Are Destination Weddings Really CHEAPER Than US Weddings?

Oct 22

There's a lot of talk about destination weddings and whether or not they are cheaper than having a wedding in the United States. On one side you hear cautionary tales of couples who started planning a wedding abroad, maybe in Europe or Mexico, only to find out the cost got away from them. Yet other couples claim they did it for thousands cheaper than if they would've done it back home.

So let's just air this out right here and now – are destination weddings actually cheaper than weddings in the United States?

Over my decade plus long career as destination wedding planner, I have planned weddings in four continents, 12 countries and 11 US states. So I've got opinions, but I've also got a lot of data.

Before we dive in, I want to be clear what we're talking about today are true destination weddings that you are planning at a wedding venue from scratch in Europe, maybe even Mexico, but not at an all-inclusive resort with an existing wedding package. I think it's important to differentiate between those types of weddings and destination weddings you're planning from scratch. Those all-inclusive resort packages are probably the ones that you hear about in the mainstream media where couples are like, “I spend $5,000 on my wedding.” It is cheaper because they are relying on the revenue that you bring in from your guest paying for those rooms and the all-inclusive package. So it actually subsidizes your other wedding costs like the venue rental and maybe some of your other vendors (because they put it all together in a package.)

The reason why I'm not talking about these types of weddings? There are a lot of caveats with them! First, being a lack of privacy– you're not exclusively renting out this venue. You probably have a sectioned off area of the beach and 30 feet away someone is suntanning that you don't even know. You also don't really get to choose your vendors in those packages because the resort has already negotiated certain relationships with vendors, typically with the arrangement that they get a kickback for recommending them. Vendors like DJs, florists, photo/video teams and sometimes the hair and makeup artist are actually chosen for you by the resort, and if you want to sub them out to have your own vendors, you usually have to pay a fee of between $500 and $1,500 per vendor, depending on the resort. Also, those packages can seem deceivingly low in price–for example, it's $5,000, but you only get two hours of photography (depending on the resort), and I recommend at least six hours, ideally eight if it's in your budget. That’s a good example of how they boil it down to make a really affordable package, which is awesome if that is your vision.

But most of the couples I help don't want that. You guys want to know how to plan a destination wedding that is unique and totally you, usually in Europe where those types of all-inclusive packages aren't even really over there like they would be in resort areas of Mexico and the Caribbean.

That's why today I want to talk about the true destination wedding from scratch at a wedding venue that is not an all-inclusive resort. That way we can have an apples to apples true comparison of weddings like that abroad versus weddings like that in the United States.

General Price Differences

Let's talk about general price differences in the wedding market between the United States and abroad. It's not a secret, people talk about this all the time, that the US wedding market is very inflated. If you go to metropolitan areas, it is even worse. If you are in a very popular wedding destination or just a big city, take New York for example, it is really hard to not spend six figures just because of how expensive everything in that area is. One of the biggest observations I've noticed when comparing these types of prices that we see in the states and abroad– you will see these same types of prices, but in many cases for better quality abroad.

For example, take an experienced fine art wedding photographer in the United States. It is super common for them to charge over $10,000. But in Europe, we've worked with an abundance of talented, published fine art wedding photographers, more on average in the $7,000 range (some way less than that).

The same goes for makeup artists. What we've found is that in the most popular destinations in the US, really experienced makeup artists are starting to charge around $1,000 just for you. Granted, that includes your hair, your makeup, your trial, and touch ups throughout your wedding day. But we see this price typically $500 in Europe for the top artists that we've worked with.

So there's a little bit of a price difference and a quality difference, but don't get me wrong– weddings in Europe are not dirt cheap by any means. However they tend to be a higher value for dollar when it comes to the vendors.

2. Venue Value

This is also true with the venue. It is super common for wedding venues that are the most beautiful options in desirable cities to get married at in the US to charge close to six-figures (just to walk in and breathe the air, and maybe some of that money goes towards the food and beverage minimum). At these venues there's absolutely no way that you're going to get away with doing the whole wedding for less than six figures when that venue and food and beverage minimum is already set at $90,000 (a really common price that we see).

Now, if we go outside of those metropolitan areas into lesser known wedding markets, we still see the most Pinterest worthy venues tend to start at around $15,000 for a one day venue rental fee. Don't get me wrong, they have these abroad too, *ahem* Lake Como…sometimes three times that cost just to rent the venue for one day! *Ahem* Villa Balbiano... But there are so many venues for that same $15,000 in Europe where you're getting the venue for three days, includings accommodations for 30 or so guests!

So off the bat, it's a better value for dollar. Additionally, you could take it a step further when there are accommodations attached to your venue. There are guests that are going to stay in those rooms and you can have them pay for those rooms just like they would have to pay for their room if it was at a random hotel.

So because you're collecting back those guest payments, instead of spending $15,000 on a venue rental fee, you could be spending $0 on your venue.

3. Guest Count

Now, another reason that destination weddings can be less expensive, this is probably the most obvious one: guest count is usually lower than if you're having a wedding back home in the States. When you pick it up and you put it on a different continent, less guests come. That's just the truth. And since wining and dining your guests is your biggest ticket wedding budget item (sometimes up to $300 per person), the less guests that come, the less money you spend. So even if the food costs the same at your caterer in the United States versus a caterer in Italy, for example, you might be multiplying that per person cost times half of the people. It saves thousands.

It goes beyond the food and beverage too. There are other things that are affected by your guest count, like paying for rentals and favors– all of that's going to be lower too. I also just recommend inviting less guests in general.

It’s a common misconception right now that a 100% of people are coming to your destination wedding. Sure if you have friends that are in a particular demographic, psychographic and financial situation where they all love to travel, they all have time off, they all have flexible schedules, they all have financial means to go and they all like you enough to go. That's five factors that need to be in place for every single one of your guests in order for them to travel to your wedding. It is rare that everyone will come. From the number you invite to the number that actually come, you're probably looking at between a 15% and 50% drop off depending on how those five parameters affect your guests specifically.

4. Decor

There is another reason why destination weddings can be cheaper. You need less decor. This might sound like we're splitting hairs, but it's true. If you're getting married at the wedding hall in Chicago, we want to make it not look like a wedding hall in Chicago. So we're putting flowers, rentals, lighting and decor to make it look special. I call that putting lipstick on a pig (and the lipstick is very expensive!) Instead, we fly to Europe and get the venue that already looks like a swan. You lean into the beauty of the venue. We add less flowers, less lighting, less decor, less rentals, less everything. And because you had your guests pay for the venue, not only might your venue be $0, but we're not spending tens of thousands to add to it.

So in conclusion, are destination weddings cheaper? In the case of so many couples that we've worked with, in the case of my own destination wedding, the truth is: we would've spent the same amount of money if it was in the United States versus abroad. While your wedding might not be cheaper, it is the consensus of many couples that you are getting a better value for your dollar.

Six hours in the States versus three days in Europe.
200 guests with a minimal menu versus 30 guests with the most high-end food and beverage pairings.
A ballroom in Chicago versus a 500 year old Tuscan villa tucked between vineyard.
Higher cost vendors because the market is inflated versus more experienced vendors for the same price.

So will you save money? Maybe! Will you get more if you value experiences in an intimate setting? Absolutely. Which means you’ll avoid having destination wedding regrets!

For more on this topic, check out Cheapest Wedding Venues in Tuscany and How to Have a Low Budget Destination Wedding in Europe!

So the only question that remains is, how much is it actually going to cost??? To answer this, download my pricing guide to estimate the cost of your destination wedding in Europe before booking a venue. The link to download that is below!