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By Georgina Clatworthy

Planning a destination wedding may not seem as involved as planning one local to you, but there are many different elements which you need to consider. Consider the following destination wedding advice before you take your vows on a foreign shore.
Doing What you Want: no doubt deciding to have a destination wedding will have raised some eyebrows with your nearest and dearest but you need to remember that this is your wedding and you should be able to have what you want without being made to feel guilty about it. Many couples choose a destination wedding because there is far less stress involved in planning one.


Consider your Guest List: many couples rethink the idea of a destination wedding because they worry guests will not be able to afford to come. Actually many guests invited to destination weddings relish the invitation and often turn the wedding into part of larger holiday. My advice is to make sure you give people plenty of notice and as much information as possible with regards to accommodation, costs and the local area. Typically you will have fewer guests than you would if you were marrying at home, but this can make for a far more intimate wedding with just your closest family and friends present.


Calculate Carefully: getting married on far flung shores can often be a much cheaper option than staying at home. Destination wedding packages include just about everything you could want and many optional extras, but do make sure you calculate all the hidden extras as well in your budget and always check the small print! Things like tipping and local taxes can stretch your budget so try to include a contingency fund of around 10-15%.


Check the Legal Stuff: this is where many couples can come unstuck and finding out all the legalities of a destination wedding can be time consuming. Rules can vary from country to country so try asking your travel agent for advice or approaching the embassy of the country you wish to marry in for further destination wedding advice.


Trust the Locals: with many destination wedding packages you will have an assigned wedding coordinator at your destination. They will be responsible for organizing all the legal elements of your weddings, the venue and other details such as flowers, food and drink. You usually will meet with them prior to the wedding itself to discuss options for many of the above. You may also be able to hire in local suppliers yourself or ask the wedding coordinator to organize things for you which are not in your package. Remember not to expect things to be done as they are at home but do trust the locals to know what they are doing.