Cost of Wedding Day Coordinator

amwong22 · March 2012

Hi All,

Just wondering what is the average cost of a wedding day coordinator. I really only need them for the day, and most of the packages I have seen include 2 months of planning/timeline assistance for the wedding day. I have looked into Milestone Weddings and Hawaii Weddings and Events, and they are both around $1500. I know they are one of the best, but not sure we want to spend that much as we are getting married at the JW Marriott, and we will also have a banquet manager and team coordinator from the hotel helping us out. But they did recommend we have a day coordinator to help facilitate with all the other vendors. Any recommendations of day coordinators and average prices would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

janeash · March 2012

We are paying $950 for ours (Tropical Maui Weddings). That includes all the wedding planning though, as well as an officiant, bride/groom leis, marriage license, etc. I know they had a cheaper package that was just "day of" for around $400-$500 though.

So far they have been really good.

destiny1108 · March 2012

when we researched, there was a big range in pricing but also a big difference in experience levels as well. When looking into hotels we found that the catering person will help finalize the menu, beverages and layout for the room but they do not help with creating your wedding day timeline, reconfirming vendors or make sure that your vendors are on time or keeping you on time with your program.

We ended up at a private estate, but besides everything else, our WC also packed up rental vases and returned them to the florist for us, returned a cupcake stand we rented and also table runners to save us pick-up costs from all three vendors.

bbakerrd · March 2012

Destiny,

Would you mond sharing your WC's name?

I've been looking for a coordinator for the day and have founf them to be very expensive.....$1500 fir 1 day!

Mahalo!

destiny1108 · March 2012

bbakerrd, we used Dianna from Hawaii Weddings and Events. We had full service, but she had "day of" packages as well which she explained that they start two months out as they need the time to double check all details, contracts and develop timeline that is realistic while reconfirming vendors. She saved us money in several areas that we would have never thought of, including the "pick up" fees at the end o the night which would have had to pay someone to do as we were leaving for our honeymoon on next day. She also had rental items of her owns (candles, frames, beverage containers, cake knife and server, etc. that saved us from having to buy/rent or ship these items.

amwong22 · March 2012

Thanks for the tips everyone. I've asked for a few more quotes from the recommended vendors that our hotel has suggested, but it seems like $1500 is the going rate. Some are even charging over $2000 for the day.

I have heard so many good things about Dianna, I think we may just go with her. I also like the fact they have their own rental items...

Destiny, do they charge you extra for all the rental items on top of the coordination fee?

bbakerrd · March 2012

Maybe I should move to Hawaii and be a wedding coordinator. They get paid a lot of money for the small amount of work they do!

noreenchiu · March 2012

I've also been debating whether or not to hire a DOC for months. I had contacted a few people, including Dianna from Hawaii Wedding Events, and found them all to be quite expensive, considering it's just for one day.

Here is one person I found (I think through someone's posting here) that seems to be cheaper: http://www.gayleweddings.com/dayof.htm. The price estimate for a wedding at a hotel without a change of location starts at $550 - that's the lowest price I've seen. I haven't contacted her though, so I don't know how good she is.

noreenchiu · March 2012

Oh and I'm not sure if you can get rental items from them when you just want a DOC. I think rental items might only be included if you get full planning services?

destiny1108 · March 2012

amwong22: As we did full service the rental items were included, but she had some packages that included a rental "credit" and most prices listed were half (or less) of what it would have cost to buy things We originally were going to buy some things and ship them until we found out how much it cost to ship things to Hawaii (crazy!!!)

bbakerrd · March 2012

The best price I found was $800. That includes and assistant and their lodging at Turtle Bay. They need to spend the night for a wedding that starts at 2:00PM because Turtle Bay is "very far away."

I'm only having 50 people attend my wedding. Maybe I could go without a "day of" coordinator???

Any suggestions?

destiny1108 · March 2012

bbakerd, depends on your set-up and iif you have friends or family to help while you are getting your hair and make-up done and taking pictures. Given all of our family and friends were traveling and paying their way to Hawaii we didn't want them to have to work on our wedding day

noreenchiu: a day-of actually is not only for tthe day of unless you are just hiring someone to do set-up, the same way that your photographer's time is not just 8 hours but many hours after the wedding day. Timeline preparation, vendor reconfirmation, pre-meeting, pick up of our wedding items, rehearsal, day wedding day, pick-up/return of some items back to vendors, emergency kit, etc.

jodiejulybride · March 2012

I agree with destiny1108, a good DOC doesn't just work one day, but invest a lot of hours into checking the details, preparing a timeline, communicating with vendors involved, calming you down, etc. It may seem like a lot of money, but I think the peace of mind knowing that someone is there who cares about your wedding almost as much as you do, is priceless!

amwong22 · March 2012

Still looking for a day of coordinator. I am leaning more and more towards either Dianna at Hawaii Weddings & Events, just because I have only seen great reviews about her, and the ability to rent items from them is definitely a plus. I am also checking into Season's of Life Events, but they seem like they are ven more pricey... I am a bit scared of hiring the right Wedding Coordinator now seeing all the posts about horrible wedding coordinators lately. Has anyone ever used Season's of Life Events?

totopuffster · March 2012

I am getting married on Kauai and just hired a Day-Of coordiantor for $600 ($450 for Day of Wedding, $150 for Rehearsal on the day before). So far I am very happy I hired her and it's been SUCH a breath of fresh air to work with a good coordinator who is responsive, proactive, and detail-oriented. Word of advice: find yourself a good one and it will save you a lot of heartache and headache!

I am getting married at the St. Regis Princeville and the wedding coordinator at the hotel has not done much or made me feel like she cared about my wedding as much as the Day-Of has shown within a few days of hiring her. It upsets me because we are spending so much money at the hotel... and it's the St. Regis, it's suppose to provide GREAT service. Anyway bottom line... find a good coordinator.

It's worth it.

Sandy

Cost of Wedding Day Coordinator

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