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Hawaii

Wedding Planner?

Hey ladies,

So I have another question. lol  We have decided to get married in Maui. We are only going to have a 15-25 people there. I was wondering if it would be worth working with a wedding coordinator. I have always thought that coordinators would only be useful for big weddings. Now I’m starting to see that being so far away from my venue and since I have never been there before, a wedding coordinator might be useful.

I was wondering what all the ladies who used coordinators thought? Do you think it was worth it? Also we don’t have a huge budget, so is working with a coordinator still budget friendly? Last but not least, any recommendation?

Thanks!

Re: Wedding Planner?

  • edited December 2011
    Have you picked your venue?  Some locations require coordinators due to insurance coverage.  Honestly, if it were not for the insurance piece, I think we could have pulled off our wedding without a coordinator.  However, we had the luxury of seeing the location before we booked.  I think the one place she came in most handy was just taking care of things behind the scenes on the day of.  I just didn't have to think about anything and that was wonderful.

    I think the value depends on the type of coordinator that you book.   You don't need to pay thousands of dollars to get help booking basics (eg, chairs) and day-of support.  Ours was a few hundred.

    I'm happy to recommend ours (Pacific Island Weddings) but I would clarify that I think she focuses on lower budget weddings -- her prices are very reasonable, but you also get what you pay for.  I haven't written my review post yet, but for example, our dance floor was like soggy cardboard that buckled as you walked and I tripped on it a few times. 
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  • breanessbreaness member
    Fifth Anniversary 1000 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    We are using a coordinator and there's only going to be 6 guests outside of FI and I. I feel like it's absolutely necessary if you can't get out there before the wedding. If you can make a trip and meet with your vendors beforehand you could do without, but even in that case you may still want one.

    It has been an absolutely painless process using a wedding coordinator and it was really affordable. Our package was a great price, including officiant, flowers, hair & makeup, hair trial, hair for my mom, beach fee, keepsake wedding certificate, etc. we are paying less than $600. It was awesome for me to do this because then we can spend our money on a great photographer, and we're bringing one from home. We could also then afford to pay the way for Steve's Dad who couldn't come otherwise.

    AND since I don't have to worry about the stress of planning the wedding (I swear this was too easy) I can focus on the AHR :)

    HTH!
  • maui2011maui2011 member
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    As tanq said it really depends on where you plan to have your ceremony and reception...i would make a decision on this first...plus i would also add how much time you are willing to invest.  Some venues have onsite coordinators as well. If you plan to have a beach wedding...the pro to a coordinator is most everything you need can be included in a package, however you may have to select from their preferred vendors.  With the help of this board i think you can easily plan a beach wedding yourself. If you would like to get married at a private estate then i would definitely recommend a coordinator...even just day of...to ensure everything runs smoothly as there are so many factors involved. HTH! J. :-)
  • cryssvcryssv member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I've never been to Maui and although I'm having a very simple beach wedding with no actual reception (same guest numbers as you) I didn't want the hassles of weeding through who was worth using and obtaining permits and what not.

    I used a coordinator and although i haven't seen my final outcome yet, I definitely recommend it. I feel completely at ease that everything is taken care of in a place I've never actually seen with my own two eyes in person. I feel for the total price of everything, I probably could have paid more doing it on my own for just the photographer alone. I've scoped out the photographers website and seen knotties pics who have used this particular photographer through the coordinator I chose so I'm pretty confident I'm getting my money's worth.
    Photographer, officiant, flowers, permit, license, coordination (+ extra photography and flowers added onto our package) all for under $1000.
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  • lamoureux86lamoureux86 member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I used Weddings of Hawaii and, like the others, have found that for the price and the stress-free feeling I have (like breaness said, the whole process has been almost TOO easy!) it is definitely worth it. I live in Hawaii and I used a planner, if I were out-of-state I would DEFINITELY use one. My experience with Weddings of Hawaii has been great so far!
  • carrieoz_76carrieoz_76 member
    2500 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    With a WC, think about it this way - you're paying for peace of mind.  We had a beach wedding with 29 guests on Maui, went with a WC, and were very very glad that we did.  Review in bio.  We could have planned this ourselves (read: I could have planned it myself), but it was worth it to us not to have to worry about every single detail ourselves.  Our vendors were all fabulous, our day was as much of a breeze as a wedding day can be, and even when we changed the ceremony location (!), the WC dealt with any last-minute snafus - I was happily ignorant of them.  It was most definitely worth it.

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