U.S. Wedding Travel

Over the last few months, we have been traveling back and forth to Europe quite a bit. Through our travels, we’ve met many young people from Europe traveling to the U.S. for destination weddings.

If you think about it, it makes perfect sense. In the U.S., there are more locations, more options, more venues and more vendors. Given the weaknesses of the U.S. dollar against the Euro, it’s also a lot cheaper for them (although the dollar has bounced back a little over the last two months).

With that said, there are big changes to the U.S. Visa Waiver Program coming tomorrow. The Visa Waiver Program is for residents of certain countries to travel to the U.S. without a visa – mostly Western European countries.

Effective tomorrow, if you are part of the Visa Waiver Program (i.e., you don’t need a visa to travel to the U.S.), you must still register with the U.S. Government. This new registration system is called ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). You can fill the form out on the Internet and approvals take seconds. Once completed, you will be able to travel to the U.S.

The program is designed to give U.S. law enforcement more time to screen for potential terrorists. Unfortunately, this means it takes more time for non-U.S. residents to enter the U.S. (and more hassles).

If you are thinking about a destination wedding in the U.S., you should be aware of this additional step you will need to go through. And if you are a destination wedding vendor in the U.S., you should consider mentioning this to your foreign clients so they aren’t caught by surprise.

Economics Favor U.S. Destination Weddings

It’s no secret that the U.S. has been leading the global economy into a worldwide slowdown (or recession). As such, the U.S. dollar is at near lows against other major world currencies. So how does this impact destination weddings?

The first impact is that it is much more expensive for U.S. couples to have destination weddings overseas, or at least in countries where the currencies are not pegged to the U.S. dollar (like the Bahamas, etc.). If money is a consideration for couples, they should think about having their destination wedding here in the U.S.

But the good news (at least for wedding vendors) is that this makes the services of wedding providers in the U.S. much cheaper for those in other countries. We were returning from Europe at the end of June and there were several women on the plane coming to the U.S. to buy wedding dresses. European couples can also stay in the U.S. and have a very economic destination wedding.

Your wedding is one of the most important days in your life. However, financial considerations do impact your wedding decisions, so plan carefully.

Italian Weddings – Overview

Few things in this world could be more romantic than a destination wedding in Italy. The country's natural beauty, rich cultural history, and fantastic food lend itself perfectly to a destination wedding.The country is quite easy to navigate, but having a specialist assist you could be a tremendous assistance, especially working with vendors.

Planning your season is crucial. We were there in early June and it was already starting to get warm, especially in the South. By July or August, we imagine it could be unbearable. But late Spring and early Fall would be particularly nice.

Italy has a rich and varied geography. Do you want a mountain wedding in the lake region or Dolomites? Or is a quiet Tuscan villa more your style? Do your research carefully and pick the style that suits your personality best.

We will review specific regions in future postings.

European Destination Weddings

We have been quiet over the last few weeks because we have been in Europe investigating destination weddings there.

We will be posting more information about European destination weddings in the coming days.

European Weddings - An Overview

When some people think romantic destination weddings, they look to European locations like Tuscany, France and other areas. Getting married in a beautiful hillside village can provide a memorable start to your life together.

We are currently in Italy learning about European destination weddings. This type of wedding lends itself to eloping or very small groups (just parents and siblings, etc.). European weddings are very different than a resort in the tropics where your guests are catered to. Logistics and language considerations can present major challenges.

For these reasons, it is also very important to engage a local wedding planner (again, this is a local planner, not a tour operator). The planner can help arrange the details with caterers, cakes, decorations, etc.

We will review specific aspects of European weddings in the future.