Is It TOO LATE To Plan a 2026 Wedding in EUROPE?

Dec 19

This time of year, one of the biggest questions engaged couples ask me is whether it’s even possible to plan a wedding in Europe in less than 12 months. If you want to squeeze in a wedding in Europe for 2026, this blog is for you. You’ve probably been hearing that all the venues are booked or that you’ve already missed your chance so don’t even bother with 2026.

So let’s set the record straight together right now. As destination wedding planners who specialize in weddings in Europe, my team and I are in constant communication with venues all across Europe every day. I’m going to share a little insight into what people don’t tell you about planning destination weddings in Europe, the type of availability we’re seeing for 2026 at this moment, and what to do about it!

What we’re seeing is that some venues are fully booked for 2026. However, it’s mostly going to be those iconic properties you see all over Pinterest and Instagram. That doesn’t mean that all venues are gone. There are still incredible properties that a lot fewer people know about that have plenty of availability for next year. You just have to know where to look, and you have to stay flexible.

1. Date Flexibility + Cost Savings

What’s happening with the calendar in 2026 is that many venues have entire weekends, or even full months, already booked and blacked out. This is typically happening in the high season, which runs from May through September. That makes sense, it’s an easier time for people to travel, demand is higher, and the weather is amazing. However, we are still seeing availability in shoulder season and low season, particularly in regions that are considered some of the most budget-friendly wedding destinations in Europe.

Shoulder season and low season typically run from October through April. We’re also seeing availability during the week, Monday through Thursday. For some people, that’s a less desirable time to get married, but if you ask me, I will shout this from the rooftops: get married Monday through Thursday in Europe.

You will save money. You will have so many more options for venues and vendors because there’s a much lower likelihood that they’re already booked. And honestly, nobody knows what day it is when they’re on vacation.

So here’s what you need to ask yourself to identify if a 2026 wedding is even possible for you. Am I flexible with the day of the week? Am I flexible with the month I get married in? As far as months go, I love shoulder season. Some of the best times to travel in Europe are during the shoulder season. We’ve had fantastic weddings, especially in April and October, when there are fewer tourists, you’re saving money, and you have your pick of the litter when it comes to venues and vendors, including some of the cheapest wedding venues in Tuscany that most couples never even hears about.

When I say you can save money, I mean saving thousands. The same property that could be $20,000 on a Saturday in June could be $8,000 on a Tuesday in April. Same property with one caveat.

You need to do your due diligence on the weather before booking something like February. Low and mid-season are cheaper not just because of supply and demand, but also because the weather isn’t always ideal. Be prepared to have a backup plan for inclement weather and be realistic. If you have your heart set on a pool party and the pools close in October, then maybe don’t get married in October.

2. Personal Capacity

The next question you need to ask yourself before you can really answer whether a 2026 wedding is possible is this: what does my life look like over the next several months? Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

I’ve learned this the hard way. Just because it’s possible to squeeze in a wedding in less than one year doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone. We’ve planned a wedding in two weeks. Was it fun? No. And I’m a full-time wedding planner with a team and resources.

The most enjoyable destination wedding planning journeys tend to be around 12 to 14 months long. This gives you time to enjoy the process, make thoughtful and deliberate decisions, take breaks, and avoid burnout. That’s not always reality, though. You might not have the luxury of time. You may want to start a family or just get your life moving and be married.

If you have less than a year, the first thing you need to do is take an honest inventory of your life right now. Wedding planning should fit into your life and it shouldn’t become your life. Are you changing jobs or careers? Are you moving or buying a home? Do you have a lot of travel coming up? Are there family dynamics taking up a lot of your time and energy? Are you having a child or already raising children?

All of these are exciting life transitions, but we need to be realistic. If you and your fiancé are juggling several of these things at the same time while trying to plan an international wedding in under a year, especially if you’re still learning how to plan a destination wedding without falling victim to scams you could be setting yourself up for burnout.

3. Guest Turnout

Another major consideration with a shorter timeline is this: are you okay with some key guests not attending? If you’re giving guests only a few months’ notice for an international wedding, it’s completely normal for people not to come…even VIPs!

They need time to get passports, request time off, save money, apply for visas, or work around trips they’ve already planned. It’s much more complicated than attending a last-minute local wedding. And realistically, even if you started planning today and your wedding is ten months away, guests might not even have the date and details for a couple of months while you finalize your budget, venue, website, and save-the-dates, especially if you’re navigating how to choose a destination wedding venue without ever visiting it in person.

That said, many of the couples I talk to actually see fewer guests as a positive. I love intimate weddings. I specialize in intimate weddings. But if the idea of key people missing your wedding sounds terrible to you, take that as a sign you may need more time. Shorter notice usually means a smaller turnout.

Decision Time

If you answered yes to being flexible with weekdays and shoulder season, yes to having space in your life over the next several months, and yes to being okay with some guests not attending, then go for it.

My advice is simple: start now, pivot later. Begin the process with the intention of getting married in 2026. There are still venues available, especially if you stay flexible. But if you start and realize the shortened timeline feels more anxiety-inducing than exciting, give yourself permission to pivot to 2027. If your perfect venue and date are available then, it’s okay to shift.

What I can almost guarantee is this: if you don’t start at all, it won’t happen in 2026. You need to actually begin.

Action Plan

Here’s your action plan. Start today. First, get your budget in order (I’ll drop the link below where you can download my free pricing guide to estimate the cost of your 2026 Europe wedding!). Then lock in a venue as soon as possible. Once that’s done, send your save-the-dates and let your guests know.

And if you need help expediting the process, especially finding a venue quickly, here’s my shameless plug. This is exactly what we do inside our package, De-Stress Your Destination Wedding. We help couples plan multi-day, intimate destination weddings in Europe on a budget as efficiently as humanly possible, so you can go from overwhelmed and stressed to relaxed and excited from the very start. To get more information on our De-Stress Your Destination Wedding program check it out here!