Bad news: Destination weddings are on the rise.
As if going to local weddings isn’t expensive enough, this year, there were 3% more international weddings than last year — which doesn’t seem like a lot but according to Zola’s 2025 First Look Report, 32% of 2025 weddings will be destination weddings. Blame it on Bride-fluencers flaunting their far-off Pinterest-perfect weddings on the beaches of Tulum, in the Tuscan countryside, or in an Irish castle. Sure, they say they have no regrets about requiring their guests to travel for their big day because it actually made their wedding less expensive for them. But what about their guests?
Couples seem to be choosing their destinations by throwing a dart at a map, as 59% of couples picked their remote wedding location not because it meant something to them or because it was more convenient for their family and friends to get to. Nope! They chose these locations because they were simply “interesting.” Interesting?! The nerve!
Look, I totally get having a destination wedding to bring the wedding to your loved ones; it’s why I got married in my hometown for my mom, who couldn’t travel (although I wouldn’t really call Connecticut a destination, more like a place kinda close to New York City). However, according to the numbers, only 22% of destination weddings are choosing a location where loved ones currently live (!). Hope Grandma can handle that 15-hour non-direct flight to Greece! Her back was all out of sorts since she landed, but hey, at least she got to see your Mama Mia dreams come true (even though she didn’t get the references) [🙄].
So here is my plea for you to reconsider your destination wedding to help stop this trend your guests definitely do not enjoy.
It might be cheaper for you, but it’s more expensive for your guests
Creators seem to be trying to convince newly engaged couples that “this is your sign” to plan destination weddings, claiming you can have one at an all-inclusive, family-friendly resort in Punta Cana for under 5K. Or a 2023 bride who planned an all-inclusive 10K wedding package for 30 guests in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Their budget is likely low because there are fewer guests, and things tend to be less expensive in other countries.
But your guests are likely feeling the pressure to attend after the “honor” of being invited…(which is not an honor to their bank account…). As your guests are the ones paying for their hotel rooms for probably more nights than a local wedding, plus the cost of international flights (weird how planes are literally falling apart, but airfare prices have gone up 25% this year)…
Out-of-the-country weddings require more travel time with going through customs and usually more time at the destination, which means more time your guests have to take off work and if they’re freelancers (🙋🏼♀️) this can mean losing money. The average guest who traveled to a destination wedding spent anywhere between $600 and $1,300…that’s a lot of money for something you’ll inevitably see on your social media feed for the next year.
Your wedding is not my dream vacation
That’s always the destination wedding guest pitch. Didn’t you always want to go to Ireland, Tulum, Greece, or Italy? Well, our wedding is your chance!
Is it, though? You want to save up to travel to those bucket list spots for your vacation, where you get to decide where you stay, what you do, and how much money you spend (choices that are made for you at weddings. Weddings are never vacations. Now they’re becoming three-day commitments (welcome dinner, wedding, farewell brunch), so that’s already three days when you can’t do much but stay wherever the wedding is taking place.
We went to a destination wedding in the Bahamas where our room was generously paid for by the couple’s family. But every minute of our stay was booked with required events, which were by no means relaxing. Then there’s this person on Reddit who claims the couple covered their accommodations at a budget hotel with four people crammed in a room with bunk beds. That’s basically camping!
And after you spend all that money on their wedding, you’re still expected to give the couple you just spent thousands of dollars on a gift?! 79% of destination wedding couples expect guests to spend less on their gift than they normally would. Less? I’m sorry if I’m spending thousands of dollars to go to your wedding, my present is my presence.
Have you heard of greenscreen?
Serious question. Do destination couples know they can have their dream FYP wedding backdrop with a greenscreen instead of making all their friends travel for it? We get it. The built-in backdrops of the beach, vineyard, or castle are breathtaking, but if it’s really important that your loved ones are by your side on your big day, you might have to sacrifice the content to keep the most important people in your life content (weird how those words are spelled exactly the same but can contradict each other).
So many destination brides and grooms are so focused on the content for their big day that they’re not present. So after having your guests spend all that money to see your dream wedding, you’re not really enjoying it or being there for your select guest list who went through all that trouble to be there for you.
You should pay for your guests
There is one situation where a destination wedding is okay. That is, you can afford to fly out and put up all of your guests like you’re a Real Housewife. And if you do this, it should not be transactional. You should not act like your guests owe you every minute of their time on this “vacation.” If you’re pitching your destination wedding as a vacation, let your guests have a vacation! Don’t schedule every waking minute of their time with required events; rather, give them suggestions on places they can check out in the area with no pressure. Live up to your promises of a destination wedding, or don’t have one at all.
And if you’re really set on a destination wedding but don’t have a budget to accommodate your guests. Then, just elope at your dream wedding destination! Save your budget and your relationships by helping to stop this rise of destination weddings by changing them to destination elopements. Grandma and her back will thank you.
