At Breezy Brides we want to make sure we’re sharing not only quality destination wedding advice, but advice that comes from real life weddings and experience. What better way to do that then to hear from fellow destination wedding brides after they’ve had the wedding of their dreams? In this post we’re excited to share a bride’s personal experience with her destination wedding along with 10 great tips that can help you in your planning process.
Hallie provided such great destination wedding advice and tips in her YouTube video, “destination wedding 101” that we couldn’t help but contact her to ask if we could share her video with our readers. We’ll break down the video based on segments in case you want to listen to a specific part. And then we’ll talk a little bit about our insight and advice on each tip as well.
(1:20) Why Hallie Chose a Destination Wedding
Hallie first explains the following four reasons why they chose to have a destination wedding:
- It was a vacation for them
- It was more than one day
- Less maintenance
- Cost
Hallie mentions that she had a lot of loved ones telling her how fast and stressful a typical wedding day is and then it’s just over. She wanted to be able to spend more time with family and friends, and knew with a destination wedding the trip would be more than one day.
Hallie knew she had a vision, but didn’t have to plan every little detail herself. This is a huge perk for brides who are looking for less maintenance and can hand the reigns over to someone else for the little details.
When evaluating a traditional wedding, Hallie realized just the venue cost itself was more than they were willing to spend. We all know weddings are only getting more and more expensive, so the idea of spending less money and spending more time with your guests is very appealing.
Still debating if a destination wedding is the right decision for you? Check out our post “Pros and Cons of a Destination Wedding” to help you decide.
(3:35) How They Decided on Dreams Playa Mujeres
Hallie described that she looked at a lot of different locations when planning her destination wedding. She had originally booked through a different resort that was not all-inclusive. Looking at the costs for their guests a little more, they determined that it would be more cost effective to make the switch to Dreams Playa Mujeres instead.
Not only was Dreams Playa Mujeres an all-inclusive resort, they were impressed with all of the really good reviews they read about it as well. Which leads us into Hallie’s first two destination wedding tips.
(8:40) Tip #1 – Use a Travel Agent
Hallie goes into detail about how convenient and stress free working with a travel coordinator is. There was no cost to Hallie for using her, which is what you should see with a destination wedding.
We couldn’t agree more with using a travel agent. Not only do they take away a lot of stress from the bride, they are also experts in knowing the best destination wedding resorts for you.
If you’re interested in booking me for your destination wedding as your travel agent just head to my Let’s Start Planning page!
(9:54) Tip #2 – Use TripAdvisor
She explains that TripAdvisor is a more accurate depiction of the resort. Guest’s post their own photos instead of just looking at the professional photos on the resort’s direct website.
We also think this is a great tip. It’s included as a tip in our post “Should You Visit the Resort Before Your Destination Wedding?” Not only are you getting reviews from hundreds of people who have been there before, they’ve also uploaded photos and videos of every aspect of the resort to give you a much more realistic idea of what it looks like day to day.
(10:40) Tip #3 – Choose an All-Inclusive Resort
Hallie goes into further detail about the first resort they had picked and that, in the end, they thought it would have been more stressful to her and her guests because it wasn’t all-inclusive. Switching to Dreams Playa Mujeres, an all-inclusive resort, was not only going to be less stressful to Hallie, but more affordable to her guests.
If you haven’t checked out our Destination Wedding Reviews page yet, it includes review from all-inclusive and non all-inclusive resorts. This comes down to personal preference and what exactly you’re looking for, but there are definitely advantages to both.
(12:52) Tip #4 – Send Your Invitations a Year in Advance
Hallie recommends sending the invitations a year in advance. She ended up sending hers 9 months before the wedding, which she said worked out for them.
If you haven’t read our post, “The Ultimate Save the Date and Invite Guide for Your Destination Wedding” already, we recommend sending your save-the-dates at 6-9 months and invitations at 3 months. This is a big topic in the destination wedding world and it really comes down to personal preference. If you forgo save-the-dates altogether, sending invitations 6-12 months in advance would be advised.
(13:39) Tip #5 – Make a Pinterest Board
In order to create a vision for your dream destination wedding, Hallie thinks you should make a Pinterest board to start. It’s also a great visual to give your wedding coordinator. When you’re trying to budget which decor items are worth spending your money on they can help based on your vision.
It can be hard to explain what you’re envisioning through email, so being able to send a link to your Pinterest board with multiple pictures can be really beneficial. It’s also a great way to get excited about the wedding itself!
Follow Breezy Brides on Pinterest here for more inspiration and destination wedding tips.
(15:03) Tip #6 – Research Your Resort Wedding ‘Comps’
Comps (short for complimentary) are things like free nights, a free reception or rehearsal dinner, etc. If Hallie and her husband would have stayed with the original resort they booked through they would have received more comps, but Hallie didn’t think it was worth it for the trade off of it being cheaper for her guests.
Comps can make or break your decision between two resorts. If they’re both equal in quality and price, the free perks that are offered may sway you enough to choose one over the other.
(15:41) Tip #7 – Be Aware of How Many People You’re Inviting
Hallie explains that they were told only 5-10% of the people they invited would actually end up booking a trip to their destination wedding. They originally budgeted for 60 people thinking that was already above what they’d have, and were very surprised that they ended up with 84 guests.
This is not to say that Hallie (and other destination wedding brides) are upset if they have more guests show up than anticipated, but this can affect your wedding budget in a tremendous way. Most resort wedding packages include pricing for up to a certain amount of guests, and anything above that amount is extra.
Side note: This happened to me as well! Our wedding package included the price for up to 25 guests and we ended up with 50. Which meant an extra $95.00 per guests that we were not anticipating.
Hallie just wanted to reiterate that if you plan on sending an invitation to someone make sure to be conscious of the fact that they might surprise you and show up. Our advice? First, play with your budget and determine how many “extra” guests you can afford. Then take a look at your invitation list and scale it back if you can to make sure you aren’t paying thousands of dollars over your budget for guests you weren’t planning on having.
(17:08) Tip #8 – Be Prepared for People to Decline
It’s inevitable, but you’ll have guests decline as well. Hallie said they had plenty of family and friends they would have loved to join them in Mexico, but weren’t able to come. Due to costs, location, traveling concerns, or a number of other reasons, some guests will just decide it isn’t for them.
Unfortunately, that’s the risk that comes with a destination wedding. Try not to take it personal. Enjoy the time with the guests that did decide to come and hope you can celebrate with the others at a different time.
(17:45) Tip #9 – Get Legally Marriage Before the Wedding
Hallie and her husband decided to get legally married a couple months before their destination wedding. This is another topic that gets brought up very frequently when planning a destination wedding. Although Hallie recommends getting legally married beforehand, it’s not a requirement.
Some brides decide to wait until after they get back. What should you do? The most important thing to know is that your travel documents have to match your plane ticket. If you do decide to legally marry before your destination wedding, make sure to book the trip under your maiden name so it matches your passport. Or you can get legally married in plenty of time to get a new passport with your married name, but we don’t recommend putting that stress on yourself beforehand.
(21:07) Tip #10 – Have Itineraries and Small Gifts for Your Guests
Hallie emphases that your guests are not only their for your wedding, but for their vacation as well. They would like to plan the rest of their vacation, but will need a heads up on what events they need to be in attendance for, which is why an itinerary is a great option.
We couldn’t agree more with this last destination wedding tip. Check out our post “Why an Itinerary for Your Destination Wedding Guests is Important” and “5 Ideas to Make Your Destination Wedding Guests Feel Special” to read more on why a itinerary is important and what you can do for your guests during their stay.
(22:42) Q&A
Hallie then takes us into a Q&A of some great destination wedding questions. To listen to her answers you can jump to 22:42 of the video.
What did you think of Hallie’s top 10 destination wedding tips? Personally, I think the best way to learn and prepare for your destination wedding is to hear from brides who have already been through it. We hope to share more on Hallie’s wedding soon!