Appropriate Cost for Guests

[Samantha]

We're going to talk to a travel agent this weekend! (So excited!) but I'm still getting the whole "Whatever makes you happy speech" but not exactly the warm and fuzzies to go along with it! Now the only time that all our siblings (one on my side and three on FI's) can make it is July. I'm getting concerned that they'll bail out at the last minute and we're going to plan the whole thing around them!

 

We're really trying to find something reasonable... but at the same time it's a wedding and we would like the experience to be beautiful. I guess there must be a compromise somewhere!!!

[Pandabride6]

I know where you're coming from. You would think ppl would be happy for your decision to have a DW but then you hear how ppl REALLY feel after you make the choice. I tried to pick a date to accomodate others but it seemed like every month I chose there was someone who had a problem. After a while, I just made the final decision and stuck to it. Just make sure you plan the wedding for you and FI. Everything else will fall into place, including family members who say they can't make it at first.

[Samantha]

That's very sound advise! Thank you for the thoughts.... I feel better knowing that others have experienced the same thing!

[CowtownBride2B]

We asked friends and family and the common answer was under $1500 tax in for a week(we're going from alberta/bc). Any higher than that and most said it would be a deal breaker for them. Most of the group is in mid 20s-40s and middle class. It`s just a balancing act between finding a resort that`s nice enough that you WANT to get married there, but one that your less well-off guests could possibly afford to save for. Lots of people also suggested hint hint that it would be lovely to find a hotel with kids stay free deals, which we happily did because we have our own kid we`re bringing :-)

[kerrij]

we didn't want to go over 2000. my bro's wedding was 1800 in dominican so i thought 2000 for jamaica was ok. and then we got it for 1700 in the end happy day!

[lp579]

We also asked our friends what their maximum was (the deal breaker) and they too said $1500 which we got by going to the Dominican Republic (Punta Cana) last July. There are good deals to be found so shopping around (a little) is worth it! It's the hardest part of destination wedding planning (IMP), the rest is so much easier! Good luck with the decision!!

[Melidell]

We each spoke to our parents and got their opinion on what a fair price would be for everyone. We knew they'd be going for sure so we didn't mind working around them, plus I figured they'd have a good idea about what the family would think. I guess my advice would be pick one or two people you trust to be honest with you, who are also likely to attend, and run the numbers by them. I think if you try to ask everyone then you'll get too many opinions, though.

 

Honestly, we made the decision to pick something a bit cheaper than we would have for just the two of us out of courtesy to our guests. I figured not everyone would be willing to spend as much for our wedding as we would, you know? Plus this way we can easily afford to stay for an extra week after everyone else leaves!

[bikegirl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lp579 We also asked our friends what their maximum was (the deal breaker) and they too said $1500 which we got by going to the Dominican Republic (Punta Cana) last July. There are good deals to be found so shopping around (a little) is worth it! It's the hardest part of destination wedding planning (IMP), the rest is so much easier! Good luck with the decision!!

Hey lp579...I'm considering Punta Cana and $1500 is the price range I'm looking at, too for the guests. Was $1500 flight included from Vancouver? Which resort did you go with? Was it 4 nights or 7 nights? Sorry for all the questions!

[Tifuhhknee]

I have based my wedding off of previous trips. June of last year, I booked a trip and kind of left the group thing open to ANYONE who wanted to come. The grand total ended up being about $1200 pp to stay 5 days, 4 nights at an AI in Riviera Maya, Mexico... this was flying out of our small town into the closest big city (3 hr drive there), then flying to Cancun.

 

When FI and I went in 2007, it was about $900 pp flying from the bigger city. Sure, it saved money, but we had to pay gas, to leave the car parked a week, and drive 3 hours home after flying back! It was worth the couple extra hundred to fly from 5 minutes from my house.

 

ANYWAY, I'm rambling. We had 15 people sign up and come on the June trip! That was just for fun/vacation and that many people actually came along (many others were interested but things came up). I figured it if's for my wedding, even more people may find it worth their while!!! Everyone wished we had stayed longer for the last trip.

[mmshaughness]

This is a tough one! You will definitely get the "do what makes you happy" speech from most people, but when it comes down to it, it also needs to be reasonable for your guests. When FI and I were pricing out resorts and trips, we took into consideration who we would be inviting - family and friends most of whom take a vacation at least once a year so are willing to travel. We then went for a "price per day" rather than the over all price of the trip. After working with a TA who was able to secure a good rate for us (better than anything we found on the internet), we were able to keep our DW package for our guests under $200/day and this included flight, transfer from the airport to the resort and the AI hotel. Most people felt this was a good price however, there will always be someone who complains, so I would say as long as you are prepared for a few complaints, everything will work out!