To a lot of people, travel is a big part of romance. Seeing the world together, going on dates in far-reaching places, and broadening your horizons as a couple might be part of the whole package when it comes to your relationship. As such, it should be no surprise that you might want to apply that same wanderlust to your wedding and to take it somewhere further from home than usual. Who knows, you may eventually even find yourself deciding between all inclusive honeymoon resorts. To that end, here are some tips on how to make sure you get the most out of your destination.
Choose a Destination That Matters to You
How do you choose the right destination for a destination wedding? Well, first of all, you have to make sure that it provides all of the resources that you need. It has to have access to a venue and all of the wedding services that you're likely to make use of, such as catering, photography, someone to officiate the wedding, and the like. Otherwise, you want to try and choose a place that has some meaning to you. To some people, this might be as simple as choosing a location that looks and feels like an idyllic paradise. Otherwise, it might be somewhere that's connected to you culturally or somewhere you and your future spouse have visited in the past or been meaning to visit.
Be Ready With That Budget
A lot of people will choose a destination wedding because it tends to help them save on the costs. One of the assumptions of a wedding abroad is that not everyone is going to be able to make it. While sad for those who might want a bigger crowd if possible, it does at least free up some money. Often, the volume of a larger wedding ends up costing more than even a wedding in a far-flung location. However, the costs of travel and arranging a wedding abroad still need to be carefully planned for. Look at tools like this wedding cost calculator to get a better idea of how much you should be budgeting to set aside.
Make Sure You Give Guests Plenty of Time
As mentioned, you're not likely to have as many guests at your wedding if you choose to have it overseas. However, even those that you do plan on inviting need to be given plenty of time to organize their trip. For one, there is the cost consideration, something that we will look more closely at in a bit. Otherwise, everyone has their own responsibilities and plans, and they need time to see whether or not they can fit your wedding and the overseas trip into their year ahead. If you plan an overseas wedding with very little notice for your family members and friends, do not be surprised if you and your spouse are the only ones who can make it.
Consider Whether You Need to Help People Make Their Way
If your guests insist that they can make it, then you should leave it up to them to organize themselves for the trip. You can provide details on transport options as well as hotels and costs, but you don't have to handhold them through the process. However, for closer members of the family and dearest friends, if there are concerns they can't make it, you might want to take the time to help them. This might mean helping them afford the trip or if they are older or have difficulties organizing things or taking care of the booking of flights and hotels for them.
Incorporate Your Destination into Your Theme
If you want to make it feel like your wedding is authentically tied to your destination, then you want to make sure that you take a little bit of the local flavor and inject it into the decor and the planning. For instance, you can look into local traditions and implement them into the decor of the reception area. If you're using options like customized wedding invitations from MagnetStreet, you can incorporate imagery that's evocative of the destination that you're choosing as well. Not only can using your chosen wedding destination in your decor help make it feel more authentic, but it can also build up the excitement for both you and your guests in the lead-up to the big day.
Make Sure You Choose People Who Specialize in Overseas Weddings
If you're organizing any wedding that's slightly more demanding than usual, then it should be safe to assume that you're going to need the help of a wedding planner. This is especially true of overseas weddings. There's nothing to say that you cannot plan your own destination wedding from scratch. However, choosing a wedding coordinator that specializes in destination weddings, specifically for the destination that you have in mind, can make it a lot easier to arrange everything you need. They can offer recommendations on venues and services and might be able to help you break the language barrier. If you're feeling uneasy about making decisions miles away, it can help to have someone closer.
Get to Know the Place (and Your Vendors)
This is not going to be possible for everyone. It's not easy to organize two trips a year to the same spot. However, if possible, you would like to see your venue and the surrounding area at least once before the wedding. If you can't see it in advance, you should at least see it early, arriving at least four days before your guests just so you can check over and finalize your plans as necessary. Furthermore, if possible, you should try to visit your vendors and to finalize your choices in person. This is especially true if you don't have a wedding planner. You need at least one pair of eyes there, in person, to assure their quality.
Dress for Success
Picking your wedding dress is likely going to be one of the most exciting parts of the wedding plan and there is no doubt that many a tear is shed on all sides when you're first seen in the gown of your choice. However, aside from the fact that you want to look at your absolute most beautiful, you should also keep in mind to dress in a way that best fits the climate. Choose a good summer wedding dress from Fashionbean if you're going to a sunny destination. Make sure to choose shorter gowns if you're getting married on the beach, as well as somewhat more practical shoes than high heels. Of course, if you're getting married in a place that's more of a winter wonderland, then you need to consider what's better in colder weather instead.
Know Your Local Marriage Requirements
One thing that can be quite easy to forget is that your wedding is not only a spiritual and romantic ceremony, but it's one that has some very specific legal consequences. As such, making sure that your marriage is legally recognized is very important. This is where things can get tricky, as marriage requirements and getting registered to marry can take a lot of planning overseas. Some people will get over this barrier by officiating the wedding at home and having a more ceremonial wedding at the destination. If you want to make sure that your overseas wedding is well and truly official, take the time to research the legal requirements.
Help Guests Feel Taken Care Of
One of the big benefits of arriving at your destination days, or even a week, before your guests is that you have time to get acclimated and used to the location. When your guests start arriving, traveling in a big group can make it easier for people to get a little disoriented. As such, you can take the time to make them feel welcome, help them get to know their new surroundings and to provide any itineraries they might need for the wedding or any activities before the big day. You might even want to create your own wedding website to serve as a handy guide for them.
Relax and Enjoy It
If you're visiting a sunny destination, then make sure your clock is set to run on island time.
As much as you might want to rush to get things done, it is well known that people in sunnier climes tend to go by their own routine. As such, one of the worst things you can do is worry about schedules and deadlines. Be willing to go with the flow and accept that it's very likely that your worries are for nothing. If you have a wedding planner, then be sure to look to them. If they don't look like they are panicking, then there's no reason for you to be panicking, either. SIt back and enjoy your trip.
There are few better ways to celebrate an important occasion than to do it somewhere gorgeous and exotic, and few better events to celebrate than your wedding. With the tips above, hopefully, we can help you celebrate it the right way.
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