doing it without the help of a wedding planner, you would be responsible for finding, contacting, and negotiating with the cake-maker, catering, venue provider, lights and audio rentals, professional photographers and videographers, etc.
At a destination wedding, you would have to do the same things but remotely.
There is also the problem of cost. When you have to fly to the venue, you might need to spend more money. This is especially true if the venue is popular among tourists.
Is it possible to make planning a destination wedding a little more within your budget?
Find Areas Where You Can Cut Costs
You should never scrimp on some aspects of your wedding. Food, for example, should account for a huge percentage of your budget. So should your dress.
What about the party favors? Raid the local gift shops and fill your giveaway bags with local goods. Paying for customized party favors will be expensive and will likely end up in the garbage bin. Going for food and beverage is a safe option.
Multi-part invitations are luxurious-looking but totally unnecessary. There is no point in paying so much for an invitation that will only be looked at a couple of times and then thrown out. A single page invitation in a simple envelope is enough to convey all the information the guests need to know.
Some expenses associated with weddings are just not worth it. You will be better off spending your money on your honeymoon or saving up for your dream home.
Use Points Anywhere You Can
You probably have points accumulated from using your credit cards. Use them anywhere you can. You can slash a bit of the cost from flying yourself and your loved ones to the venue or getting rooms in a hotel.
Your Destination Wedding Venue is Your Honeymoon Destination, Too
It is not uncommon for couples who have destination weddings to also have their honeymoon in the same place. You and your partner can choose to stay in the same hotel for another weekend after the wedding.
A separate honeymoon will obviously cost more. Many venues offer packages for couples who choose to get married there. They will be able to enjoy the amenities at a reduced price.
Reconsider Your Wedding Date
Getting married in a beach resort during the summer will be more expensive. There is more demand for the venue. You would be fighting with tourists for hotel rooms, restaurant reservations, and use of resort amenities.
Figure out when is the best day to go. Ask the venue which months are the busiest and when it is a little quieter. You do not have to get married in the middle of a snowstorm, but it might be cheaper to go sometime when there is not a lot of tourists or other couples to compete with.
Just make sure to also check the local climate so that you and your guest would not have to worry about being stuck in the venue because of a hurricane.
You should also consider getting married on a weeknight if the venue allows it. Usually, because people have jobs the next day, there is less demand for venues during weeknights. Friday and Sunday nights might also be less busy.
Trim Your Guest List
The best way to make a wedding, whether destination or traditional, less expensive is by limiting the number of people who will be invited. A more intimate wedding with only your family and closest friends will be cheaper. It will also be more fun because you know everyone in attendance.
Do not feel obligated to invite a distant aunt or your boss. If you are not very close to them, or you think they might cause conflict during the wedding, do not send them the invitations. Save the seats for the people who matters the most.
Weddings are notoriously very expensive. Many couples go broke paying for an extravagant ceremony and party. Still, every couple wants to have their dream wedding.
Luckily, there are ways to make a wedding a little more within the budget. Cutting costs in expenses that are not necessary and having fewer guests in attendance will make any wedding considerably cheaper.
