Real Destination Wedding Cost: 30 Guests in Positano, Italy

Boutique Hotel Wedding in Positano, Italy.

For Australian/British couple C & J, the location of their wedding was always going to be Positano, their favourite city in the world! As one of the pricier locations on the Amalfi Coast, they knew it could be easy to go over their wedding budget so they were willing to compromise on certain things… like no honeymoon suite, just a regular room in a nice hotel and no DJ after dinner, just a reserved area of a bar instead.

Below C & J outline the cost of their hotel wedding in Positano and where their budget was spent.

C & J- Positano, Italy

Our ceremony was at 3:00pm (our venue suggested 5:00pm as it is a sun deck but as we were so late in the season we were able to negotiate the earlier start time). After the ceremony we had canapes and champagne and group photos. J and I then walked directly down to the beach and through the town for our private photos and the guests stayed on the balcony for a bit longer until they were taken to the reception in the Terrace Restaurant at around 5:00pm. Everything kind of naturally wound down at midnight.

Pearls of Wisdom:

The first thing we did was submit a request to find a planner through Weddings Abroad Guide. We had quite a few responses and then found the perfect wedding planner, who held our hands for the next 2 years while we planned everything.

I joined a wedding group for Sorrento and Amalfi Coast weddings where I could also talk to future and past brides about their experiences with particular suppliers and compare experiences. It felt like a proper community and helped so much with planning.

The one thing I hadn’t thought of was how many people were staying the night after the wedding and the fact they all wanted to have dinner with us. Luckily we managed to find a restaurant that could seat 20 as it was end of season but definitely something to consider!

Total Cost: *€11,000 (Euro) (the cost of this wedding was heavily discounted, see average COST for 2023 wedding in Positano, below)

Details

Location: Positano, Amalfi Coast Italy

Date: 26 October 2019

Number of Guests: 30 adults

Ceremony Venue: Hotel Marincanto, Positano (Symbolic Ceremony)

Ceremony Start Time: 3:00pm

Reception Venue: Hotel Marincanto, Positano: Boutique Hotel

Reception Start Time: 5:00pm till midnight

Number of Days at Wedding Location Prior to Wedding: 3

Number of Days at Wedding Location: 6

Pre Wedding Activities: Cocktails and Canapes at La Zagara

Post Wedding Activities: Boat hire to Capri

Planning Method: Wedding Planner & DIY

Planning Time: 20 months

Budget Breakdown

Ceremony Venue: €1,000

Wedding Paperwork & Legal Fees: $250 Registry Office (Australia)

Catering: €3,300

Beverages: €600

Wedding Cake: Paid for by mother in law

Photography: €1,700

Wedding Flowers Bridal Party: €250

Wedding Flowers Ceremony & Reception Venue: €500

Ceremony Musicians: €500

Hair Stylist: €225

Make-Up Artist: €225

Wedding Stationery: €250

Pre Wedding Activity: €550

Post Wedding Activities: €250

Wedding Planning Fee: €950 (bespoke planning)

Other: €550 (presents for wedding party)

Transport & Accommodation

Flights: €600

Accommodation: €1500

Additional Information

Did you manage to stick to your budget? Yes

Did you spend more or less than you thought? More

Would you recommend your method of planning? Yes

What were you not willing to compromise on? Location – even though Positano was more expensive we managed to keep in budget by compromising on other things.

Honeymoon & Home Party

Honeymoon Location: 2 month Europe travel (Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Germany & Austria)

Did you have a Home Party: Yes

Cost Tips – From the Wedding Planner

Couples need to be mindful that the costs associated with organising this wedding were heavily discounted, it is not a realistic to budget for organising a similar wedding in Positano post COVID. We were able to negotiate favourable rates for C & J’s wedding as it was held at the end of the Italian wedding season. Wedding suppliers are always subject to many factors, so it’s important that couples do their research. If you are not comparing like for like items the information can be misleading. For example, what time of year are you getting married, bespoke planning or wedding package, western wedding cake or millefoglie (traditional Italian wedding cake), 6 course dinner or buffet etc.

Below is a range of prices that you should expect for a wedding held in Positano in 2023:

Ceremony Venue: €2,000-5,000

Catering: €4,000-5,500

Beverages: €1,000

Wedding Cake: €300-400

Photography: €2,500-7,000

Wedding Flowers Bridal Party: €500

Wedding Flowers Ceremony & Reception Venue: €2,500-5,000

Ceremony Musicians: €800-1500

Hair Stylist: €350-600

Make-Up Artist: €350-600

Wedding Stationery: €500-800

Pre Wedding Activity: €1000-3000

Post Wedding Activities: €1,000-5,000

Wedding Planning Fee: €2,500-6,000 (bespoke planning)

Other: €550 (presents for wedding party)

Wedding Photography: The Bros

The cost of getting married in Italy is always a hotly debated topic in our Closed Facebook Group, so we hope you found the breakdown of the cost of C & J’s wedding in Positano helpful. For further examples or what other couples spent on their wedding abroad see our real destination wedding cost breakdowns section.

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