As I originally started planning my wedding I was firmly in the getting married abroad camp, we had a specific location in mind and even the church we wanted to marry in decided long before we ever got engaged, so it seemed the decision was already made. And yet somehow here I am planning a wedding in Ireland.
For us, when we got down to planning, the various pros and cons of getting married abroad began to make themselves felt and we had to rethink our original plans.
Here’s the list of pros and cons that eventually made our decision for us, to help you decide if you’re in a similar boat.
Pros
The Weather
Chances are you’re considering your wedding in a location with a much warmer climate than ours, which means idyllic ceremonies and drinks receptions and the ability to dance the night away under the stars.
It will be unique
This for us was the main reason we originally wanted a wedding abroad. If you opt to marry abroad, the chances of your wedding being in any way similar to anyone else you know is slim to none. Irish weddings have a tendency to go with a particular order
each time. With a destination wedding, from your venue, transport and entertainment your big day will be completely unique and likely to be a talking point and a fond holiday memory for friends and family for years to come. There is so much opportunity to put on an altogether different occasion in an unforgettable setting.
It will be intimate
If you secretly yearn for a small intimate wedding but feel under pressure to invite huge numbers, jetting aboard could be the solution. If you’re holding your wedding abroad, it’s completely acceptable to just invite small handful of family and friends to the wedding, so you’re only with people that you really want to celebrate with.
A Wedding Planner
When getting married abroad most popular wedding locations will offer complete packages that include a wedding planner, so depending how much or little you want to be involved you can significantly limit your work load and leave the finer details like flowers, décor and liaising with suppliers to your wedding planner.
via Shutterstock
Cons
Cost
You might not expect cost to have been a con, when cost is usually one of the reasons people consider a wedding abroad in the first place. I know for us nearly every article I referenced when I started planning assured me a wedding abroad would be significantly cheaper. And while we didn’t envision spending less than what we would at home, we foresaw having a dream day, with some amazing extras, albeit with a few less guests for at least the cost of the average wedding at home. This turned out to be far from the truth. In our case just the wedding ceremony, meal and dancing for 70 people was costing well over 23k, and that was before we’d added any of the extras. Once everything was factored in, the wedding was going to be vastly more expensive than the average Irish wedding, with none of the extras and less than half the guests.
It’s important to note that the number and value of wedding packages and suppliers depends on your chosen location. We had wanted to marry in Montenegro and while the neighbouring Croatia, has plenty of wedding planners and packages on offer for amazing prices, this just wasn’t the case in our location. If anything they heard foreign wedding and shot the price sky high. In addition to this you’ll need to factor in travel costs, the costs of your accommodation over there and many couples feel the need to provide extras for their guests given the distance being travelled so that’s something you’ll need to account for too.
Not everyone will be able to go
If you choose a wedding abroad you have to become comfortable with the very real possibility that not all your loved ones will be able to attend. We had planned to make up for those who couldn’t go by having a big party at home afterwards, but again this is another element and cost you’ll need to factor into the budget.
Trust
If you’re getting married abroad you are investing some serous trust in your wedding planner. Unlike Ireland you won’t be able to pay visits to your venue or have the same level of control over the organising as you would at home. So you need to choose very carefully and ensure factors like the language barrier aren’t going to be an issue.
Legalities
Having a legally binding marriage ceremony abroad isn’t necessarily an option, so do your research. For example, if you are Catholic – you can be legally married in a Catholic Church in Rome without having to have a civil ceremony first, but you can’t in France, nor could we in Montenegro which meant we would have to either legally marry in Ireland or have two separate ceremonies over there. And to be honest neither were ideal for us. The rules are different in every country. So you need to consider if you are happy to have to have a legal ceremony at home first and then have your big day abroad if necessary. These are the big questions.
Read More: Blathin’s Bridal Diaries: Where to start after you get engaged
The post Blathin’s Bridal – Pros and Cons of a wedding at home or abroad appeared first on RSVP Magazine.