Many brides dream of a destination beach wedding; the sand, the sun, the beautiful waves. However, it can become quite expensive, especially if you plan on helping your guests with their travel costs. The following 5 tips can help make your destination beach wedding affordable.
1. Your Timing is Important
Timing is everything, especially when planning a destination wedding. Hotels and venues come down on their prices during “off” times.
This usually includes seasons other than spring and summer, which are the most popular seasons for weddings, and weekdays, because most brides want weekend weddings. If there is room for you to be flexible, doing so can save you thousands of dollars.
2. Consider Package Deals
A very important way to cut the costs from your destination wedding is to take advantage of package deals. They’re available virtually everywhere, especially in areas that are popular destination wedding spots.
For instance, venues often offer food, the cake, champagne toasts and even entertainment in a bundle for one low price. This is a great way to make your wedding more affordable.
3. Always Research Marriage Requirements Before Leaving
You might have heard that getting a marriage license in Hawaii is super easy and nothing to fret over, but you should always research your marriage requirements before leaving. In fact, obtaining your license before the trip is a great idea, if possible.
Nothing would be more frustrating than arriving and getting set up for your wedding only to realize there’s a 7-day waiting period for marriage licenses. This could blow your wedding budget through the roof!
4. Purchase Wedding Items at Your Location
Consider purchasing your wedding items at your location if possible. This can reduce the amount of bulk you’ll have to carry with you during travel.
Things like favors, welcome bags, gifts and accessories can all be purchased at most destination wedding locations.
5. Always Ask Vendors about Hidden Costs
No matter what sort of vendor you’re hiring in your destination wedding location, ask about hidden costs.
You’ll want to make sure the vendors have quoted their price in paperwork and that the price shown is the only price you’ll be expected to pay.
Destination weddings are exciting and memorable, but they’ll be even better if you can shave some of the cost off of the total price!