Irish Wedding Destination
With so many great venues, locations and our reputation for hospitality, it’s easy to see why an Irish destination wedding excites so many couples. The thought of having friends and family celebrating with you in a foreign location can make your big day feel not just extra special but also a little more exotic. Plus like any foreign wedding, it gives friends and family the opportunity to plan their own holidays around the chosen destination.
Yet while lots of couples would love to get married here, many shy away thinking destination weddings are more difficult to plan than they actually are. While there’s no doubt organizing an event from abroad is trickier than organizing one at home, with a little help it can be a lot easier than you imagine.
An obvious solution is to get some boots on the ground, a wedding or event planner who can help bring your ideas to life and be your eyes and ears on the day itself, leaving you free to enjoy your special occasion.
How a wedding planner might help your Irish destination wedding
I like to believe organising a wedding should be the start of the celebration. So if you’re worried planning a wedding in Ireland might be a little overwhelming and take the fun out of it, in the hands of a good wedding planner, it will be something you’ll both really enjoy.
To start with a wedding planner should always work around whatever time zone the happy couple live in. Luckily I’ve found services like WhatsApp, Facetime and Skype make the distance and time difference feel relatively trivial, even for those couples who’ve come from as far away as Australia and California.
Crucially, your planner must get to know you, your partner and your expectations for your wedding. Only then can they deliver on your vision. To do this, I like to create mood boards with each couple, showcasing important details like flowers, linen, music and drinks, to see if they match their expectations for their big day and if there are aspects they wish to change.
Once the vision has been established, you can begin to look for the perfect venue and vendors. A good local wedding planner will have a team of trusted suppliers they know will deliver, and importantly be a good guide to how much things should cost. And with the savings they’re able to negotiate, having a wedding planner usually pays for itself.
One thing that surprises many couples hoping to get married here, are the country’s legal requirements. Las Vegas it is not…You need to give at least 3 months notice. However in my experience, all this means is a little extra organization but that’s something your planner should be able to help you with.
While undoubtedly a great resource, searching Irish wedding venues and vendors via the internet is no substitute for actually being here yourself or having someone on the ground who knows how to deliver the wedding day you’ve always dreamed of. Remember when it comes to a wedding, you only get one chance to get it right. That’s why the experience, local knowledge and supplier relationships a planner brings to an Irish Destination Wedding can be invaluable in making sure everything is as flawless as you hoped it would be.