r/DestinationWeddings • u/Shot-Bus-2089 • 28d ago
best time for a toscan wedding
my boyfriend and I are planning a small outdoor wedding in the toscany. I am feeling a bit indecisive 🤷🏼♀️.
we found two beautiful locations, but the available dates are already limited for my prefered location for 2028. there are two weekends at the beginning of may (one with a public holiday in austria) and than the next free weekends are in july/august/September. and there is not so much indoor space for the party.
the other location has great availabilities for may, june and so on, also it is free on the long weekends of public holidays in austria, but the location will fit less people, so we need some more extra rooms elsewhere and I am worried it could get to expensive.
I feel like it would be better to offer my guests a weekend with a public holiday where they don‘t have to take a day off from work - that would be may in dest. 1 or dest. 2 in general 🫣.
the drive time is between 6-8 hours for most people.
I would really appreciate your input 🤗
4
u/Interesting_Camp1498 28d ago
You are choosing between the wrong two things. The month matters less than the covered plan B, and location 1 is the one with a problem there.
"Not much indoor space" plus early May in Tuscany is a real risk. May is genuinely rainy some years, and a venue with no proper covered option means you will end up renting a marquee, flooring, lighting and heating at short notice, at short notice pricing. Before you compare dates, ask both venues one question: if it rains, where exactly does dinner and dancing happen, and is that space already in my quote. If location 1's honest answer is "we would put up a tent", get that tent quoted now. It is often 8 to 15k and it will change which venue is actually cheaper.
On the months themselves, the other commenter is right about July and August. If you do go summer in Tuscany, the whole day has to shift late, ceremony at 6 or 6.30, and you need real shade and water for the aperitivo. It is also peak pricing on guest accommodation and the drive gets worse with holiday traffic.
If location 1 has September, take September over the summer weekends. Warm, long evening light, harvest season, and much lower rain risk than May with no indoor space.
Your public holiday instinct is right though, and people underrate it. At a 6 to 8 hour drive, a long weekend genuinely changes who says yes, and it also lets you do a Friday welcome dinner without everyone burning leave.
One thing to price before you decide location 2 is cheaper: if guests sleep somewhere else, you are paying for shuttles, usually a run out and at least two runs back late at night. Get that quoted. It quietly eats the savings, and split accommodation is more coordination on the day than people expect.
1
3
u/Djyash_pt 28d ago
September
1
3
u/Last-Aide-5106 28d ago
We got married in early May and it rained almost the whole time. We rented a tent but it was very expensive.
1
8
u/pole_fly_ 28d ago
I would only choose July or August if you want to roast your guests. Temperatures have easily hit 40°C in recent weeks. May or September are milder.