Choosing that wonderful (sunny!) romantic venue can present some tricky questions. When planning your wedding abroad, a bride’s top tips in this blog will help you solve some of them.
- Can you do an exploratory visit so you can be sure that the beautiful photos and promotional material live up to the reality? Do you know anyone who has used this venue and can recommend it?
- Where will the ceremony be? At the venue or the local church? Who will officiate – civil or religious? Each country has specific legal documentary requirements that you will need to provide in advance of your wedding; perfectweddingsabroad.co.uk have handy lists of legal requirements for each wedding venue they offer – although any actual forms are not available as they are part and parcel of the services that you buy into.
What about your guests?
- Weddings abroad can be costly for guests. Can you help them justify it by making it part of their annual holiday? Will you be welcoming, and providing for, children?
- Could their gift to you be attending your wedding?
- Could your guests hire a villa? Sharing accommodation can be cost effective, as long as you get on with your house mates! This might be a good option for mutual friends, or groups of relatives. There are a number of companies that offer villas in Europe, and AirBnB may be another option.
How do I find the right package?
Travel companies that specialise in weddings abroad will often be experts in one particular destination. Once you have decided where your dream wedding should be, do some research into companies that operate in that area. Check their websites, references and independent ratings such as TrustPilot and Feefo.
You might like to consider employing a destination wedding planner to sort it all out for you. Confetti.co.uk have this to say: Destination wedding planners and destination event planners are experts in their field, being in the perfect position of having intimate knowledge of their area or indeed their country. They will know how to find the best local suppliers such as florists, caterers and so on, and can negotiate prices on your behalf for bookings and deposits. They will also be able to advise you on legal issues.
TOP TIP: Make sure you check the exchange rate, if payment is required in a currency other than sterling. If the value of sterling is low, buying goods and services from overseas, including flights etc, may prove to be unexpectedly costly.
A bride’s top tips for a wedding abroad
The lovely Claire has kindly shared her memories of a wonderful day in Boavista, Algarve, Portugal:
We were lucky in that the venue we chose in Portugal took care of most of the co-ordination. We just needed to make decisions on what we wanted and they took care of pulling it all together. My plan from the very beginning had been to focus on our guests’ experience. We tried to plan the day around what they would be doing. We organised a wedding weekend so we had a cocktail party on the Friday evening, the big day on the Saturday, and then a brunch on the Sunday morning. It was nice to spread it over the three days and really made it feel special.
I would recommend trying to find a venue where everyone can stay on site as that helps the guests that don’t know each other mingle. It also means people can pop back to their accommodation to change into more comfortable shoes, grab a cardie etc.
As a gift for our guests, we bought small paintings of various scenes of the Church where we got married, one for each of the couples attending the wedding, and I think that was very much appreciated. It’s lovely to go round to our friends’ houses and see that they have all put the painting up so have a piece of our special day in their homes.
I’m worried that the local flowers will not be what I want
I did a little survey on Facebook before writing this blog. Brides who preferred fresh flowers went with local suppliers recommended by their agents and their venues. As with UK suppliers, you have to trust that the local florist will do you proud. Other brides decided that silk flowers were the way to go. Some had them shipped to their destination venue. Others packed their bouquets carefully into a large suitcase knowing that they could bring them home again to treasure. If you like the idea of artificial flowers, check with florists that use silk flowers to see if they can help you with your wedding abroad. You may find some that specialise in destination weddings. Others will be prepared to work with you on a bespoke basis.
At Malden and Wilde, I specialise in silk flowers and have shipped to the States and Australia. I offer a quality personal bespoke service and would love to work with you on your flowers for your wedding abroad. Here’s how to get in touch:
- Email me at sue@maldenandwilde.com
- Message me: Instagram or Facebook
- Phone or text: 07800 757975
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