How to avoid feeling overwhelmed during your destination wedding planning

Wedding planning can be such a HUGE deal for brides (and couples, or whoever is doing more of the planning), especially the kinds of wedding I’m involved in (destination weddings, in Thailand) where there can be even more to think about than a regular wedding close to home.

You see, being a young wedding photographer living and working in Thailand, I luckily get to discuss these sorts of things with my brides and industry peers and I’ve come to realise that wedding planning can actually get really overwhelming, really easily if you’re not careful and don’t know where to look.   Of course overwhelmed means stressed and stress CAN mean no fun and everyone wants to be the fun, happy and carefree bride!  If you’re well organised, can narrow it down, and know what you want your big day to be, I’m sure your wedding day will end up oozing the very air that you dream it will have!

So, your man just popped the question which opens up a whole new set of questions you both need to think about to actually plan the big day, and you might be wondering… where to start?

This is my guide to avoid becoming overwhelmed while planning your wedding…

WHERE:
The first thing you will need to think about is where you want to have your wedding (keep in mind I’m not talking about the venue here yet, just the general area… if you already know the venue, great! ).
**For destination brides, if you are unfamiliar with the location you will need to research the weather patterns there as the date you have been thinking about might fall in monsoon (wet season) in that place.

HOW MANY GUESTS:
Once you know where, you need to think about how many of your friends and family you will invite! Exciting? Yes, but easily overwhelming as well! First, talk about the differences the size of your guest list will have on your day with your partner.. there are pros and cons to both, try to figure out which you would both prefer and work from there. Once you have a basic number/size in your head… THEN start listing people to invite.
**For destination brides, you will need to get this done ASAP as you also need to account for your guests requesting time off from their work, and also have time spare for them to save up for the trip as friends and family almost always want to make a holiday out of your wedding as well… the perfect excuse to start planning a tropical getaway a year ahead? A wedding, of course.

PLANNER?:
Now, this comes after you’ve determined the location and number of guests… do you think you’ll need to enlist the help of a wedding planner? If you are thinking about having lots of details, consider having a wedding planner, their job is not only to help make everything come together leading up to the wedding day, but also to coordinate on the day and ensure everything is in the right place at the right time. Most wedding industry professionals will email each other prior to your wedding day to introduce themselves (if they haven’t worked together before) and ensure they are all on the same page anyway, wedding planners will also help the flow of communication between all vendors prior to and on the day.
**For destination brides, consider whether your wedding will be held in an English-speaking country, if not then having a wedding planner will definitely help make some of your planning steps a lot easier, being based in the country where you are planning your wedding, they might even be able to put you into contact with some great vendors which you can’t find by yourself.

OTHER IMPORTANT WEDDING VENDORS:
To ensure your wedding day runs smoothly, I feel it’s really important to choose vendors you like. Remember that on your wedding day, you work with a lot of people who provide you with a service.. photography, videography, transportation, delicious meals, flower arrangements, etc. It’s important to think properly about those people and if you can imagine just loving spending your wedding day with them, then they are probably the perfect fit for you! Surrounding yourself with people you get along with and enjoy their company will help make your day that little bit more enjoyable. Think about which vendors you will spend the most time with overall as well as on your big day, this means including email and any other form of communication leading up to your day.
**For destination brides again, depending on your country having the same base-language that you and your partner speak, think about choosing vendors that can speak your language and the language most commonly spoken in that country (if possible) to ensure clarity in communication between them and other vendors as well! … For example, I speak Thai and English!

KEEP IT SIMPLE (KIS):
I’d say, this is the KEY to your day being awesome… DO, or plan small details as early as possible.. If you remember to simplify as much as possible, wherever possible you’re going to save yourself some trouble.. for want of a better word.
IF things start to get complicated, out of hand, or you find yourself scrambling, trying to organise more things that you have time to handle in the time that you have,  think about finding trusted friends (or family) that you would feel happy to delegate certain tasks to help you do! As long as you are excited about your big day, there will be someone else just as excited to help you make it easier on you, knowing there is a lot for you to plan.

KEEP EVERYTHING YOU (KEY):
There can be so many different wedding ideas, styles, and themes out there that you can just get lost in it all. Wedding blogs and magazines have trends, just like fashion does.. they come and go, some you’ll love, some you won’t, but the most important thing to consider, when it’s all said and done and especially when you have so many options to choose from, so many directions to go, is to decide.  Go on, just make a choice. Stick with what pulls at your heartstrings and don’t waver from it. It will be easier that way (and a lot less overwhelming) as well as a lot more meaningful, when you decide on something that is you.

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