Destination Wedding Invitation
From LoveToKnow Weddings
It used to mean a destination wedding meant only one thing: the happy couple was sneaking off to a remote island or Las Vegas to elope. Times have changed, and this is no longer the case. A destination wedding can mean anything from a romantic beach wedding to a California winery.
Spreading the Word
Yours is no ordinary wedding. Your guests won’t be arriving locally to attend a church wedding and reception nearby. Instead, they’ll have to make travel arrangements. Because of this, you can’t let them know at the last minute. While proper etiquette dictates invitations aren’t sent out too far in advance, you’re going to have to allow enough time for your guests to plan. You can do this by sending a “save the date” as far in advance as possible. A year or more before the wedding is perfect. Two months before the wedding, you can send out the proper destination wedding invitations.
What to Say on a Destination Wedding Invitation
Your guest should already know the details of your wedding, so a destination wedding invitation should come as no surprise. The wording for destination wedding invitations should be no different than those from couples who are getting married locally. The only difference is the address – and you want to be sure to list the full address. This includes the city and the state or country.
Accommodations
If you’ve blocked out a number of hotel rooms or made special dinner reservations, you’ll need to include this information with the destination wedding invitation. If arrangements have been made for discount lodging or other special amenities, this too must be mentioned. Everything your guests should know should be printed on a separate piece of stationery and included in the same envelope as the destination wedding invitations.
Unless you’re paying for all accommodations, you should include toll free numbers for all area hotels as well as restaurants and sight seeing information.
Dress
If the wedding will be informal or the bride will be wearing a beach wedding dress this information will have to be included as well. Your guests will want to dress appropriately. That includes not wearing a formal dress and satin pumps when they have the sand and surf to contend with.
RSVP
You’ll probably want to give your guests more time to respond than you would if your wedding was to be held locally. Once a destination wedding invitation is received, there are a lot of plans to make. For instance, your guests will need to be sure they can take the time off work, arrangements will need to made for children and pets, mail will have to be stopped, and more. Of course if your guests received a “save the date” card months earlier, this may not be the case. Still, you want to be considerate and allow your guests enough time to make a decision.
Comments
Lillian -- Simple wording such as "You are invited to celebrate the Date, Year wedding of Bride and Groom at a post-honeymoon reception on Date, Year at Location" will let the guests know that the wedding has already taken place. You don't even have to mention that the honeymoon has already happened, though many guests may assume that if the reception is a week later. Just be sure the invitations clearly state the wedding ceremony was earlier, or else guests may be confused or disappointed that there is no ceremony at the reception. A common practice, however, is for the couple to have a small vow renewal at the reception, and that may be an option to consider in this cir...stance.
-- Contributed by: Melissa MayntzSummer - For such a distant wedding, you can send out the invitations three months in advance to give your guests ample time to plan, but RSVPs shouldn't need to be returned until about a month prior to the event. Even though you're arranging the event overseas, most facilities won't need to know much further in advance to set up dining and other arrangements. Be sure to check with your vendors to see when they need their final numbers, and set your RSVP date at least two weeks earlier than that so you have time to contact guests who haven't responded.
-- Contributed by: Melissa MayntzMy sister is haveing a wedding about 7 hours away from home... we already know who is going to the wedding itself so no invites are needed for it (only family) but our problem is... how do we word the invites for the reception (a week later) when they come back from the honeymoon? I can't find anything to help me out on the net yet. She wants to mention the wedding but how do we do that without inviting everyone?
-- Contributed by: LillianThis page has been accessed 10,052 times. This page was last modified 14:32, 11 May 2008.
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