Who do we invite to a Wedding Abroad?
There are no magical rules or formulas about who you should invite to a wedding abroad.
However, my one simple piece of advice would be:
Invite those who you truly want to celebrate your wedding day with.
For us, our guest list was not determined by the fact that we were having our wedding abroad. It would have been the same even if we had chosen to have our wedding at home.
The philosophy we took was:
Our wedding day would be the one day in our lives when all the people who were important to us as a couple would be in the same place at the same time, and this might never happen again.
For us it was important to be surrounded by our family and friends.
If having a small intimate wedding is one of your priorities, you are able to achieve this nicely when having a wedding abroad without offending acquaintances you may feel obliged to invite if you were having your wedding at home.
Many couples opt for compromise and choose to have a small wedding abroad and then have a larger celebration with all their family and friends when they return home.
One thing to consider when you compile your guest list is the attendance rate for a wedding abroad is usually not as high as it is for a wedding at home.
Guest Attendance Rates
Undoubtedly you will get a very mixed reaction when you tell your friends and family you are planning to have your wedding abroad.
Be ready for both the positive and negative comments. Some people will think it is fantastic you have chosen to do something unique while others may literally think you are crazy, bringing up every reason why getting married abroad won’t work.
My advice here would be to stick to your guns and use these comments to motivate you by treating them as a challenge. I experienced the same comments prior to my wedding and I can honestly say that there wasn’t a single negative comment regarding the fact that the wedding had taken place abroad only glowing tributes!
Will having your wedding abroad mean less people will be able to attend your Wedding?
The attendance rates for weddings abroad tend to be slightly lower than for weddings at home.
The average rate of attendance for weddings abroad is between 50 – 65%.
As an example the attendance rate for our wedding in France was 56%.
Although this may seem quite low it can be explained by the fact that I am Australian and my husband is English. For many of our Australian guests France was simply too far and costly to travel to. On the other hand the attendance rate for guests invited from the United Kingdom was 80% which is high for a wedding abroad.
Avoiding disappointment when guests can’t attend your wedding
For various reasons you will have guests who cannot attend your wedding abroad and it is disappointing when someone close to you can’t be there to join in the celebrations.
This is undoubtedly one of the few disadvantages of having your wedding abroad.
I am sure most people would genuinely love to celebrate with you; who wouldn’t want to be at your wedding sipping Italian Chianti under the Tuscan Sun? But it is worth remembering that you are asking more of your guests than you would be if you were having your wedding at home, therefore it is important to be understanding of others’ decisions and priorities. I am certain your guests will love every minute of your wedding abroad but remember you are asking them to make both a time and financial commitment to come to your wedding abroad.
There are numerous reasons why invitees may be hesitant to attend so effective communication is vital at this stage. Some may only need the slightest nudge in the right direction to make the decision to attend whilst others may need reassuring as to costs, travel arrangements, accommodation or even the host country itself.
As part of the budgeting process for your wedding you may want to set aside a small amount to supplement the travel or accommodation costs of any family or close friends who you really want at your wedding but who may be not be able to afford it without financial assistance.
Hot Tips!
If you’re looking to keep the theme or design of your wedding stationery consistent, it is worthwhile ordering all of your key items from a single supplier. In most cases, it will also save you money.
