There is certain "etiquette" to follow for any wedding ... but a destination wedding pretty much comes with its own set of etiquette rules to follow. 

Once you and your fiancé have decided that you'd like to have a destination wedding the first thing to consider is who will be paying for the wedding. If your parents are paying for the wedding you will need to check with them as your first move. If they do not want to pay for a destination wedding and would prefer you marry close to home you will have a decision to make. Honor your parents' wishes or stick to your "destination wedding guns" and not only pay for your own wedding but risk upsetting your parents in the process.

If your parents are onboard with the idea of a wedding away from home the next thing you'll want to decide on is who you will ask to be in your wedding party. As far as who to ask the sky is the limit with destination weddings as it's perfectly acceptable to be non-traditional and break all the usual wedding "rules." With that said, you will want to take into consideration the location, financial ability, family situation, and work issues for each of your bridal party choices. If there are "must have peeps" on your wedding party list you will have to plan for any special considerations ... like possibly helping pay some travel expenses, looking at dates that will definitely work, and maybe family friendly resorts for those with children. 

Next up for consideration is your guest list. Quite often couples who are planning a destination wedding want a small, intimate group to attend. This would be a guest list of your closest friends and family and the number will vary from couple to couple. That's not to say that you can't invite just as many people to your destination wedding as you would a "home" wedding but it's not usually the case. Having a destination wedding does give you more control over who and how many because most people who aren't close to you will understand when they're not invited to your destination wedding where they might have been hurt if they weren't on the hometown guest list (i.e. coworkers, friends of friends, etc.).

Since it's a destination wedding ... we can't forget to consider the actual destination. You will want to take into account where most of your guests live in relation to where you'd like to have your wedding. For instance, if most of your guests live on the West Coast and you pick a Caribbean location keep in mind that they will incur additional travel cost and loose some of their vacation time traveling to the destination. You know your guest list so you will want make sure you're choosing a place that most of your guests will be able to join you.

Hopefully these etiquette tips will help you with some of the questions you have about planning your dream wedding in the destination of your choice ... while also keeping those who matter to you in mind throughout the planning process. You will have a successful destination wedding if your friends and family are excited about the trip and are able to make it to the destination you choose.

Be sure to add your own tips below in the comments section. You can also ask any questions you have here in the comments or by using the Contact Us page.

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