I never thought I wanted a destination wedding...making guests travel, taking up precious vacation days, adding extra costs for guests. It sounded like so much extra work!
Spoiler alert: but then I had one and it was awesome! I got married in Austin, TX in December 2020...you can ready all about my wedding details.
We only had 34 guests and every bit of time we spent with our guests was so special! I think having a destination wedding made our wedding so much better, so here are my top five reasons to get married outside of your home city!
1. Destination weddings make it easier to have a "micro-wedding" aka cut the guest list!
Of course getting married in the middle of a pandemic also keeps people from getting their feelings hurt when they don't get invited to a wedding, but destination weddings send the signal that this is an event only for the closest of friends. We didn't even invite extended family to our wedding in an effort to keep things small, and an out of town wedding helped avoid hurt feelings.
2. You can have a completely different vibe than your home city!
We live in Dallas, but wanted a more intimate, "moody" wedding... Austin's boho vibes fit perfectly! Anything goes in Austin and we wanted to do a few non-traditional things, so a city with a bit of an edge was a great fit for us.
3. Destination weddings are a great way to cut costs!
If you live in an expensive city, it's definitely worth looking into a destination wedding for cost savings alone! Everything from venues to catering to transportation is more expensive in a larger city, so if you want to stretch your dollars, get ready to travel!
4. It feels like a multiple-day party!
You, your love, and your closest friends are all out of town together for a few days - what a party!! It was a blast to see friends at the hotel, ride together to events, etc. I felt like I was on a big group vacation.
5. Your destination wedding spot becomes a special place for you to revisit down the road!
Now you have a "special city" that you can visit for anniversary trips or just for fun in a few years! We are already planning a weekend trip to Austin, and are excited to revisit the city where we got married.
I am so thrilled with our decision to have a destination wedding and hope this helps you make the decision that is best for you and your wedding!