Are you considering planning your destination wedding by yourself?

Cool!

Be aware tho: it will take some work!

Well… quite a bit in fact.

I do not mean to scare you but to prepare you. THIS is honestly what you absolutely need to know.

1# What epidural injection has to do with my destination wedding planning

Maybe you do not know this so here is your chance to get 2 tips in one. The common misconception we women have while thinking of delivering their babies is, we think we can decide to have an epidural when we get to the point we realize we can not take it anymore. Here is the news: it doesn’t work that way. You might be so much far in the delivery process that the epidural will not be an option anymore.

What does this have to do with your destination wedding? Let me explain.

Once you sign a contract with your resort or wedding vendors and you are in deep water it will be way too late for a wedding planner or romance specialist or travel agent to jump in and save you from the overwhelm, advocate for you and try to clean the eventual mess. So really think hard and well. Do you still want to do this by yourself? That is fine but you have to do your diligent homework and own it from A to Z.

#2 Understand the requirements

Every celebration is different. Be honest and clear on the kind of expectations you have for your wedding day. Remember that even for a drive-through Las Vegas wedding you need to obtain your marriage license first, present your documents, pay a fee…..there are steps that you can not skip even for the most simple celebration. Skipping steps may result in time-consuming annoying extra paperwork (in the best cases) or costly disasters in the worst cases. See Eliana for example. she got married with a “fun-easy- last-minute celebration” in Vegas where both she and her husband changed their last names by exchanging them and… after 2 years she is still trying to register her wedding in her hometown in Europe and legally ….they are in a messy situation. There is no way to avoid some homework if you want something done well. Decide if you want a legal or symbolic wedding abroad and research and double-check the requirements for the place where you want to get married.

#3 You need to have time.

Can you dedicate time to the planning of your wedding? If both of you have a 9 to 5 job and you order take-out food 5 times a week because you have a demanding schedule and you do not even have time to cook you need to be honest about the time you have to dedicate to your wedding planning. Researching locations, possibly touring venues, sourcing the right vendors, take quite some time. No, it is not mission impossible but if you do not have anybody on your side to understand what you are looking for and round out some good options for you, you really need to take some time to research the right options. And NO, asking google “ a nice place to get married” is not enough! Getting married is a very important milestone. You deserve a nice celebration that reflects your style, likes, and vision. So sit down. find out what is important to you and start asking the right questions to the right people. Romance specialists travel to different resorts, compare services, have a network of professionals, extensive direct access to wedding professionals on location, and perfect their art in years so… do not feel bad if after 3 days of surfing the net you still did not find what you are looking for. It takes time and some skills.

#4 Guests management

When you invite family and friends to your destination wedding you will be the one responsible to give them the right information so that they can book their flight, hotel, and be where they are supposed to on your wedding day. They might have a ton of questions, especially if they never left town before. You will need to keep them in the loop and regularly communicate with them, help them to find out answers to their questions, and keep them informed on the constant changing of traveling policy of the country you choose for your wedding and the re-entering policy. They might have questions about travel insurance, Covid protocols, etc.

( read also ” how to manage your guests” to know more )

#5 let’s be clear on what you get for FREE.

Will you work for free? Do you somebody that works for free? Good! Because nobody works for free, this should be very, very clear. There are some services that might come at no additional costs to you and there is nothing wrong with taking advantage of these possibilities especially if you have a limited budget. However, you need to be well aware of the service you are offered. If a travel agent offers his services to you at no cost who is he working for? It is normal that a travel agent receives compensation from the resorts and services he refers his clients to . However, can he be detached from the tour operator or brand that compensates him the most in order to point you in the right direction toward what you are really looking for?

Also, remember that the in-house wedding coordinators work for the resort/ venue NOT for you. They will let you know about the different packages, prices and tell you at what time your ceremony and reception start but ….you will need to advocate for yourself, ask questions and be on top of any detail.

To orchestrate a destination wedding takes a village so start early, do your research and homework and before jumping in and signing any contract be honest with yourself on your time and capacity to plan it right.

Not sure where to start?

Grab my free video guide on how to plan your dream wedding in 8 steps HERE

Did you start looking around and get frustrated right away? Do you need help?

Designing a memorable celebration for couples in love with a busy and demanding lifestyle is my special power. Book your complimentary planning session with me and let’s start planning something magical together HERE