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The first step is the most difficult: deciding where to go and who to invite. You may already have your dream destination in mind, but there are several questions to answer before you get those invitations printed up. Budget, of course, is a major consideration. Many resorts now offer wonderful wedding packages including an in-house event planner and the minister. When the wedding is over, you will already be at your honeymoon destination, so you may not mind the cost of traveling to the wedding, but what about your guests? Destination weddings are ideal if you come from a family of travelers, or if your guests are already coming from different parts of the world. However, not everyone on your guest list has a week to devote to your wedding, likes to fly, or keeps their passport up-to-date at all times. This was the case for my brother- in-law, who got married in Grand Cayman last year. His wife’s family had never traveled abroad, and flying to an exotic location might have been both a physical and financial hardship for them. Because of this, they opted to not have anyone attend their nuptials. Instead, their hotel arranged a private sunset ceremony on the beach, complete with flowers, champagne and a photographer. A few weeks later, they mailed out the announcement with an invitation to come celebrate the event back home.
Since most destination weddings don’t include all the guests you might like to have at your reception, we have catered many events for couples after they return. For instance, Brooke Nelson and Bart Crow had their ceremony in Playa de Carmen, Mexico. One week later they returned home to Waxahachie, where The Dove’s Nest served assorted tropical cheeses and fruit, pulled pork tacos, smoked chicken quesadillas with mango pico de gallo and smoked salmon with roasted corn and green chilies. Waxahachie’s own, Micah Ashmore married Brandon King on West Palm Beach. A few days later they celebrated back home with island décor and served fish tacos, fresh shrimp and Polynesian pork.
Getting married in a foreign country will add a few small but important steps to your wedding preparations. The first question many ask when planning an overseas wedding is whether or not their marriage will be legally recognized in the United States. The answer is yes. Any marriage between a man and a woman that’s legal in a foreign country is legal at home. But one thing to confirm is whether or not the person conducting your ceremony is legally qualified to marry you. The other important thing to check on is residency requirements. Many countries require that couples arrive early enough that their marriage announcement can be posted at city hall prior to the event. This quaint custom usually means you only have to arrive a day or two ahead of time—a good idea in any case. The residency requirement is quite strict in some countries. France, for example, requires both parties to reside in France at least 40 days before the wedding, so don’t get caught by surprise. Hurdles like these are part of the reason U.S. territories such as Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are so popular for weddings—they feel exotic and foreign, but legally, getting married there is just like getting married in any U.S. state. Ask yourself what’s most important to you. Are you dead set on getting married in Tahiti, or is it the general idea of a beach wedding that floats your boat? If the cost of international travel is too high, weddings in other beautiful American locations such as Key West, Malibu, Santa Fe, Jackson Hole or New Orleans would all be wonderful choices as well.
One final note on wedding planning: If you’re a woman planning on taking your husband’s name, don’t be too quick to try out that new moniker. It will cause headaches at the airport if your tickets show your married name, but your passport was issued in your maiden name. Make all reservations in your maiden name and save the new one for when you get home.
Everyone dreams about their fantasy wedding, but few make their dreams a reality. If a destination wedding is what you really want, but you’re worried some friends and family won’t come, have the best of both worlds with the ceremony in paradise and the reception when you return home.
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