These winter months have us dreaming of beaches and warmer weather so what better time to start brainstorming your destination wedding? Getting married abroad can mean beautiful backdrops and a built-in vacation, but there are some additional elements to factor in when planning your special day. Here are some things to consider ahead of time so your destination wedding goes smoothly.
Budget
Your budget is a good place to start since it will play a role in most of these considerations. Be sure to factor in the added expenses like airfare and accommodations in addition to the typical wedding expenses. Depending on your wedding destination, you may also want to consider the exchange rate.
The Guest List
Think about the people that you want to share your special day with and get a rough number of guests. Keep in mind a handful of people may not be able to attend due to prior engagements, limited vacation time, inability to travel or budgetary restrictions. Once you have a ballpark number of guests, you can start looking into venues within your budget that will accommodate that party size.
Save the Date!
Keep in mind your ideal location when planning your destination wedding date. Is this a busy time of year for tourism? Maybe prices are higher at different times of the year. Are there weather conditions that are typical of certain seasons? For example, you may not want to plan an outdoor Caribbean wedding during hurricane season. Make sure you send out your Save The Dates with plenty of time to allow guests to book vacation time, plan a house, pet or baby sitter, and plan their accommodations.
Venue Accessibility
Another thing to consider is the accessibility of the event space. Often businesses in other countries have different accessibility rules or the location itself is hard to access. Like if you’re getting married at the top of a rugged cliff that everyone needs to hike to, are all of your friends and family able to do that? Take a look at your guest list and make sure the venue is suited to everyone’s needs.
Venue
Do you want to get married on the beach? On the mountainside? Indoors or outdoors? These all factor into picking the perfect venue. You’ll also want to consider the days surrounding your wedding day. Do you want an all-inclusive resort everyone can book for the week? Or will guests join you for the wedding day and continue on with their own travels? You may not be able to fly out to see the venue first so you might consider choosing somewhere you’ve been before or has been recommended by a friend.
Marriage License
Make sure to research the requirements of a legal marriage in the country you’re getting married in. Canada will recognize a marriage that takes place out of the country as long as you follow the rules of that country.
See https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/documents/marriage-overseas for more information on Canada’s requirements for getting married abroad.
Passports
Make sure to check the expiry of your and your fiance’s passports before your trip. This may sound like an obvious thing to remember, but with all of the wedding planning and excitement, you never know!
Take us with you!
Seriously, take us with you! DMS will follow you across the globe to make sure your destination wedding is perfectly captured! Just make sure to give us plenty of notice so we can schedule you in.
Contact DMS today to learn more about our destination films!