Your Destination Wedding - Etiquette

You’ve decided on a great destination for your wedding. Or maybe you are just in the thinking stages. You’ve always wanted to get married on the beach at Maui, or maybe in a cathedral in France.

One of the most burning of issues when planning a destination wedding is: What part do I need to pay for? Well, there are different ways of approaching this issue. If you are one of those very lucky people that can pay for everything, then by all means do so. Book the airplane reservations, and reserve the rooms and have them billed all to you.

Unfortunately, that is not within the budget of many of us. So what is the answer? Current etiquette says that it is perfectly acceptable to expect that those able to attend your destination wedding pay for their travel and accommodations. You can help by engaging a travel professional who will help everyone attending the wedding book travel. You can have a block of rooms held up to a date certain at the hotel where everyone will be staying. Then it is important that you provide as much in the way of entertainment and food that you possibly can.

One way to help out would be to ask people that have asked to give you a shower or party to go together and hold their event at the destination. Plan a picnic on the beach. Have everyone go to the club at the hotel after dinner. You can pay admission (if there is one) and buy the first drink for everyone. You don’t really need to buy drinks all night long. Have your travel agent scout out a local restaurant. This is often less expensive than dinner at the hotel and everyone really wants to see more of the locale and eat the local dishes. (Don’t forget to ask the hotel if they will provide the transportation – at no charge. They just might.)

One of the things to think about for your destination wedding is if you would like to give your bridesmaids a gift that is a remembrance of your special destination. Think about a sterling silver starfish necklace or a dolphin anklet if you are going to the Bahamas or maybe a Celtic cross for your Irish destination wedding. You get the idea. Just be sure to purchase your gifts well before you leave; you just can’t put yourself in a position where you’re out rummaging around trying to find something at the last minute in unfamiliar surroundings. Pack your gifts unwrapped in your carry on luggage. Aloha!