6 Tips for Planning a Multi-Day Wedding

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Your wedding is a big life milestone, so why limit the celebration to a single day? That’s the mindset of many modern couples that are extending their nuptials across entire weekends.

Many industry experts attribute this rising trend to the popularity of destination weddings. “With more people traveling from out of town, it’s nice to include them in multiple events, rather than travelling all that way – no matter what the distance – for just one day,” says Elise Parham, a senior planner at Love Affair in New Hampshire.

If that sounds like the right kind of event for you, here are a few more tips for turning your wedding day into a wedding weekend.

1. Be Prepared to Spend More

A longer wedding event means more of everything from food to flowers – all of which costs more funds. How much you’ll actually spend depends on a variety of factors, such as the number of guests and lavishness of the events, but “it is safe to say each additional event will be a minimum of 10 percent of your wedding day budget,” says Parham.

To save a bit of cash, Parham recommends getting creative with repurposing items. For example, floral arrangements from the ceremony can be transported and reused for your farewell brunch.

2. Plan Ahead – Like, Super Ahead

Hosting a wedding across multiple days also means asking your guests to take more time off from their daily lives. Be considerate by sending save the dates eight to twelve months in advance. That will give your family and friends plenty of time to make arrangements with work, childcare and travel.

3. Avoid Travel Time Between Venues

“The timing and location of the events are crucial,” says Parham. “We definitely recommend keeping these near the hotel blocks, where the majority of guests will be staying. Keep everything within a 15-20-minute drive, ideally on the way in and out of town.”

To prevent guests from getting lost or running late, you should also try to keep things as simple as possible by minimizing the number of venues or by providing transportation between venues.

4. Create an Extra Detailed Itinerary

The biggest challenge to hosting a multiday event is not the stuff like chairs and table linens, but rather the people. The key, therefore, is communication.

Ensure every detail of your schedule – locations, times, dress codes, directions, transportation – is readily available to your guests via the invitations and your wedding website. You don’t want grandma left behind while everyone travels from the hotel to the goodbye brunch!

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