In our experience, one of the major considerations associated with having a destination wedding is not the cost of the wedding itself, this has usually already been put aside either by the parents or by the bride and groom themselves. No, the main barrier is the cost for your guests of attending your destination wedding. This is especially true during difficult economic times as we are currently experiencing all over the world.
But you still dream of having a fairytale wedding in Europe and don’t wish to abandon this idea? Here are our top 10 tips on how to make your destination wedding in Europe affordable for your guests and thus transform your dream into reality:
1. Choose a location where major airlines run regular charter flights or where cheaper, low-cost airlines travel to. In the latter case, you will likely need to consider smaller, regional airports and not the main airports. These will not necessarily be further away from your wedding venue, they may even prove more practical and less intimidating for those of your guests who are not accustomed to international travel.
2. Do your homework before confirming a venue. Either choose a venue that can accommodate all of your guests on-site or request a list of local hotel accommodation. In the latter case, make sure there is sufficient accommodation close by (preferably within walking distance) and that the selection includes a number of reasonably priced alternatives. Consider proposing small bed and breakfast establishments rather than large chain hotels to make your guest’s stay more intimate and why not include a camp site option for those of your guests travelling with small children or who like backpacking.
3. Create a wedding website as early as possible and communicate this address to all of your guests. You can even have your guests RSVP via the website to ensure they consult it. List everything of interest and importance TO YOUR GUESTS on this website. This includes the following: local accommodation options with links to B&B/hotel/campsite websites and a price-fork for each one; links to airline websites that fly to your chosen destination with current pricing; links to car rental firms that provide rental cars from the airport; confirm that you will be providing transportation on the wedding day (and day before/day after if applicable), etc.
4. Consider organizing airport transfers for your guests if you are all able to stay at your wedding venue or within close proximity (20 km radius). The price for a minibus for two days (for arrivals and departures) is not going to blow your budget and may be one of the determining factors in your guests’ decision to attend your wedding or not.
5. In our experience, it is imperative to organize transportation on the wedding day to and from your wedding venue. Book a coach to pick everyone up at their various hotels/B&Bs, etc. (unless everyone can be accommodated on-site or within walking distance) and provide 3 return trips from midnight onwards. Why not add a fun twist and book a double-decker London bus or an old American yellow school bus instead of a normal coach?
6. Make it as simple and inexpensive for your guests once on-site as possible: consider contributing a certain amount per room to make room prices affordable for guests (if you have the possibility of lodging people at the venue itself); organize a welcome buffet the day before the wedding, lunch or picnic baskets on the day of the wedding and an informal BBQ or brunch the day after to limit the additional expenses for your guests. Should you choose a venue such as an ancient castle that does not have any on-site bar or restaurant available, consider organizing an on-site brasserie service at lunchtimes and during the afternoon to provide snacks and drinks. You do not have to cover the costs for the food, your guests can pay themselves, but they will appreciate the convenience and practicality. Make sure you communicate about all of these things on your wedding website.
7. Pitch your chosen destination as a holiday venue for your guests. Talk about the weather, local tourist attractions, local beaches (if applicable) and encourage them to extend their stay to make it a vacation as well as attending your wedding. This will also favorably impact the price of the accommodation (weekly rental prices are more attractive than single night accommodation at villas or self-catering establishments.
8. Why not give your guests the chance to win something while at your wedding? Make sure you communicate how fun your wedding will be. Why not, for example, ask each of your guests to contribute 2 euros to a sweep stake. The money will be collected during the cocktail reception. Each guest should guess how long the speeches will last and the winning person will win all of the money. Or, why not put together a quiz containing questions about the bride and groom. Distribute this in your guests’ rooms and the person who gets the highest score will receive one night’s accommodation paid for by you or a free lunch or dinner in a local restaurant.
9. Distribute a welcome letter and gift basket to each of your guests in their rooms. The basket could contain a selection of local goodies but also some more practical items such as a metro map and book of 10 metro tickets if you are getting married in Paris or beach towel or flip flops for a beach wedding, etc.
10. Finally, think about choosing a date during the off-season when flights are cheaper and when hotel prices can be negotiated.
You are not, of course, obliged to propose all of the above, you can pick and choose those that are most relevant to your wedding and chosen venue, those that you think your guests will be most receptive to and those that correspond to your budget.
Don’t forget that organizing a destination wedding will automatically reduce the number of guests attending the wedding, thus allowing you to allocate the additional budget to spoiling your guests and making their stay more affordable, comfortable and unforgettable.
Good luck!
Photo credits : shopflipflops.com; Studio Cabrelli
