When it comes to wedding planning, discussing budget-related topics can be stressful, it may feel like spoiling the magic of the fabulous celebration that you are dreaming of. However, setting a budget and then actually sticking to it is key to have a stress-free planning experience, which is easier when you work with an experienced wedding planner.
We asked our planners at Exclusive Italy Weddings to share their best tips to help couples use their budget wisely when planning a luxury wedding in Italy.
-
Set priorities
Understanding what matters most to you and your partner will help you spend your money most effectively. We always ask couples to rank the most important wedding components, giving a score from one to five to the following aspects of the wedding: design and décor, venue and location, entertainment and music, food and drinks, activities for you and your guests. Before taking any decision, from the date to the venue of your special day, make sure you have a list of the things that are most important to you and are non-negotiable.
-
Be flexible
Your ideal venue may apply different fees for Saturdays vs weekdays, and rates in months like April, May, or October could be very good deals compared to peak months such as June, July, August, and September. If you are flexible with your date, you may save some serious money! Especially if your guests fly from outside Europe, they will likely need to take some days of vacation anyway, so your wedding falling on a Friday, Saturday or a Monday will not make a huge difference for them.
-
Focus
When it comes to florals, our best recommendation is to design a major floral statement that will leave your guests speechless rather than spreading your floral budget in multiple small arrangements here and there. Focus on the most important places and moments, especially the ceremony and tables. This doesn’t mean that you should neglect the details, they make the design! But the focal points should have a high impact.
-
Go greener
Also speaking of floral design, choosing to incorporate beautiful greenery will of course help keep costs down. Some of the most beautiful bespoke designs we created feature lots of soft, romantic greenery to create a delicate and natural style.
Lush foliage adds a lot of size and texture to the arrangements and is less expensive than a full floral piece.
-
Think local
Your Exclusive Italy Wedding planner will encourage using local vendors if they are the right fit for your style. This saves additional fees such as travel and sojourn.
Also, we care about the environment, therefore we tend to recommend using local products as much as possible, in the selection of food and beverage for the wedding reception, as well as favors for guests and local and seasonal flower varietals for the floral arrangements. We have prepared a handy guide to seasonal flowers with a list of the flowers that are in season in Italy for every month of the year.
Another way to save money is by doing like a local couple would do: serve prosecco and only a couple more drinks (like Aperol Spritz and Bellini or a Signature cocktail) at cocktail hour, only wines at dinner and leave the open bar with hard liquor for the dancing party!
-
Go digital
In recent years, it’s become popular to create a digital Save the Date instead of printing and sending Save the Date cards to guests.
When it comes to the wedding invitation suite, you could consider having a single insert directing guests to your wedding website instead of multiple cards for your other events and other important info such as travel and accommodation. Many couples opt for a digital RSVP through the wedding website.
