Between finding the right dress, photographer, caterer, DJ, and most importantly, selecting a venue as a first step and ensuring all these elements and vendors come together smoothly on your wedding day, planning a destination wedding remotely can quickly turn into a stressful event.
But the stress of planning a destination wedding can easily be avoided if you hire a destination wedding planner specialized in your wedding location or area. Need more convincing? Here are the 9 reasons why you should hire a destination wedding planner.
Besides listening to your gut feeling, checking their portfolio, stalking their social media accounts, and trying to reach out to their previous brides, how do you know that you are hiring the right destination wedding planner? How do you know that this destination wedding planner, no matter how good he or she is, understands your needs, shares your passion for your wedding theme, and pulls off your dream wedding?
Catering: Love Banqueting | Lighting: SITU Eventi | Photo: Maison di Veronica Masserdotti
To help you assess and figure out if the destination wedding planner you are considering is the right one for you, we have compiled the 11 questions you should ask before making a decision.
This questionnaire will help you evaluate their wedding planning experience, ensure you have covered every aspect of your wedding planning needs, and have everything you need to make an informed decision. So don’t forget to bookmark this article as it will come in quite handy!
1- Are they specialized in an Italian region in particular? (If you don’t have a favorite area yet, this question will also help you in your decision process)
While not having worked in your target wedding location is not necessarily a turnoff and doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t hire your wedding planner, it is beneficial to know if your destination wedding planner is familiar with the region and area you are getting married in. A wedding planner experienced in the region will know the ins and outs, hidden gems, wedding vendors and will surely have several tips and tricks up her or his sleeve to ensure you have the best of everything! They will properly advise on things only a local can know like the real distances, the condition of the roads to and from your wedding venue (very important if you are getting married in the Tuscan countryside, for example) and the best local specialties and fun things to do, to name a few.
2- Have they planned a destination wedding in Italy that is in the same budget bracket as yours? How did it go?
Some planners only work within a set budget bracket, so this information is important as it will straight away tell you if you can work together. On the other hand, it can be a good indicator of the wedding planner’s specialty. For example, luxury wedding planners might have difficulty organizing your wedding either because they don’t have the right tricks and providers to give you the best service within your budget. Or, on the contrary, someone who is not used to big-budget weddings won’t be used to all the little details, extra touches, and wedding must-haves that come with an extravagant affair. It is best to find someone who can work with your budget and make the most of it without compromising aesthetics and quality.
Speaking of budget, and to help you know and assess the cost of a wedding in Italy, head to our article on How much does a destination wedding in Italy cost? to get a detailed breakdown of all related costs and expenses to consider.
3- Have they organized a wedding at this destination or wedding venue before? Can they show you some pictures?
It is not a red flag if your favorite destination wedding planner in Italy has not worked before with your wedding venue; it is, however, a bonus if they did! He or she will have an easier time pulling off your perfect wedding day as they will know how to match your needs with the venue’s logistics, how to manage lighting, provide the most effective service routes for your vendors, etc. Even better, if they have a good business relationship with your wedding venue in Italy, they might even be able to scrape a few dollars off your wedding venue’s cost or even get you some extra benefits. Yay!
4- Do they have a specific style identity? Are there wedding themes they are more comfortable with? Does your wedding vision match their style?
You need to make sure your vision of a perfect wedding day is aligned with your destination wedding planner’s vision. If you are envisaging a rustic wedding in the Tuscan countryside, while all the planner is talking about is ballroom weddings, then you might not be such a great fit. Do, however, keep an open mind and ask more questions like “Do they have any top of mind ideas that would fit your theme” or “How would they go about planning a wedding that is completely different from what they usually do?” You might end up being (pleasantly) surprised. After all, good destination wedding planners, even though they might have their signature style, are perfectly capable of planning the perfect wedding that fits your vision.
5- Do they have preferred vendors or venues? And are they okay with working with other ones?
A professional wedding planner will have strong relationships with the best wedding vendors and wedding professionals. And this qualitative network will help you build your perfect wedding. This will guarantee that you are getting the best vendors and hiring people they are comfortable working with to ensure a smooth wedding day.
If you have already selected a vendor, make sure to ask if your wedding planner knows them or has worked with them before to ensure they are on good terms and that your wedding day will go extra smoothly.
6- As a destination wedding planner, do they take more than one wedding per day or weekend? Can their team accommodate so many events?
A big wedding planning agency can obviously handle big events or several events at once. But how big is the agency you are chatting with? Do they have enough human and material resources to simultaneously and seamlessly handle them all? If yes, is their team made up of full-time employees or external resources that are often hard to follow up with?
To have a perfect wedding day, you need to ensure your wedding planner (or an experienced team member) is fully focused on your event and is not being distracted by other requests. Weddings are not a straightforward event to plan, and need a lot of attention to details and a quick ability to respond to potential issues.
7- Will they be present on your wedding day? How big is their team?
It is essential to know if your wedding planner will be managing your wedding hands-on. And if it is a team who will be representing them on your wedding day, then you need to know how many assistants, coordinators, and/or event stylists will be there so that you can ensure your wedding’s logistics, decor, schedule, as well as every detail will be properly handled. Of course, the size of the team depends on your specific wedding’a size and needs, but a good destination wedding planner will be able to assess and give you an estimate.
8- Are they familiar with the administrative processes of how to get married in Italy as a foreigner? And can they help you with the paperwork?
Planning a beautiful destination wedding in Italy is certainly fun except when it comes to the documentation and legal requirements for a foreigner to get married in Italy. A professional destination wedding planner in Italy will know exactly the process to follow and the required documents at every step and will obviously save you time, money, and stress!
If you need more details about how a foreigner can get married in Italy, we recommend you head to one of our step-by-step guides depending on the type of ceremony you are having: civil, religious, or symbolic.
9- Do they handle the guest list in terms of coordination and follow-up on RSVPs?
Following up on the guest list, answering calls (including all the small talk involved), replying to emails, and tracking each answer can be quite daunting. Especially that a lot of people tend to forget to RSVP (it only takes a second people!), and you will need to go through your guest list over and over again to make sure you get the right number and book accordingly. So having a destination wedding planner whose team handle this “lovely” task will definitely be a great plus!
10- Can they help you find the best accommodation options for your guests?
This is one service that you should ask for as not all wedding planners offer it, at least not within their wedding packages. But as we said, your planner has inside knowledge and is in the best position to advise you and recommend the right accommodations for your guests. While Google can tell you which area, neighborhood, or hotel is the closest, a knowledgeable wedding planner will advise you on the most suitable hotels in terms of ease of access, logistics, price/quality ratio, etc. This is why this service will be quite helpful!
11- Are they able to also help you plan your wedding weekend festivities, such as a post-wedding brunch or pre-wedding drinks?
Planning the destination wedding weekend festivities is a whole other task.
You are probably thinking how hard can it possibly be to book a Terrazza with a beautiful view, we are in Italy after all! Well, you couldn’t be more wrong. You are the bride and will need to scratch any item you can from your long to-do list, and this should certainly be one of them if you want to have a successful event. Remember, if you want to, let’s say, plan a post-wedding brunch, you will need to decide on the location: will it be in the same wedding venue or elsewhere? What about the food & drinks? Who will be joining? How will your guests get there? Etc. You get it, it is an event by itself! Having your destination wedding planner also plan your pre- and post-wedding festivities is a great idea as you won’t have to do the work twice when sending out the invitations. You will be also be to host an event that is in line with your wedding theme (wedding decor fun extended! Yay!). After all, your planner knows your style, your guests’ age group, your budget, and every needed detail to throw an awesome event and party, and thus will be able to offer you the most suitable options.
You are now ready to reach out to your favorite destination wedding planner in Italy. Let the fun begin!
Extra tip? Head to WedBoard and get in touch and chat commitment-free with the best Italian wedding planners. You can even narrow down your selection by browsing their portfolios (caution: you will like them all!), read about their styles, and other useful information like the Italian region they are specialized in.
Furthermore, you will find on WedBoard everything you need to get married in Italy, like really everything! From the best tips to plan a wedding in Italy to the best way to scout, select and book the most beautiful wedding venues in Italy. You can even chat directly with the highest qualified Italian wedding vendors to make sure you get the best of everything!
Feature image credits: Venue: Villa Agape | Photo: Adrian Wood Photography
