Wedding trends
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Modern wedding trends, including destination weddings and theme weddings, or a hybrid of the two, have freed the wedding couple to explore more dramatic planning. With the advent of inexpensive air travel, and the ease with which the internet allows contact with a multitude of more exotic venue suppliers, brides and grooms are increasingly considering variations of the traditional wedding ceremonies. In many cases arrangements may be more relaxed and less stressful for the couple, and because the weddings may of necessity be smaller, the wedding may also be less expensive. Usually the destination wedding location also becomes the honeymoon site.
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[edit] Themed weddings
Themed weddings may be held either in the traditional locations in the bride's home town, or in a unique far-away setting. Destination weddings may be purely traditional in nature or may also have a theme.
[edit] Factors to consider
- Plan the event so that the theme does not overshadow the true meaning of the wedding day.
- Relax the rules, and allow the wedding to flow naturally without traditional constraints.
- Themed Period Costumes for the wedding party may be acceptable if every participant is comfortable with the idea, and the additional cost is agreeable to those who pay it.
- Review the plan with everyone beforehand, especially the officiant.
- Consider the weather before finalizing the theme plan. The attire should match the season.
- Ask questions. Prospective vendors are a good source of information for planning the wedding.
- Evaluate the amount of work required to be performed before the wedding, and how much personal time is available, and employ a wedding coordinator as early as possible if one is needed.
[edit] Current themes being used
- 1920s Theme
- Medieval/Renaissance
- Victorian
- Autumn
- Scottish
- Western
- Disney
- Irish
- Cinderella
- Japanese
- Lumberjack
- Outdoor
- Polish
- Greek
- Beach
- Spring Blossoms
- Fairy Tale Wedding
- Under the Sea
[edit] Destination weddings
Destination Weddings can be a most rewarding experience, however, even more planning and long distance preparation is needed than for a traditional local wedding. First consideration for the couple always involves two paramount influences: budgetary constraints, and the need to maintain the goodwill of family and friends. One characteristic of the destination wedding is the financial and scheduling inability of many friends and family to attend. This situation has been resolved in some cases by holding a reception after returning from the wedding, for all those who were unable to travel to the destination wedding.
The primary question to be answered immediately is: what are the marriage law requirements? With thousands of excellent venues available, it is dangerous to consider any location where there is not a record of a substantial number of routine weddings of foreign nationals without administrative delays. Some foreign locations require a residency period, health tests, and are administratively burdensome. In many countries (eg: England) this sort of wedding is simply not permitted, since one of the parties must be either a resident or a citizen.
The entire wedding procedure can be facilitated by working with a knowledgeable representative in that area. In many cases the foreign assistor may not necessarily be a formal business person, but may be a hotel wedding coordinator. Those wedding couples who have been most successful and satisfied at destination weddings have tended to keep control of most of the detailed planning and arrangements, and have used foreign help as assistance only. Unlike honeymoons, where the wedding couple have to please only themselves, destination weddings must please the entire wedding party, and be reasonably affordable for all invited guests.
One option is to hire a wedding consultant who is familiar with the location where the wedding couple wants to get married. The consultant may be located in the place where the wedding will occur, or a travel agent who has experience in planning remote destination weddings. In some locales there are wedding consultants whose primary business is working with foreign couples.
All told, this may be the safest way to plan a wedding, but it will add to the cost. A flat fee may be charged, or a surcharge applied to the cost of all services are contracted on the wedding couples behalf. When hiring a wedding coordinator from afar, as with any new business relationship, references are a must. Couples should talk to several former clients and current vendors of the prospective coordinator, as well as verify their good business practices through a local organization such as (in the US) a local Better Business Bureau office.
A second option is to find a hotel or inn, or bed & breakfast that offers wedding planning services for guests who stay there. Many of these have hosted weddings in the past, and some have a salesperson who helps with the wedding planning, often for a ceremony and reception right on site.
Another option is to find a wedding chapel at the location the wedding couple has chosen. These tend to have complete packages with photographs, flowers, music, officiant, even license built right in. The wedding couple’s work is usually limited to showing up. This is easiest, and may be least expensive. However, the wedding couple doesn’t have control over some of the details, and might be put off by the relatively impersonal nature of the ceremony.
A destination wedding opens up possibilities to be creative. Simply by having a destination wedding, the wedding couple has, to the degree they choose, abandoned the conventional. People's expectations have been altered, so the wedding couple might be less likely to feel bound to a traditional wedding template. If the setting is particularly nice, the wedding couple may be able to simplify other aspects of the wedding.
For example, a wedding in a beautiful historic inn may need no additional decoration or flowers. For weddings in Hawaii, Jamaica, or other tropical location, where the natural flowers and outdoor setting are naturally beautiful, just having the bride and groom, officiant, and wedding party looks perfectly natural. And may completely avoid the cost of flowers and rental of a venue for the wedding.
One successful strategy for destination weddings is to complete as many tasks as possible before leaving home. Packing of clothing should be carefully planned well in advance. Make certain the right-sized suitcase or box is on hand. Much luggage can be generated when traveling to a destination wedding. When traveling by air plan to carry on as much as possible, and farm out to the excess to family and friends who are also traveling to the same location.
Wedding parties having successful destination weddings have discovered that “less is more” when planning extra curricular activities at the wedding site. Because it is presumably an intriguing, exotic place, and guests will take great pleasure in exploring new and unfamiliar terrain, many of the normally requisite get-togethers may not be scheduled. For example, the rehearsal dinner may be unnecessary. If “the medium was the message”, then the location is the entertainment.
[edit] Examples of destination wedding sites
- Eastnor Castle, mock castle in herefordshire.
- Slideshow from a destination wedding in Hawaii
