Wedding Planning Blog

Destination Weddings seems to be a topic on everyone’s minds. We at Just Marry! have seen a big increase in destination weddings here in Orlando and outbound as well.

A college student writing an article for Boston University just contacted me to ask me questions about the pros and cons of planning a destination wedding. As soon as the article comes out, I will link to it. Anyway, one of her questions was, is a destination wedding less or more expensive than a traditional wedding.

That is an interesting question!

My associate Aimee Bressler handles most of our inbound Orlando destination weddings. Her brides typically have fifty guests or fewer. Many of her clients say that they decided to do a destination wedding specifically so they don’t have to invite 250 guests to attend. Some of them do it for budgetary reasons, others do it because they don’t want to be “on stage” on their wedding day.

Aimee’s clients typically spend between $3000.00 and $12,000.00 on their entire wedding. That certainly seems like a big savings over an in-town traditional wedding.

Michele Butler and I typically handle the outbound destination weddings and the large in-bound destination weddings. Our clients for outbound weddings typically have ten to 100 guests and spend starting at $40,000.00. That’s a lot of money for ten people! The reason these couples do it, usually has something to do with sentimentality. They want to be married in a place that is very special to them and they want to share that place with their guests.

Our inbound destination weddings spend anywhere from $40,000.00 to $150,000.00 or more. These weddings typically have 150 guests or more. These couples usually say they marry here because the guests live all over the country, or all over the world, and they wanted to have their wedding in a location that was easy to travel to and had lots of things for their guests to do.

So, can you save money planning a destination wedding? Absolutely, but you have to plan carefully!

I love my job! Each and every day I am grateful for my clients and my associates. My career has taken me around the country and around the world. I have met hundreds, maybe thousands of wedding professionals — some very famous that you would recognize and others who just humbly run their small business every day. From photographers and videographers to catering managers and other wedding planners, they are wonderful people who dedicate their careers to create a beautiful, memorable day for couples and their families.

I remember one incident very fondly that happened several years ago. I was at an Association of Bridal Consultants convention in San Diego. Colin Cowie was our keynote speaker. He was open and warm and shared many of his tips and secrets to his success. Some of those tips I put into my day to day business routine, others were so meaningful to me that they wove themselves into my business philosophy. He also spent quite a bit of time chatting with us “up and comers,” never rolling an eye or acting impatient. He mentioned again and again how important his team was. That no wedding day succeeded on the shoulders of one vendor. I was amazed that someone with such a high profile had such a team philosophy. I have never forgotten that.

I found that philosophy to be prevalent among the other famous wedding planners whom I have met; Preston Bailey, Mindy Weiss, David Tutera, Sasha Souza, Marci Bloom — none of whom acted as self-anointed Gods of the wedding industry. All gave credit to their team and their vendors.

It is that type of mentality that you should look for when seeking a wedding vendor. Those planners, photographers, videographers, etc. who are truly great, know they can’t do it alone. We can only succeed as one group working to make your wedding day amazing.

So my advice for today, if you are shopping for a vendor and you hear a great deal of “me, me, me,” run for the door. There are many brilliant, talented wedding professionals who have carved out an entire career focused on “you, you, you.” Seek them out. You will be delighted with the result.

You’ve finally decided to make your destination dream wedding a reality! He’s popped the question; now your search has begun, researching faraway tropical locations at remote distances across the globe. You can already picture the sun, the sand, and the warm ocean breeze flowing through your gown. You’re surrounded by your closest family and friends as you exchange rings and I dos. If you’re like most bride’s it won’t be long till you’re sharing the news of your destination celebration with everyone that you want to be there. Then the reality sets in: who does have passports and more importantly, who doesn’t have a passport? You want everyone to have the ability to make it to your desired destination without getting tied up with obtaining a government issued passport in time.

The first option is to take a look at what is available right here in the United States. Florida boasts some of the most beautiful tropical locations and western Florida beaches have pure white sand along the Emerald coast.

Those interested in traveling a bit further and don’t mind the larger price tag on the airfare can remove themselves from the mainland of North America and head over to Hawaii. There is no mistaking Hawaii’s natural beauty. The sites and sounds of the Hawaiian Islands create a tropical backdrop for any destination wedding.

If you’re ideal setting would be a Caribbean island there are a few things you should know. If you are traveling by cruise ship be sure to check with your cruise line because most have changed their policy in the last several years and they do require passports now. When returning by air from anywhere in the Caribbean or Mexico (even Canada), US citizens need to present a passport. Gone are the days when you could get by with an official birth certificate and government issued identification.

The exceptions to this rule are the US territories. According to USA.gov these include American Samoa, Guam, the Mariana’s Islands, Puerto Rico and the USVI (St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas). It doesn’t matter how you get to them (by air or by sea), if you are only traveling there and back, no passport is required.

For that island atmosphere a bit closer to home the best destinations would be Puerto Rico or any of the U.S. Virgin Islands. So although your choices might be limited there are options available for that dream wedding that all of your U.S. guests can attend with just an airline ticket and hotel reservation. If you are interested in making this dream a reality contact Just Marry! to get started on your full service destination wedding, where all you need is the sun, sand and your closest friends and family (tropical umbrella drink not included).

Hi All,

I am very, very excited. After working for a year, my new wedding planning DVD is finally here and available to you! Susan Southerland’s Wedding Planning Secrets has my most sought-after advice in one DVD.

I share my secrets for choosing colors, creating a reasonable budget, dealing with vendors and organizing the day. Check out the website for more information.

I will be at the Perfect Wedding Guide wedding show on Sunday at the Buena Vista Palace. If you are in Orlando, come see me. I am looking forward to discussing your wedding plans with you and on my table, is my Ten Inspirational Ideas for an Out of the Ordinary Wedding idea list, to assist you in planning a memorable wedding!

I hope to see you there!

I just attended my first wedding in one of those famous wedding chapels on the Las Vegas strip. What an experience! It was amazing. They really have weddings down to a science in Vegas.

The bride, groom and the guests arrived and gathered in the lobby of the chapel. The lobby was also the gift shop. You could buy everything there from an Elvis wig to toasting flutes. They had a huge variety of bride and groom t-shirts, shot glasses, mugs and Las Vegas memorabilia. Well, maybe that sounds a bit tacky, but the lobby was no indication of what was to come.

When it was time for the wedding, the chapel doors opened. The inside had lovely wooden pews, the ceiling was also made of wood. There were silk arrangements on the alter that looked nice. Once in the chapel, you might have thought you were sitting in your church from back home.

The ceremony was short and sweet and was broadcast over the Internet for friends and family who couldn’t make it to Las Vegas. After a few quick photos, we were all escorted out to the parking lot where a sign overhead read Just Married and had my friends’ names on it. The entire process took about a half an hour and from what I understand, was very reasonably priced.

If you are looking for a budget-saving, fun way to get married, you may want to check out Las Vegas. They are well-prepared to help you with your wedding plans.

I have had the most amazing week in Colorado. What a gorgeous place to get married!

I was here to speak to the wedding professionals who advertise in The Perfect Wedding Guide in Boulder. It was the perfect place to start this speaking tour because I think Colorado, Boulder in particular, is on the leading edge in the conservation movement, not only in weddings, but with daily life and all types of commerce.

Our topic, was “Making Green from Green Weddings.” Of course the speech was geared towards making wedding businesses eco-friendly and profitable, but I learned so much about making eco-friendly weddings that I wanted to share the information with you.

Weddings have a huge impact on the environment. Guests’ traveling via plane and car sends tons of carbon into the atmosphere, transportation of goods and services to the wedding also creates pollution. Pesticides in the flowers have an environmental impact as well. I read a study that said that commercially grown flowers have 1000 times the amount of cancer-causing chemicals compared with food products. (ecobusinesslinks.com) Photo paper and chemicals have an environmental impact as do paper products and food waste.

Of course we are not going to change the traditional wedding, but their are some things we can do to help protect the environment. Consider requesting organic and locally-grown food. Organic will help reduce the chemical impact of your wedding and by purchasing locally, there will be reduced transportation costs. Also, find out if your reception site or caterer will consider donating leftover food to a food bank, this will help those in need and reduce waste.

Flowers are a bit of a controversial issue — go organic or go local? Going organic is a great way to reduce the use of pesticides, but there are very few organic sources for purchasing flowers. The transportation impact from shipping organic flowers across the country may have just as great an environmental impact as using locally-grown flowers with pesticides. Regardless of where your flowers are purchased, ask your florist whether or not she can compost the wasted and leftover flowers, or if she could donate them to a local hospital or nursing home.

When it comes to photography, for those who are technologically savvy, there are some great ways to reduce paper and chemical use. Consider having an electronic album, or rather than having all of your proofs printed, do online proofing. Digital frames are also a great alternative. Imagine having a beautiful frame on your coffee table that cycles through all your beautiful wedding photos rather than just an album. You could also have a pod crunch done. You can share your photos with your family and friends right on your I-Pod!

The most interesting method of off-setting a weddings environmental impact I found was purchasing carbon credits. There are websites that can calculate the amount of carbon your wedding sends into the atmosphere based on the number of guests you have, the number of nights they are staying in the hotel, and the number of miles they travel by plane and car. Once this amount is calculated, you can purchase carbon credits. The money is donated to organizations that do things to improve the environment, whether it be an organization that plants trees or builds windmills. It is one way to give back to the earth in honor of your special day. If you want to learn more about carbon credits go to www.terrapass.com

Please note that these organizations are not yet regulated. Make sure to do some research prior to making your donations.

Incidentally, my plane trip to Colorado created 2407 pounds of Carbon Dioxide emissions. To offset that, my company will be purchasing a Terrapass for $9.95 counterbalance the impact of my trip. The donation will be put towards a wind farm which helps generate clean energy.

I just returned from my annual family vacation. Every year my entire family, mom, brothers, sisters-in-law, my kids and I take a cruise. This has been going on for more than twelve years. During that time, I have noticed more and more brides and grooms aboard the cruise ships. It is really fascinating. I personally think it it a great way to celebrate with family and friends. All the food is included. Everyone gets to travel to interesting locations together. This certainly falls right in with the trend for group honeymoons.

Years ago, I did a wedding on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. The ceremony took place on board at the port before the cruise cast off. The ship catered the event Not all of the guests stayed for the voyage, but there was ample time for dining and dancing until those who were not staying aboard had to leave. I have also seen groups exit the cruise ship at some of the exotic destinations and travel together to the wedding location.

The cruise lines have really risen to meet the trend of cruise weddings and group honeymoons. Throughout the week I saw various private events taking place on the ship. If you are considering a destination wedding, cruise wedding, or group honeymoon, check with the cruise lines. Its a great option.