Be it sandy shores beckoning you away or a return home, planning a wedding from another country can seem intimidating. So I spoke with four couples who have already done it, to get their tips for stress-free international wedding planning.
Lara and Clinton planned their South African wedding from London.
There are endless benefits to having your wedding abroad - from your pick of stunning locations, to having the perfect excuse to invite only the most special of guests. But while the end results will be well worth it, the act of planning your Big Day from miles away can be testing.
Fortunately, you’re not the first to embark on this adventure and I found four couples willing to share their experiences of long-distance wedding planning to help make yours as smooth as possible. Here’s some of their top advice:
Broaden your search horizons
“Most countries don't have as sophisticated an online presence as the UK,” say Lara and Clinton, who organised their wedding in South Africa from London, “so we didn't search just Google but Facebook and Pinterest too.” This allowed them to find the stunning Bayete Zulu Game Reserve in Northern KwaZulu-Natal where they held their ceremony and reception.
Suki and Travis broadened their search for a photographer
Suki and Travis, who planned their wedding in their homeland of Australia while travelling the world for a year, added not to rely on the obvious searches. “Instead of Googling ‘wedding photographer Brisbane’ we searched for photographers who had worked at the venue and that helped us to see what the venue had to offer and potential shots we could get for ourselves. We ended up finding a guy who was on the 5th page of Google and he was amazing.” (As you can see from the gorgeous sparkling nighttime snap).
Ask for evidence
While Google can be your best friend when planning your wedding from afar, it pays to be cautious, say Suzi and James, who planned their wedding in Spain from Sydney, Australia.
“It’s difficult to select suppliers when you’re only going by online reviews, so ask them for testimonials and pictures of what they have done recently. Also ask your selected suppliers for recommendations. My hairdresser knew the photographer and also helped me find a local bagpiper,” Scotswoman Suzi advised.
Accept help from friends and family
If you can, it pays to take a trip to visit the location for yourself. But if that’s not possible, see if your friends or family can help while they’re on holiday, or if you’re planning a wedding in your home town from abroad. Raf and Jen planned their Dublin wedding from Sydney, but as Jen is from Ireland she’s was able to rely on friends, some of whom provided services on the day.
If you have talented friends and family, consider using them instead of local suppliers, adds Lara: “My bridesmaid dresses came with a designer friend from Hong Kong, my makeup was done by a very skilled bridesmaid, the photographer was a guest from Australia and my hairdresser here in London taught me how to do my hair.”
Use a local coordinator
If it’s not possible to get local support from those you know, Raf says that the most useful thing for them has been finding a venue with a good wedding coordinator: “It's made it all pretty easy for us so far, and they’ve been great at recommending suppliers.”
A local coordinator can also help to break down language barriers, adds Suzi: “We were having difficulty with Google translating Spanish so we found a local coordinator. That was a massive help especially with organising the church. We found her by looking at recommendations and reviews online.”
Do everything in one place
Distance can make planning difficult enough without creating additional complications on the day with multiple venues. “We did the ceremony, drinks and reception format all in the one place, which I always think makes for the best weddings!" says Suki. "There was no need to travel between venues or have a big gap, so there’s plenty of time for guests to mingle." It also has the added benefit of helping guests who may have already traveled from afar to relax.
Have a wedding app or website for your guests
Having a wedding abroad can be as much a challenge for the guests as for the couple. From finding the venue to understanding the local customs, an app can help them find their feet, agree Lara and Suzi. Relevant information might include details about:
The venue location
Local transportation
Key phrases in the local language
Accommodation
Order of the day
And what to wear
Plan something nice for your guests
And because guests may have traveled a long way to celebrate your marriage, it is a nice idea to plan something particularly memorable for them, says Lara:
“Our venue was on a game reserve which has an elephant education programme. The elephants arrived at our ceremony and our guests were allowed to feed them. It was also an amazing way to break the ice for our guests, many of who were in a strange place with people they didn’t know.”
Make it last
It's worth remembering that weddings abroad can be pricey for the guests, who you will usually have hand picked as your closest of your friends and family. So both Lara and Clinton and Suki and Travis decided to make the cost and travel worth it for their guests by extending the occasion.
“The Big Day was so hectic and there was so little time to give all your guests the attention they deserve for having made such a wonderful journey to join us so having our guests stay with us at the venue before and after the wedding day was the best way to spend time with all of them,” says Lara.
“We had an absolute blast having a group honeymoon with 12 of our friends who had traveled in for the wedding and it was great spending extra time with everyone,” added Suki.