Save the dates?

Blondy214

I'm trying to figure out when a good time to send out save the dates is. I keep seeing anywhere from 3 months to 1 year in advance. 

I read somewhere online that a "destination wedding" is any wedding that requires the bride and groom stay in a hotel (as in, its too far away from home to travel there and go back home). With that definition, our wedding is a destination wedding (about 3 hours from home). Everyone who is coming to my wedding is going to have to stay in a hotel so I want to make sure I give everyone who we really want to be there enough time to make travel arrangements. 

What do you ladies think? Have any of you send out save the dates yet?

audrewuh

In Response to Re:Save the dates?:[QUOTE]I will be mailing my STD's on August 1 for my April 6, 2013 wedding day. Then my invites December 1 with RSVP dae of FEB 14, 2013.nbsp; Posted by LesaAdams[/QUOTE]

Lesa, your rsvp need only be two weeks before your wedding date. The absolute earliest you should ever send out your invites is 10 weeks, and that's for a true destination wedding. 8 weeks until the wedding day is plenty of time.

Once again, slow your roll. Good timeline for your STD.

erbear84

I plan on sending my save the dates at the beginning of the fall for my April 6 wedding, around September.  Invites at the end of January to give two months to RSVP.

Christine9866

I plan on sending out my STDs in early September...from what I heard 6-9 months  months prior to the wedding is typical. I don't know if I would go earlier then that...We are taking our e-pics in June and we plan on using a picture from the e-pics for our STDs so it is perfect turn around to get our e-pics back. We plan on sending out out wedding invitations out at the end of January, with an RSVP date for sometime in march. ( our date is april 5) most vendors need a head count 2 weeks before your day. So we might pick a date sooner then the two weeks just in case we need to call any of our guests that did not return the response card... (you never know!)

ChiGirl2013

I've already ordered mine and they will be going out as soon as I get them.  We're having a destination wedding and everyone will have to fly, except for 1 friend who lives closer to our destination.  My family is not rolling in the dough by any means, and can't just cough up a couple grand in a month or two. 

With a destination wedding, it is also very common to have an RSVP date earlier than 2 weeks.  The reason for that is because it is SO hard to determine how many guests will come.  At home, you can expect 3/4 of your guests to show, but a DW can be anywhere from 5% to 100%.  It's REALLY hard to plan for things like cake servings, favors, rehearsal dinner options, etc so it's perfectly OK to ask for an earlier RSVP date that correlates with when your caterer/baker/venue needs your final head count.  Our RSVP date will be about 8 weeks before the wedding as well, because we need final counts in to our venue 6 weeks ahead of time (so they know which room to put us in and what our minimum will be, based on which room we have.)  I figure that considering people have to buy plane tickets, make hotel/rental car reservations, and take time off work, they'll know 8 weeks in advance whether or not they're coming.

LesaAdams

Well one problem with needing our RSVPs back by Febuary is my venue wants the month of March to fine tune our menu. We are having chicken, halibut or vegan options.  Our RSVP's will have the menu option and # of each needed. So, I think STD's for August and my invites January 1st. Then Feb 14 for our guest list to be in. That should be plenty long enugh for our Detroit guests to figure out if they can make it Cali. We need to do seating, menu and favors, hotel arrangements for our spa guests etc.. There is so much going into it. My biggest issue right now is my dress. I don't know about you guys but I feel like this year is going to fly by! 

Blondy214

Thanks for all the advice! I just ordered them. I figured that it will take a few weeks to get them, and then collecting addresses will take a while. And so will actually finding the time to sit down and address the envelopes. I think I'll probably send them out sometime over the summer. I'm so excited to have them ordered! The 2nd big thing I can check off my list