Is a Destination Wedding Right for You?

Destination weddings can certainly be picturesque, but have you thought about what all goes into pulling them off?

They’re often attractive because of the beautiful location and weather, but they don’t come together on their own! These weddings take a lot of TLC to be the dream wedding you’ve always wanted - but then again, what wedding doesn’t?

Before we get into this post…

…I just wanted to share a little info as to why I invited my sister Myasia to write this post. She has a ton of experience with planning destination weddings, as she literally just planned one on the other side of the country. Before that materialized, though, she was planning a destination wedding in St. Lucia during COVID, but the world situation ended up changing that.

Please understand that during this time, destination weddings are 10x more work to plan. They are still amazingly-wonderful getaways, but they require a lot of planning. Please check out the rest of Myasia’s post to see if a destination wedding is still right for you two.

Use this handy checklist below to determine if a destination wedding is right for you:

• Do you have the time necessary to plan this the way you’d want?

  Due to the travel consideration, these weddings take a little extra time to plan.

• Do you know if you’d like a formal/informal wedding?

  You can have a formal wedding on the beach if you’d really like, but most people look for beach weddings to be a little less formal.

• Are the little details important to you?

  From weather to vendors, you lose a little bit of control when it comes to planning away from home.

• Do you have a lot of people you’ll want there?

  Financial, health and work challenges could come up that would prevent a portion of your guest list from being able to make it - typically, destination weddings are smaller.

• Is budget a concern for you?

  In some ways (like a smaller guest list), destination weddings can seem less expensive, but keep in mind that other costs can sneak up (trips back and forth to your destination ahead of the celebration, vendor shipping, etc.)

• Have you decided on having a traditional ‘honeymoon’ away from friends/family yet?

  It might be more convenient to honeymoon at the same destination, but consider that you may be sharing your honeymoon with your family and friends.

• Are you planning the event yourself?

  There are a ton of logistics that may lend themselves better to getting professional help with your destination wedding: marriage licenses, alcohol rules, etc.

• Finally, what is the COVID-19 policy for the city/state/country you’re planning it?

  The specifics around this will literally dictate what you can and can’t do, and even things such as whether your guests need to get tested before they come, whether they can possibly have a positive test result following your weddings and still get back home, amongst many other considerations.

If you determine a destination wedding is right for you, make sure you focus on one thing: you’re marrying the love of your life. EVERYTHING else is secondary - enjoy it!