How to be 100% certain getting married abroad is right for you…
Having got married in the South of France, I can whole heartedly recommend having your wedding abroad.
For me, getting married abroad added an extra touch of magic to an already special occasion. For our guests our wedding was unique and very different from other weddings they had been to. Particularly for our guests who travelled from Australia, going to a wedding at a Chateau in the French countryside held just as much excitement and anticipation for them as it did for us.
However I know from experience the decision to get married abroad is not one you make lightly.
There definitely are both advantages and disadvantages in having your wedding abroad.
So how do you know if getting married abroad is right for you?
In order to help you answer this question I could provide you with the standard list of the pros and cons, however I believe what would be more beneficial is for you to create this list yourself.
After all only you can decide if getting married abroad is the right for you.
By creating your own list you should feel a lot more confident and certain about whether you should get married abroad. Creating the list will be simple and very beneficial. Honestly it won’t be hard and shouldn’t take you long.
My advice, start your list now!
- Grab a piece of paper and pen
- Divide your piece of paper into two columns
- On the LHS of the page write ‘reasons I would love to get married abroad’
- On the RHS of the page write ‘what would stop me getting married abroad’
Start brainstorming, don’t think about it too much just write in the appropriate column whatever comes to mind.
If you need a hand to get started here is an example.
Once you have finished your list, what does it tell you?
Does it confirm having your wedding abroad is what you would love to do?
Are you able to overcome any issues that would stop you from getting married abroad, do the positives outweigh the negatives? If yes, I am sure you now have a lot more questions and will be keen to start planning your wedding abroad.
Weddings Abroad Guide aims to help you do this.
Does your list confirm getting married abroad is not for you? Great, now you can confidently start planning your wedding at home without having the little thought in the back of your mind saying maybe we should get married abroad.
Are you still not sure? Is your heart saying “I want to get married abroad” and your head saying “there will be too many complications”?
Use Weddings Abroad Guide to help you come to a decision.
What are the major issues stopping you from having your wedding abroad?
In my example I wrote down “How would I organise a wedding from a distance?”.
Explore the website; find the sections that most closely address your concern.
I would firstly go to the page on organising a wedding abroad and then read the real wedding pages learning how other couples organised their wedding abroad.
Have your concerns been answered? In my example, I feel confident it is not as difficult to organise a wedding abroad as I first thought it would be. I no longer see this as an issue that would stop me from having my wedding abroad.
I am sure you get the picture. If you have addressed all the items on your list and given the question “should I get married abroad” enough thought and attention you will make the right decision.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Getting Married Abroad
If you didn’t create your own list or are still looking for some of the pros and cons of getting married abroad the following real experiences of couples featured in the real wedding section may help shed some light.
Advantages of getting married abroad
- The biggest advantage of getting married abroad was that everyone was away together and they really made an effort to socialise. Our friends and family were really relaxed and they enjoyed it so much more as it was a holiday for them. The atmosphere was amazing and the weather was perfect.
- You don’t get caught in the conveyer-belt of the traditional UK wedding, where couples often find themselves having the same format and style as every other UK wedding simply because there is no scope to do anything else. It also means that you and your families have a special week on holiday together, it makes your wedding more than just a day, and it ensures that only your nearest and dearest attend, rather than the 150 guests at the evening reception made up of the obligatory people from work and your parents’ mates.
- The wedding was different to a traditional UK wedding. Things that were better: weather, cost, venue, civil ceremony & buying our own local wine.
- The real beauty of our wedding was the fact that our friends and families had a whole week to get to know each other well – some genuine new friendships were forged and that, to us, was the highlight of our wedding.
- The entire day & location reflected our personalities. It was also more intimate and a lot more relaxed than it would have been at home.
- The setting was spectacular we never could have had that setting at home. The photos are amazing.
Disadvantages of getting married abroad
- For some people it may be difficult to attend.
- The big one is that not everyone will be able to attend. The other disadvantage is that it’s logistically quite hard. When I planned my table decorations and favours, for example, I forgot that I had to actually ship them all to the venue. Also, if you’re using foreign suppliers you may not get EXACTLY what you want. For example, my bouquet was slightly different to what I expected, but it was still beautiful.
- You have to go with the flow a bit more when you get married abroad. Bank charges for paying in a Foreign Currency are outrageous. That’s a big annoyance.
- No disadvantages, you may have to put your trust in people though as you can’t be there a lot of the time.
- Some loved-ones simply couldn’t attend, and their absence was really felt.
- The distance & cost can be a major put off for guests but if you can accept that then do it! You are also taking risks with suppliers. I booked our chapel, hair & makeup, photographer and restaurant all over the internet based on recommendations picked up in wedding forums! It was risky but it all came off perfectly. If you can handle the risk then go for it!
- Some close friends and family won’t be able to make it, no matter how much notice you’ve given them. It will be upsetting but you have to accept it and get over it
Decision Making Made Easy
Still need a helping hand to decide if getting married abroad is right for you?
I highly recommend you try out Choose It!-a nifty little piece of decision making software that can bring clarity, your own clarity, to this very important decision.
Real Experiences!
Read how one couple started planning their wedding at home but then decided a destination wedding was right for them.
Click here to read their story.
It’s definitely worth the read as I’m sure you may identify with many of their feelings and issues.