When scrolling through social media, there’s a 90% chance that majority of your feed consists of swoon-worthy images of a beautiful seaside weddings at lake Como in Italy or dramatic sunsets against a stunning Aegean Sea backdrop in Athens, Greece. Its no surprise why many freshly engaged couples are turning their attention to abroad destination weddings and as this is a topic many are interested in, Let’s go through some pros and cons of planning a destination wedding !
Pros
Your Wedding Will Be a One Of a Kind Experience For Your Guests
Having a destination wedding in a scenic location offers many opportunities to celebrate your wedding against various unique backdrops. Also, there’s a high likelihood that your wedding would provide the very first opportunity for your guests to experience a different culture, which would mean that your guests would associate your wedding with a core memory, which in itself is a nice touch.
A limited Guest List Means More Opportunities For Bespoke Gifts
Most couples limit their guest number for over-seas destination weddings to a range of 60-100 guests as these kinds of weddings can be expensive (depending on location)However, a small guest number means there is more room to give more curated experiences or give even gift bespoke and sentimental items such as hand written thank you notes, gin bottles, napkins etc to your guests!
Destination Weddings Have The Potential To Be More Cost-effective
Many resorts/hotels and venues offer all-inclusive packages, which can make planning your wedding a lot smoother and more cost-effective! Most of these packages would include food and beverage, a complimentary wedding cake, discounted onsite accommodation, a long list of suppliers who are familiar with the venue and can source local entertainment, offer discounts or invaluable insight on how to cut decor/production costs and how best to let the venue’s natural beauty work in your favour!
Destination weddings provide the perfect opportunity for a vacation
You can prolong the festive spirit by extending your stay a few days before or after the wedding day. This option may be much more cost effective for you as there are more negotiation and discount opportunities as you have been in contact with the venue already for your wedding -especially if its a group booking or over an extended period of time.
This allows you to explore the country and actively engage in all the fun activities available or take a much needed relaxation break with your loved ones!
Cons
Destination Weddings Can Be More Expensive Than Weddings In Your Home Country
Although destination venues offer various packages to suit the clients budget, the overall cost of this is highly dependent on different factors such as guest size, food and drink menu selected, number of bedrooms booked onsite and the events spaces booked (if not exclusive hire) etc.However, two major factors client tend to overlook is the costs of travel and logistics i.e the cost of tickets to fly in your family, guests and vendors as well as the cost vendors have to bear to bring in the materials for their wedding. Most of the time, these costs vary region to region.
The Potential For Limited Guest Attendance
Due to various entry and travel requirements, it is possible that some of your guest may not be able to travel to the chosen location, which would understandably be disappointing for some couples and their families.
Planning a wedding overseas might be a logistical challenge
Its not surprising that the communication with the overseas vendors would require a lot more effort and consistency as you are in an entirely different timezone which could be hours ahead or behind you i.e you might need to send emails during the times that coincide with the country’s working hours.Also, if you do not speak the language (s) of the country you’re planning your wedding, it is possible that there may be some miscommunication or misunderstanding which could mean a longer process before finalising vendor ( however language barriers are not that much of an issue due to advancements in technology- and instant translate apps).
Next steps
If you are in need of a wedding planner who fits the bill, we would be delighted to hear from you. We have planned multiple destination weddings in locations such as Nigeria, Greece, Morocco, the United kingdom and much more. You can get in touch with us by filling out the inquiry form on our Contact Page.
