The Only 5 Steps You Need To Plan A Destination Wedding

It can be difficult to resist the allure of a destination wedding—an escape to a far away location with the love of your life to mark the significant and symbolic leap from being engaged to getting married. The ability for couples to have a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime event away from home is one of the many benefits of having a destination wedding.

But first… What Are The Pros and Cons?

Pros:

Let’s talk about all the good stuff that comes with having a destination wedding.

With a resort wedding, you can effortlessly organize your wedding from a distance and won't have to worry about the small details. When you arrive, the resort staff will make sure everything goes according to plan, even assisting you in organizing group activities inside and outside the resort.

Most of the time, all the planning is either left entirely up to the couple with little help from friends and family OR everyone is too evolved making the planning process more stressful for the couple. Destination weddings help eliminated that element of wedding.

Fewer guests lead to lower costs and a more intimate wedding. This is a big selling point for couples seeking different yet affordable wedding options. If you meet the requirements for the number of nights and/or room bookings, some resorts offer all-inclusive packages, some of which include a free wedding as part of your stay. They are a great method to justify only inviting your closest loved ones because distant relatives are less likely to travel for your wedding.

Cons:

Although having both your ceremony and reception at a resort might greatly speed up the planning process, the all-inclusive nature of these venues can make it more difficult to include the little personal touches that make a wedding feel like you. If this issue is significant to you, hiring a wedding planner and inquiring about customization choices at potential sites will help you get past it.

Destination weddings are one of the pricier options for guests. Even though having a destination wedding can save you some money by having fewer guests and a smaller intimate wedding, you’re guests will make up for it from their pockets. Destination weddings are always more expensive for guests as they have to pay for travel and stays and other accommodations.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN: Create a Check List & Timeline

Lucky for you, we have a Free Destination Wedding Planning checklist & timeline sheet that will tell you exactly what you need to do and when to do it. This checklist & timeline will help keep you organized and keep you on track as you plan your destination wedding.

If you’d like to receive our Free Destination Wedding Planning checklist & timeline sheet just fill out the form below and it’ll be sent to you right away!

1.) Choose A Location

The first step would be to choose a location that would work for your budget as well as the budget of your guests. Once you've figured out where you'd like to have you destination wedding, it's time to pick your venue/resort.  Consider the locations for the ceremony, as well as the celebration or reception. Of course, they might both be in the same location. Think about the individual aspects you'd like to add, like a bar, for instance. What types of drinks and small bites do you want to serve, and will there be an open bar? 

Hosting your wedding at an all inclusive resort will help you not worry about how much money to spend on food. 

Here are a few things to look into:

1.)Research local weather patterns

2.)Research any current risk or travel warnings

3.) Read reviews and ask around for other past couple’s experiences

4.) Be prepared for currency exchange and language barriers

5.) Consider traveling to these locations ahead of time to gauge in person what it’s like being there

2.) Let’s Set Your Budget - Where do you even being?

Setting a budget is the next step after choosing the best location for your destination wedding. To avoid overcommitting yourself too early in the planning process, it is important to complete this step before choosing venues and looking into everything else. Keep in mind that your budget will fluctuate as you learn more about the different type of expenses and as you dive further into the planning process.  No matter where you sit with you budget, a destination wedding is definitely doable.

The key thing here is to prioritize. Think about what you value the most. For example, if capturing the moment and having beautiful photos is really important to you, then you’d probably want to avoid the standard photographer that comes with your resort and instead hire your own wedding photographer.

3.) Hire A Wedding Planner - Do you even need one?

If you're having a destination wedding, you'll need to finalize all the last-minute details before you go. In doing so you and your guests can arrive without any stress.

A wedding planner will help handle everything for you rather than having to spend hours on the phone attempting to overcome a language barrier or making important decisions from across the globe. Even before you book your venue, it's important to hire a planner who is familiar with the locations, venues, and are in general.  If hiring a planner is out of your price range, search for a location with a qualified on-site coordinator.

Part of booking with Hayek Studios is being able to take advantage of our complimentary wedding planning services. We offer all our couples any and all types of help in planning their weddings - whether local or at your dream destination.

4.) Create Your Guest List - Who should you invite?

Inviting guests who are most significant to you and believe will have a positive effect on your special day is a good rule of thumb for destination weddings. A great thing about destination weddings is that the guest list is usually small, averaging anywhere from 10-50 people. You'll need to estimate who among your friends and family will be able to travel to the destination location and, if so, how long it will take them to get there. If you plan on having your guests cover any expenses it’s important to make that clear to them. Not being clear in their responsibilities can lead to miscommunication and unhappy guests.

5.) Stick To Your Checklist - It has everything!

Have you received out checklist? You’ll see that it is detailed with many steps to help guide you through the planning process for your destination wedding. Use the timeline accordingly and take action as you go down the list. This will help you stay organized and remove the stress from not knowing where to being and what to do next.

Having such a guide will help you avoid spending thousands of dollars on a wedding planner.

If you have any questions or would like to receive our

Free Destination Wedding Planning Checklist & Timeline Sheet

Fill out the form below and we’ll send it right away!