It’s engagement season, which means you might be reading this because you said “Yes!” and it’s finally time to plan the wedding of your dreams. When it comes to luxury weddings, it’s all in the details. Such luxurious events require careful planning and meticulous attention to detail to create an exquisite celebration. Learn everything you need to know about planning a luxury wedding, including how much it costs and how to create luxury on a budget.
What is a Luxury Wedding?
Interestingly, what defines a luxury wedding isn’t the price tag. Although these celebrations tend to be more costly, the reason is in the details. Luxury weddings are highly customized and often include multiple events surrounding the wedding ceremony.
While most wedding weekends include a rehearsal dinner, wedding ceremony, and reception, luxury weddings take up extended weekends. There’s often a welcome party, social events, and a send-off brunch in addition to the rehearsal, ceremony, and reception.
Another key element of a luxury wedding is the guest experience. When planning a luxury wedding, considering your guests is a top priority. Everything from accommodations to transportation to food and beverages at each event is taken care of, if not financially, at least planning-wise.
How Much Does Planning a Luxury Wedding Cost?
It’s hard to narrow down exactly what your luxury wedding will look like or cost. However, the three common defining factors associated with this type of event are customization, multi-day celebrations, and the guest experience. These elements are what give luxury weddings their high price tag.
Customizing every detail of your wedding starts with your invitations. For example, a luxury wedding invitation is completely customized rather than choosing a template and printing your details on standard paper. From one-of-a-kind artwork to fine paper or materials, there isn’t anything about the invitation that is “standard.” And so the expenses begin.
A luxury wedding incorporates this attention to detail into each event surrounding the wedding, not just the ceremony and reception. For example, luxury celebrations often include a welcome party. This is a great way to welcome guests to your wedding weekend and start the celebration early. While this event is typically more casual and laid back than the others, many couples customize their welcome parties with a specific theme and go all-out.
Lastly, prioritizing the guest experience takes up a big chunk of the budget of a luxury wedding. Some couples go as far as paying for VIP guests’ accommodations and transportation. Even those who don’t pay for these elements do ensure guests have ample food and drinks at every wedding event and often plan specific social events or gatherings at no cost to the guests.
Because of all of these elements, planning a luxury wedding typically starts with a budget of $100,000, depending on the size of your guest list.
Can You Have a Luxury Wedding on a Budget?
If you love the idea of planning a luxury wedding but aren’t keen on the $100,000+ price tag, you can have such an event on a budget. Remember, the three main elements of a luxury wedding are customization, multiple events, and the guest experience. With that in mind, here are three ways to plan a luxury wedding without a luxury budget.
1. Trim Your Guest List
The smaller your guest list, the less money your wedding will cost in general. Providing multiple meals for 50 people is way less expensive than for 150 people. Additionally, with fewer guests, you can focus on more intimate events surrounding your wedding, which can lower expectations and costs.
2. Choose an Uncommon Wedding Date
Having your wedding on a Saturday in June costs more than having it on a Friday in November. Generally, choosing an off-season and weekday date can save you 20-30% on your wedding venue, florals, photographer, catering, and more! So, rather than cutting out any element of a luxury wedding, you simply choose a less expensive date.
3. Customize but DIY
There are definitely pros and cons to a DIY wedding. While it will save you money, it will cost you time. So, if you know you want to customize aspects of your wedding yourself, you must start planning well in advance.
How Do You Find a Luxury Wedding Planner?
Planning a luxury wedding takes expertise. To bring such an elaborate celebration to life, you need the help of a luxury wedding planner. The best way to find one is to search online and view the work of various wedding professionals in your area. You’ll also want to interview planners before selecting one to work with. You can learn a lot about a person’s personality, experience, and connections in the wedding industry by having a phone conversation with them. It’s no secret that luxury weddings cost. So it’s imperative that you fully trust the person who will be helping you spend that money effectively and efficiently throughout the planning process.
Park Avenue Events is a Sought-After Luxury Wedding Planner
At Park Avenue Events, we boast over 15 years of experience planning upscale weddings. We know exactly what it takes to plan a luxury wedding because we’ve designed hundreds over multiple years in Atlanta and worldwide. Whether you’re looking to have the wedding of the century or want to incorporate elements of a luxury wedding on a budget, we can help. Contact us today so we can learn more about your wedding desires and share how we can bring them to life!