Is a Destination Wedding Right for You?
While many couples dream of a wedding day far from the hassles of home and in virtually guaranteed glorious sunshine, it isn't the right option for everyone.
Couples who decide to get married abroad usually fall into one of these groups:
- Those who do not wish to go to the expense of having a big wedding
- Those who want to avoid all the fuss that inevitably comes with a big wedding at home
- People who the idea of combining their wedding with a honeymoon somewhere exotic
- Couples who like the idea of going away somewhere with just close friends and family and combining a holiday with their wedding
- Couples one or both of whom are marrying for the second time and do not want to have a big wedding at home the second time around
If you are considering a wedding overseas as an option, the following are just some things to think about and discuss before you make up your mind.
Counting the Costs
The Upside
- Destination Weddings are very often an extremely cost effective way of getting married, not least because you can have your wedding and your honeymoon in the same place.
- Many resort hotels offer great value wedding packages - or will even throw in a free wedding with all the trimmings if you are planning a reasonably long stay.
- If you decide on a small scale event, then just the two of you and perhaps some very close family and friends can travel, greatly reducing the cost of the reception.
- Even if you choose to invite about the same number as you would to a wedding at home, typically only about half as many as you invite will decide to travel, so you can cut your guest list in two with one fell swoop!
The Downside
- If you want a really luxury no-expenses spared wedding abroad it can get very pricy very fast. There are some amazingly beautiful wedding venues in all sorts of wonderful places, but they don't always come cheap.
- You may save money by having your wedding abroad, but you are putting a considerable amount of additional expense on guests who decide to travel, and some of them may resent this.
- You may need to travel in to the venue, or at least to the country where you will marry, some time in advance of the wedding either to comply with legalities or to check out venues. This adds additional expense.
Avoiding Tricky Family Issues
The Upside
- There are probably more family rows in the run up to a wedding than at any other time. You can avoid the inevitable pressure to invite dozens of relations you hardly know or all your new father-in-law's business colleagues by just getting away from all that and flying to the sun.
- Control of the planning will be back firmly in the hands of the bride and groom, not taken over by the various different priorities of other family members.
The Downside
- Family issues do not disappear when you step onto the plane, and if you are running away from something you really should be dealing with, it will still be there when you get home.
- Family members may be very annoyed that they did not receive an invitation to your wedding or that they did but it was for practical purposes impossible for them to attend.
Avoiding Hassle
The Upside
- Anyone who has organised a wedding will tell you that there are times when the whole planning process becomes so overwhelming that they are almost sorry they started. Going abroad keeps it simple.
- Are you appalled by the thought of months of preparation, talk, meetings and planning? Many overseas wedding venues will organise everything for you, down to the last flower, so that all you have to do is hop on the plane and get yourself there.
The Downside
- Depending on where you are getting married the amount of paperwork and procedures to get though can be very significant and bring its own headaches. This is especially true when organising a church wedding abroad.
- If you are having a number of guests the amount of time you spend on planning may even increase, as you will also inevitably end up being dragged into dealing with some people's travel and accommodation issues.
- Will it really be simpler? Having to make plans with people and places in another country, perhaps another time zone, can add more complexity to your preparations.
Not Just a One Day Event
The Upside
- Your wedding day will be over in the blink of an eye but if you travel with at least some family and friends you will probably have several days together to socialise, chat and have fun with much less pressure to pack it into a single day.
- If your guests are travelling from various places around the world it can be a marvellous opportunity for a reunion with old friends or family members you do not often see, with plenty of time to linger over meals and catch up on each other's lives.
The Downside
- At least some of your guests are likely to 'make a holiday of it', travelling early and extending their stay after your wedding. They may even expect you to organise additional events to keep them occupied.
- If you plan to combine your wedding and honeymoon in one location, you could effectively end up with quite a few of your guests being on honeymoon with you.
So, What do you think now?
When you have gone through all these pros and cons are you still convinced you want to go away to get married?
Then it is right for you, and you will have a wonderful time!