Destination Wedding at Home
Destination weddings are quick to invoke a feeling of luxury and excitement. You may start to think of palm trees and sandy beaches or traveling overseas when you hear the term destination wedding. But there's another side to destination weddings that you should consider: a destination wedding at home.
A destination wedding at home is a wedding that takes place within a few hours of where you live. Instead of getting married in your city, you venture somewhere – say, two hours away – to get married at that dreamy destination that's perfect for a weekend getaway!
This type of wedding combines the excitement of a destination wedding with some of the practicality of planning one at home. You're able to comfortably handle the wedding preparations and still meet vendors in person. Your local guests are more likely to be able to make arrangements to travel somewhere nearby rather than jetting across the country – or around the world! And perhaps the most fun reason to consider a destination at home wedding, you get to get outside of the typical wedding venues in your city to have a fun, unique setting for your dream wedding day.
So, how do you do a destination wedding at home well so that you, your attendants and your guests all have an amazing time? We've gathered some of our top 15 tips to make the destination wedding of your dreams happen close to home!
01 | Choose a Meaningful Location
Is there somewhere nearby that means a lot to you and your fiancé? It may make for a great destination wedding location! Choosing a location that means something to you and your fiancé will add a special feeling of intimacy to your wedding day. Just don't forget that you have to keep logistics in mind! Your location needs to have all of the resources you require for the wedding and your guests. For instance, the small beach town you grew up visiting in the summer may be charming, but if it only has one hotel that won't fit all of your guests, it's not a good choice for your destination wedding.
02 | Hire a Professional Planner
When you're planning a wedding from a distance, you need a wedding planner who is familiar with the area. Hiring a wedding planner is going to help you stress less and ensure that your wedding will be personalized to your tastes. This way, instead of spending hours on the phone trying to make decisions on flowers and ceremony sites from miles away, you'll have an expert on hand who can handle these things for you.
When you're hiring a wedding planner, you're going to want to visit their website to view their previous work and choose the best one for your tastes and quality standards. If you've already decided on your destination, you can look for a planner who has experience in destination weddings, one who has worked in the general area your wedding will be held or better yet, at the same venue where your wedding will be. Many venues have existing relationships with local wedding vendors, which could give you a great starting point!
If a planner isn't in the budget, consider a venue with a strong on-site coordinator instead. Another option to consider is a wedding package. These tend to be a little more cookie-cutter, but since your setting will still be new to your guests, you run much less risk of it feeling that way.
03 | Notify Guests Well in Advance
This is quite possibly the most important detail to handle! Destination weddings require extra planning for guests, so it's smart to give everyone a bit more notice than you would for a local wedding in your home town. This advance notice will allow your guests to make the arrangements they need to be there on your wedding day. Your nearest and dearest should have plenty of time to calculate the cost of traveling to your ceremony and reception and consider if they'll be able to attend. You don't want anyone to miss out due to poor planning, so be sure to give everyone the necessary details as soon as possible!
04 | Embrace the Setting to Save Big
Slash your décor budget by embracing your wedding location and all it has to offer. Incorporating local flowers and greens into your bouquet and floral designs is a great example. Think olive branches and grape leaves in Tuscany or exotic flowers and plants in the tropics! Serving local specialties at your reception may be a way to cut some of your catering costs, and embracing the architecture and existing backdrops of your venue during your reception can save money on unnecessary extras.
05 | Tailor Your Wedding Dress to the Destination
You don't want your dress to be heavy and trap heat if you're getting married in a tropical location or the desert. Likewise, you don't want a dress that's not suited for a late-autumn wedding if you're in a location where weather is often cold. Keep location in mind when choosing your wedding gown. Breathable fabrics work best in hot, humid locations. Lightweight lace and embellished ball gowns are both stunning options! If you need to consider cold weather, consider heavier fabrics and a faux fur wrap or lace overlay to wear over your dress.
06 | Consider Your Guests
When planning a destination wedding, you need to consider your guests as you make arrangements for overnight stays. Try putting everyone together in one reasonably affordable hotel that's near your wedding venue. If price is going to be an issue for some guests, find a second, less expensive option no more than 10 to 15 minutes away from your wedding venue. Make sure you don't set your wedding date until you know for sure that the hotel(s) have room availability for everyone on your guest list!
07 | Mail Your Invitations Early
It's important for you to make sure that you mail out your wedding invitations early when planning a wedding out-of-town. This will make sure that your guests have all of the details they need to book flights and hotel reservations. Some won't make a move to do this until they receive your official invitation in the mail, so make sure to help them out by sending them in advance. The Ultimate Guide to Planning a Wedding from Afar suggests mailing invitations three months before your wedding rather than the standard two months. It also recommends that you ask for their RSVP at least one month in advance of your wedding rather than two weeks in advance.
08 | Plan Events for the Whole Weekend, Not Just the Wedding
Most destination weddings will take place over a long weekend. Typically, the guests would arrive on Thursday and stay until Saturday. Your guests will be on location for the duration of this time so they can attend your wedding, and it's your responsibility as bride and groom to keep them entertained. Most weddings include a rehearsal dinner, a party Friday night, and then the wedding on Saturday. You may also want to consider providing options for day-time activities in the area so your guests can relax, explore and enjoy the location you so purposefully chose for your wedding!
09 | Visit Your Venue in Advance
Since you're planning a destination wedding at home, you'll likely have the ability to make a trip to visit your venue and any other local vendors in person. Take a weekend with your fiancé and go visit the location where you'll be getting married. You can go visit venues together to make sure the one you book is the perfect space for your dream wedding. Ideally, you'd see your venue once before booking and again three to four months before the wedding to finalize details. If a second trip isn't possible, arrive at least five days early so you can make those decisions and do a hair and makeup trial prior to your wedding.
10 | Pick Your Vendors in Person
Since you're planning on visiting your venue in person before you book it, you can use that same trip to meet with vendors like florists, hair and makeup artists and wedding planners. Set up meetings with better-known florists and rental companies in your destination before your first venue site visit. But keep in mind that there are some local talents that you could uncover by asking your venue for referrals, too. You may even find that perfect vendor you hadn't heard of this way!
11 | Budget for Your Vendors
If you decide to bring vendors from home, you'll need to be prepared to cover their travel and lodging expenses. For accommodations, be sure your vendors will have a clean, safe hotel within 30 minutes of your wedding venue. Be sure to negotiate all of the expenses and travel fees involved with your vendors up-front so you're not surprised by any additional costs.
12 | Negotiate a Group Discount for Hotel Rooms
Talk to management at the hotel you're planning to use for your destination wedding and ask about group rates for a block of rooms. Keep in mind that smaller boutique hotels or places that book up whether or not your wedding will be held there may not offer any sort of discount. Be sure to negotiate the number of rooms you'll be responsible for in your contract with the hotel. If you think you'll need 45 rooms, but you only end up needing 35, you want to be able to pay for just the 35 rooms you used. You need to make sure you're not on the hook if your guests cancel, too.
13 | Ask the Hotel or Resort About Other Events Taking Place That Weekend
It's good to know what's going on the weekend of your wedding! While most luxury resorts wouldn't be so tacky as to have several weddings going on at the same time, it's worth asking what, if any, other events are taking place on the same date you plan to have your wedding. Besides asking about any other weddings or events, ask if there will be any other large groups staying at the same time. Imagine if you have a bunch of salesmen on their annual retreat going bananas at the pool when you and your guests are trying to relax before the wedding ceremony. While this may give you and your guests a funny story to share later, you can avoid unwanted disturbances during your wedding weekend by asking about these things in advance.
14 | Stuff That Suitcase
Rental linens aren't always of the same quality and availability everywhere you go. We've yet to find a destination outside of the continental U.S. that has the same quality and selection of rental linens, for example. Because shipping overseas is risky and expensive, we recommend packing as much as possible into your checked luggage and bringing it with you if you're traveling overseas. If you're within driving distance, you'll have a chance to bring more items with you in your vehicle. So if you can't find a rental item you're looking for in your wedding location, consider purchasing or renting from home and bringing it yourself.
15 | Never Check Your Dress
You never want to check your dress if your destination wedding requires a flight. Always carry your dress on board the plane, even if it means having to fold it. You can make arrangements beforehand to have someone at your wedding destination press and steam it before your wedding to take care of any issues from traveling with your gown.