Hometown vs Destination Wedding
You're either considering having a wedding at your home or, perhaps, you're considering having a destination wedding. I can say that I would be trapped in that question as well. If I were given the option to re-do my wedding, I would be totally torn between the two options. That's why I decided to do this topic, and I invited Kehrin, who also does destination weddings, to co-host this episode with me. In this episode, we're both going to give you the pros and cons of having a hometown or destination wedding. The great thing is that Kehrin and I can pretty much list them all out for you in this one talk. Grab a pen and notebook. There are so many benefits to each that you might even consider a bit of both (which Kehrin and I are both here for). In this episode, as usual, we will talk through all the things we've learned while planning over a thousand between us! No matter where you get married, your experience can be great and it should be at the forefront of what feels best to you and be decided when considering what is most important to you and your fiance.
Kehrin Hassan is an international planner and designer who founded Jet Set Wed, a Wedding and Event Design company based in South West Florida’s Gulf Coast. As a multi-published designer, her extensive experience is not inhibited by her effortless understated, and organic designs that will last the test of time. Her talents lie in discovering a client's style and recreating it in a celebratory space in a way that is absolutely their own. In her over 15 years of event experience she has designed large-scale international corporate events for a Fortune 500 company, assisted in executing celebrity weddings abroad as well as designed over 600 weddings and events from coast to coast. She works closely with her equally talented husband, Jason Teeters of Jet Set State who builds entrepreneurs from the ground up, as well as homeschools her two toddlers Marra & Kesh, named after the location in Morocco the two were married.
Kehrin has done destination weddings all over the world including Thailand, Japan, France, Canada, Hawaii, and the Caribbean. She has canvassed the world with destination weddings and it really holds a special place for her, as she is a traveler at heart, so that's where it comes from. According to Kehrin, you might be having a wedding in your hometown, but it's considered a destination wedding if the majority of your guests are traveling to get to your wedding.
Hometown Weddings:
If you have a hometown wedding, most people you know expect to be invited. Now, that can be a pro and a con, depending upon the number of guests you're planning to invite or the size of the event you're planning to have.
If you're in the time when all your friends are getting married in the same year, you might have to run into the obstacle of booking or trying to book the same venue as them if you're going the hometown route.
One of the pros of a hometown wedding is that you know the majority of the wedding industry vendors. It becomes easier to choose your salon, caterer, and the band when you're hyper-aware of the good ones in your hometown.
A hometown wedding is convenient for your grandparents.
Your guests don't have to fly, have hotel tickets so that's a lot less cost for your guests.
Typically, a hometown wedding lasts for 5-6 hours and the couple doesn't have enough time to make memories and spend time with each of their guests.
People usually don't take a day off for a hometown wedding. They come jump in from work, get ready and show up at your event. They don't detach themselves from their everyday routine and start the celebration.
One of the pros of having a hometown wedding is that it requires lesser time and can be planned without a wedding planner.
Destination Weddings:
According to Kehrin, one of the biggest obstacles to destination weddings is that the bride and the groom want their grandparents to attend the wedding and they want to make it convenient for them, which is not the case with a destination wedding where there is a lot of traveling.
A destination wedding is preferred when a couple wants to create a place for themselves that's just special for them and is not just a common venue shared by everyone else in your hometown.
Getting people out of their day-to-day atmospheres, going on an adventure, and focusing just on your wedding is one of the biggest perks of a destination wedding.
Kelly's favorite thing about a destination wedding is the quality of time you're going to get with everyone who's just there to become a part of your special event. You get to spend an entire weekend with them and make some amazing memories.
People typically take off from work for a destination wedding. They get off their flight, check in at a hotel, grab a cocktail, get ready and then show up to meet you, which is much more convenient and special.
People click more often with each other at a resort or a hotel as compared to just one venue.
You can also have pre-wedding events like welcome reception, rehearsal dinner, farewell brunches, golf outings, tennis tournaments, boat excursions, horseback riding, yoga on the beach, skiing if you're up in the mountains, hiking in the woods, and many other experiences that your guests might not have had the opportunity to enjoy.
The biggest con of having a destination wedding is the high cost of it.
There's more to planning a destination wedding than a hometown wedding as it is more logistical and you definitely need a wedding planner who is more experienced.
To listen to this podcast in it’s entirety, you can visit here.
Places to go and People to see:
Website: KellyMcWilliams.com
Instagram: @kellyamcwilliams @thisvsthatweddingpodcast
Kehrin Hassan with Jet Set Wed: Co-Hosts Website
Kehrin Hassan with Jet Set Wed: Co-Host Instagram
All Podcast Episodes: Here.