Affording a destination wedding

We actually bumped our date back a month into December and are now in the low season. I say get a TA and see what they say. They might have some suggestions for somewhere in the states like North Carolina. Beautiful beaches!!

I agree with going Non-AI for your guests. That is what we chose to do, because this way we are not forcing our guests to spend X amount of dollars - they choose how much they will eat and drink and can budget accordingly. Plus, we have a ton of activities/meals planned that involve most of our guests, so a lot of their meals are already going to be paid for (by us).

 

I believe that in the end, those who truly matter will be there. Besides, its your day, and its their loss if they miss out on it. You should do what is right for you and your FI.

 

Just something to think about!

We really wanted our wedding to be affordable for our guests. We are staying at the Grand Palladium, Riviera Maya and are booking our rooms directly through the resort. Our rate is $85 pp/pn, and $49 for children between 3-12. The advertised rate for this hotel is much more, close to $150 pp/pn, but because we are booking as a group, paying in one lump sum payment to the hotel, we were able to get this lower rate. THis also means we have to deal with collecting checks for payment, but we put it together with our RSVP, so if people want to book in the block, they have to send a post dated check with the rsvp. We have an ING savings account that we are auto transfering money to each month so we can afford the wedding without going into debt.

Well I know that the costs can be scary but the other thing to think about is what type of hotel you are looking at...the big 5 star hotels that have 1000 rooms or more are going to be high priced....but if you find something smaller then the price lowers.

 

The best advice I can give (and I have seen many others say) get a travel agent! They know the business...you can tell them what you are looking for, the costs you would like to see people spend and then make recommendations.

 

The internet can miss guide you...so a TA can at least do some leg work for you and then you can choose from there...also you can look at doing a destination wedding to Canada, or other parts of the US and get a unique experience that way!

 

Good Luck!

my resort is free for kids. i think it's 1 kid per 2 adults in the room. i'm not sure though. only one kid came.

 

also, can they do 3 nights instead of 5? most of our guests only stsyed 3 nights.

Cost is a major issue for me too, so my wedding is no where near what some of the girls on here are doing. Yes, some are having extravagent but very beautiful weddings....that's just not in my budget unfortunately.

 

I may get some backlash for saying this, but I actually disagree with the advise to hire a travel agent (just my opinion). If you take the time to research and really dig using the various forums and google searches, you can find all kinds of options and determine the least expensive choice that still meets your standards.

 

For me, Playa del Carmen was still too pricey so I started looking in other areas. I found a place in Akumal that does very low-key, laid-back beach weddings (just my type) and the hotel rates were incredible. Yes the location isn't as opulant as some of these resorts.....but it's nice....

 

So I guess I'd say maybe be open to the idea of making some compromises to get what you want (beach wedding with family). feel free to PM me if you'd like info on what I'm doing, but I'll post full reviews w/ pics after my wedding....

I know our resort is $422 per night for a double (2 adults) and $50 per night for each child. So for 5 nights, it would come to $2610 (for 2 adluts and 2 kids). This is an all-inclusive resort and even includes excursions if you stay 2 or more nights.

 

These are 2009 group rates, so 2010 or non group rates might be different.

I can understand how frustrating it can be! Once we figured out a ballpark figure of what our wedding was going to cost (about $10,000), we realized that there's just no way we could save that it less than a year. So, unfortunately, we've decided to push our wedding back a year. Although that's what it feels like, it's the best decision for us so that we don't have to go into more debt. I didn't realize you had to start saving for your wedding once you reach dating age! LOL

So, you don't say when your wedding is, but maybe waiting to save a bit more so that you're in a position to help out your family might be an idea. This might work if you REALLY have your heart set on Mexico.

On the other hand, as many of the other gals have said, there are other options to explore...staying closer to home, etc. However, you would (likely) have to give up some of the "money buying power in Mexico"...what I mean is, you'll probably get less "fancy" for your money if you stay in the States. But, I could totally be wrong about that! It's just what I've figured through the research I've done.

I really do wish you the very best luck! I hope you can get all this figured out!!!

this isn't backlash at all. but, I did the digging & found a really nice hotel that was cheap. then i hired the TA just to do the bookings. she was cheaper than what I could get online. sometimes the price matched, but it was never higher.

the best part was that guests only had to put down a deposit. for me, that was the best part of having a TA.




I live in NC & we thought about having it at a beach here. but, by the time you figure in flights, rental cars, hotels, meals etc. it probably would have cost about as much per person. It definitly would have been a lot more for us.

our guests kept commenting on what a great value the trip was. it was also a great value for us. the wedding (ceremony, champagne, decor, officiant, music, mic..really everything we needed for the wedding) was only $340. Then we had dinner in a hotel restaurant together. the actually wedding day was super cheap. I would not have been able to pull off something like that in the states for that price.

I'd check with the people who you would not want to have your wedding without & see if the price works for them. we knew our parents & siblings could make it. others couldn't because they didn't have the vacation time or budget, but we were fine with that. we wanted a small group anyway.

Wow, sounds like you did great Morgan!! I'm spending $350 also and get all that you listed except champagne (but I wouldn't have wanted that anyhow so that's ok). The hotel for my guests is only $50/night, but we're not at a big resort.... of course the only people attending is our daughter and our two sets of parents. So we're having a very small, intimate, casual event. I can't wait!