It’s a manageable undertaking, but there’s always room for some handy hints. Have a look through these, and bear in mind… Frog Prince are on hand if you need some extra assistance!
1
PLAN AHEAD
Out of respect to your guests who may have to fork out a little more than usual to get to your big day, plan well ahead. It’ll also be a massive help to you as you plan to have an extra bit of time to get everything in order. Save the dates are essential for away weddings too, so make getting those out one of your first priorities.
2
TAKE A TRIP
While some couples book venues abroad without ever having been there, we’d always recommend doing a real life scout before making such a huge decision. Or at the very least, have detailed FaceTime chats with someone on site beforehand. You’ll not only be able to get a feel for the area and sort out guest accommodation, but you’ll get to see and hear things not immediately obvious in pictures (which can be deceiving!)
3
RESEARCH THE LEGAL BITS
Getting married abroad can be a bit legally messy. You might have to meet with the church there, or register a civil marriage, and then there’s our own Irish system (complicated as it is!) to contend with. Make sure before you set anything in stone that you will legally be able to marry in your choice of location.
4
ASK FOR HELP
This is where we swoop in! If you’re a bit of a control maniac (we’d never say Bridezilla!) planning a wedding abroad can be stressful–not being physically there will mean handing over some of the control to a planner abroad. At Frog Prince, we’re more than familiar with time differences, language barriers and the various other destination wedding challenges and can handle it all with ease on your behalf.
5
BE UNDERSTANDING
If you invite 150 people to travel with you to Italy for a three-day celebration, be aware that for whatever reason, be they work commitments, financial issues or childcare difficulties, not every guest will be able to attend. It’s important to be aware of other people’s situations and know that, while they’d love to be there, it just might not be that easy.
6
GIVE INFORMATION
Provide your guests with as much information as possible in the lead up to the big day. Currency details, weather reports, transport information, even handy phrases in whatever the local language is will all be handy for those travelling for your big day. Give yourself plenty of info too–on each visit to your destination, get as much ticked off your ‘questions’ list as possible.
7
MAKE THE CALL
You’ll soon find out that planning a wedding abroad can be tricky. There’ll be many balls to juggle, and one of the best ways to get through the challenge of it? Being decisive and strict with your organisation. We mean spreadsheets, we mean budget calculators, we mean business! Making quick decisions will make everything run so much smoother, and adding even the tiniest of expenses to your spreadsheet will make you a lot calmer.
As we said, if it all gets too much? Call us. We’ve done it all before and we will do it all again for you, with as much TLC as you would.
