Destination Weddings Discussions

Destination Wedding Cost Division?

Hi All,

New to the board, so thanks for looking! I am getting next year in my mother's home country (Mexico) and we have gotten to the point that we need to talk about dividing costs. My fiancé and I are just starting off financially, so our parents were lovely enough to offer to pitch in. Question is, how are destination weddings divided in cost? I find tons of articles on what the groom's side traditionally pays for local weddings, but no guidelines for destination ones. We do not want to do thinks thoroughly by the book, but would appreciate at least a guide.

Any advice?

Thanks!

Re: Destination Wedding Cost Division?

  • We are paying for our own wedding so I am not sure how that works but I don't think in these times there is really a division of costs. I think most brides and grooms pay for their own weddings and parents sometimes offer to pitch in what they can but I don't think it matters who pays for what. I would just graciously accept any help they are willing to give.

     

  • I've never heard of a break-out beyond really old-school traditional, which seems incredibly out-of-date for most families/couples today.  Let them initiate telling you how much they want to contribute.  Get a ballpark idea of what things will cost and then if they ask, you can share that.  And they can either just give you a chunk of money, or they might want to cover something specific (i.e. alcohol at the reception). 
  • Generally your guest pay for their own flight and hotel room. I don't really thing there is any set in stone cost division though. Fiance and I are going just the two of this so I do not really have any specific division of cost information.
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  • I would say that they pay for the rehearsal dinner (if you're having one). I've also heard of groom's parents paying for the open bar. Without knowing the exact items on your list that need to be paid for, it's hard to say.
  • I don't really think most people do a division of cost any more. That's pretty old fashioned where the bride's parents pay for everything. We are paying for our wedding ourselves. If your parents or his offer you money that's great!
  • There really isn't any hard division anymore, even for traditional home based weddings. For mine, we paid for most everything ourselves. Our one financial request for our parents was to help make sure our siblings were able to attend. But, my parents did jump in a few times to pay for items (dress, photos). They had an idea of how much they wanted to contribute and just gave me money toward those items as the expenses came due. My husbands parents also chipped in on a few items as they saw fit.

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  • cml300cml300 member
    First Comment First Anniversary
    For my wedding, both of our parents contributed what they could.  They gave us the money and we used it to pay expenses as they arose.  When we had a better sense of what different vendors cost, we were able to tell our parents what their contributions went toward.  For example, the amount my husband's family put in ended up covering the rehearsal dinner and the day-after brunch.  My parent's contribution paid for the catering at the wedding.  
  • For our DW, rather than splitting out chunks of money, we did it by items and it worked really well. For example, my parents paid for the ceremony and reception dinner, my husbands family paid for the alcohol and favours, we paid for the flowers and pre - wedding entertainment, fireworks, and so on. It was doubly successful as the people who paid for certain things got to have the satisfaction of actually seeing their contribution in the form of something specific.
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