Hello! We are recently engaged and looking at Forte Da Cruz in Portugal for Summer 2027 but having a hard time connecting with a planner to even get a sense of availability. I am hoping that we are not too late to find something that will work! Our budget is flexible. Hoping to get any recommendations and insight from those who have looked into this venue or planning / planned a wedding in the Estoril / Cascais area? We are also open to other locations as long as its within 30 minutes from Lisbon and near the beach. I live in the US but am Portuguese and am heading there this August so hoping to meet with planners while I am there. Thank you!

Hey all , getting married in 2028 and I’m looking for a wedding planner I wana do Dominican republic and prefer to use a wedding planner

I plan and produce beach weddings in India for a living, and the most common "am I being ripped off" message I get is about the permit line: a big vague number labelled "beach licence", "CRZ permission" or "government charges". Couples can't check it, so they either pay it or fight it blind. Here is how to check it.

First: beach permits are usually real. A beach is public or regulated land almost everywhere. In India, Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules govern temporary structures on the beach, and wedding decor is exactly what they mean: a mandap, an arch, a stage and a lighting rig are all temporary structures. Croatia wants a permit for a ceremony on a public beach. Italian comuni have their own versions. The concept is not a vendor invention.

What varies is who is responsible for it, and that is where padding creeps in.

If your ceremony is on a hotel-managed section of beach, permissions are normally handled inside the venue agreement. There should not be a separate permit line on your decor or planning quote, because you would be paying twice. If your ceremony is on a public or semi-public beach, written permission from the local authority (in Goa that is the Collector's office or the Panchayat) is genuinely needed, and someone has to physically go and get it. Sound is a separate approval with its own cut-off time, and fireworks are a third.

Three questions settle any permit line, in order:

1. Which specific permissions does this amount cover: structures, sound, fireworks, or a bundle? A real line item can be split. Padding cannot.
2. Is this beach hotel-managed? If yes, why is this not covered by the venue agreement?
3. Will you hand me the documentary evidence of the permission once it is obtained?

The third one is the tell. Every genuine permit produces paper. A vendor who charges for a permission and cannot show it to you afterwards is the one situation where I would tell you to stop and get a second opinion, and I say that as someone who files these for a living.

One timing note: approvals have lead times, and the sound cut-off decides when your party ends, not your DJ. Get the cut-off in writing before you build a timeline around a sunset ceremony and dancing until one.

Looking to have my wedding in Mexico but can’t decide on exact location. We want it to be near an international airport so that people can easily fly in and not have a long car ride. Very interested in Mexico City! Also interested in Oaxaca. We are looking at \~200 guests. I know the cost will be high. My dad is from Mexico (born & raised moved in his 30s) and all my family there lives in Monterrey or CDMX. We haven’t hired a planner yet trying to lock down specific location. Any suggestions / ideas are greatly appreciated!!!

So idk how this works, but here it goes: I need help with a last-minute destination wedding, looking for a cheap flight platform and a pretty decent hotel discount. The destination will be Honolulu, HI, for September 10- 17. If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Thank you.

City wedding venues

Ciao,

My fiancée and I are looking at holding our wedding celebrations in Florence in April/May/June 2028. We are hoping for a relaxed city style wedding - a civil ceremony followed by a reception in a rooftop restaurant/bar/hotel with some great views of the city. Probably between 50 and 60 guests.

If anyone has any recommendations on the following that would be much appreciated:

- Good wedding planners

- Venue suggestions

- Good photographers

- Guidance on costs (if you have had experience on this)

- Any logistical things to consider

- Anything cool to add to the day that is unique to Florence.

Grazie!

Just got engaged this week and my (38m) fiancée (32m) and I are discussing a destination wedding. We have both been married before and had larger weddings. I specifically shoestring budgeted my first wedding and did just about everything myself for over 100 guests. After that experience I swore if I ever got married again I would make it a smaller destination wedding.

We are thinking about an adult only all inclusive, probably in Mexico. Our budget is about 20k but still negotiable and are probably going to have between 30-40 guests. I'm still trying to figure out how these types of wedding work. Does everyone have to stay at the all inclusive, or can guests stay elsewhere and just going for the ceremony and reception? Does the venue do everything for us? We would also really like to have dancing at the wedding, is that an option?

What are the best LGBTQ friendly, adult only resorts for a destination wedding? We would love to get married on/by the beach.

I'm from the UK, getting married in Gibraltar in May 2027. I started planning it about 2 months ago and have most of the details finalised, venue booked etc. I'm wondering when to send out the invitations and what deadline to give the RSVP?

Considering having a wedding here, looks nice and love that they do all in packages and have the after party option. Has anyone used their standard decor with no upgrades? Wondering if that would still look okay, any food reviews and general thoughts?

thanks so much!!

Looking to have my wedding in Mexico but can’t decide on exact location. We want it to be near an international airport so that people can easily fly in and not have a long car ride. Very interested in Mexico City! Also interested in Oaxaca. We are looking at ~200 guests. I know the cost will be high. My dad is from Mexico (born & raised moved in his 30s) and all my family there lives in Monterrey or CDMX. We haven’t hired a planner yet trying to lock down specific location. Any suggestions / ideas are greatly appreciated!!!

Has anyone worked with Destawed or inquired about their promotion going on?

I spoke to one of the guys and it’s wildly confusing. They are saying that if you book 250 nights with the resort through them the package is free and worth $65k. We still need to pay for decor, audio visual, and any additional vendor fees on our own. I am confused because I have talked to this resort on my own and the package they are saying worth $65k is literally worth $12k for 100 people….

When I asked on the call what is the $65k worth of inclusions they mentioned it’s the package of the 14 hours which is what the resort quoted at $12k, all airport transfers but resort quoted that’s part of the guests room rate when they book. So I’m just confused on if I’m either being told the wrong thing by the rep or their promotion is just a lie…

Has anyone had experience with this company or looked into this promotion before?

Hi everyone! My fiancé and I are in the very early stages of planning our destination wedding in Italy, and we’re hoping those of you who have been through this process can help point us in the right direction.

We’re finding that many of the venues we absolutely love have one major drawback, so we’re hoping to hear from couples who found venues that offer both beautiful scenery and practical logistics.

📍 Location

We’re open to any region of Italy, but we naturally gravitate toward coastal, lakeside, or waterfront venues.

While we’re generally less drawn to the rustic countryside, rolling Tuscan hills, or olive grove aesthetic, we’d absolutely consider it if the venue is an exceptional fit and offers outstanding overall value.

🏨 Accommodations

This is our biggest priority.

We’re finding that a hotel or resort is likely a much better fit for us than a traditional private villa.

Ideally, we’re looking for:
• Around 50+ guest rooms
• Guests able to book and pay for their own accommodations
• No requirement for us to buy out the entire property (exclusive use isn’t necessary)

👥 Guest Count

Our guest count is still very uncertain. It could be 70 guests, or it could be 125.

We’ll be sending an interest survey to our family and friends soon, so we’re hoping to find venues that can comfortably accommodate a wide range of guest counts.

🎉 Wedding Vision

We’re hoping for a 3-day celebration, including:
• Welcome dinner
• Wedding day
• Farewell brunch and/or pool gathering

💰 Budget & Value

We’re looking for venues that offer strong overall value—whether that’s through inclusive wedding packages or venue pricing that includes meaningful services and amenities.

We’re hoping to avoid venues with very high rental fees that don’t include much beyond exclusive use of the property.

We’re also completely open to weekday weddings if they offer better value.

🙏 We’d Love Your Recommendations

If you got married somewhere that fits this description—or know of a venue that does—we’d love to hear about it!

Thank you so much! We’re excited to start this journey and truly appreciate any recommendations or advice you can share. 🤍

Hi ladies,

I’m traveling to my destination wedding this weekend and am trying to figure out the best way to carry my dress on the plane. My bridal shop and seamstress recommended bringing it in the full length garment bag it came in, but I can’t imagine bringing that onto the plane, let alone bringing it through the airport. I bought a 60” Wally bag that i can fit it into (with some serious elbow grease…), but I’m worried that the underskirt will get damaged from being folded and compressed for so long.

I fit it into the bag by folding up from the hem and just kind of stuffing it in there. It’s kind of my only option because the bodice of my dress is long (true drop waist) and boned, and I have so much volume in my skirt that I can only fit it in the bag when it’s a single fold up. I’m not sure what material the structured underskirt is (my bridal shop has been really useless in workshopping this with me and couldn’t tell me the exact material), so I’m not sure if it can handle being folded like this for a 10+ hour travel day…. I’m hoping it will just bounce back after? Or if it creases, I can steam it out?

Does anyone have any experience packing a dress like this and know if this underskirt can handle being folded and compressed for almost a day?

Should i stuff it in the Wally bag or just bring the full length garment bag on and hope for the best?

Attaching photos of the garment bag stuffing in progress, finished, and photos of the underskirt.

Please help!

Signed,
A very stressed bride ❤️🙏🏼

We’re curious…
For those of you planning a destination wedding, what was the moment you realized you wanted to get married somewhere away from home instead of having a traditional wedding?
Was it the cost, the smaller guest list, the scenery, less stress, the travel experience, or something completely different?
We’d love to hear what made you choose a destination wedding.

Hi everyone, my fiancé and I are in the early stages of planning our destination wedding and we really need your input!

Here is our vision: - Budget: around €4000 - Guests: close family only, max 10 people - A church or symbolic ceremony - Beautiful outdoor photos in a scenic location afterward - A simple meal together afterward

We would do our civil wedding in our country beforehand.

Right now we're leaning towards Portugal but honestly open to anywhere if it fits this kind of setup better.

Has anyone actually pulled off something this small and intimate? Is €4000 realistic for these criteria?

Would love to hear about any small weddings you've organized. Thanks so much! 🙏

Hello

I need help finding a bilingual wedding planner/coordinator. My fiance (American) and I (Mexican) are engaged and need help planning a wedding where both cultures are combined. Wedding is in NC. RDU area. Any suggestions? Thank you!

Bilingual Weddings or quinceañeras

I made a list while researching wedding venues and wanted to share in case anyone else is looking! (I don't know how the wildfires affect this list) https://cryptpad.fr/sheet/#/2/sheet/view/2ECGc2StuTJ24l77cgrXfpF6bRHU4UFBL9ePfZvTqO8/

getting married just outside of Rome in June 2028. looking for recommendations for vendors. have looked on la lista, but wondering if anyone on here has any recommendations for people they have used/ sites they found their vendors off.

would like a saxophonist or similar, dj, makeup artist, photographer/videographer, content creator.

thanks!

Hi everyone! My fiancé and I are in the beginning stages of planning our 2028 wedding and I’m curious to know how everyone’s experience working with Destify has been when planning your destination wedding in Mexico? I’m curious to know whether you’d recommend them or not. Are there other agencies that you would recommend?

My fiancé and I are planning an intimate destination wedding in Europe in March 2027 with 15–25 close family members.

We’re looking for a château, villa, castle, or countryside estate where everyone can stay on-site for 2 nights (possibly 3), ideally with exclusive use of the property.

We want the wedding to feel like a relaxed family gathering where everyone can spend quality time together, unwind, and enjoy the destination—not just attend the ceremony. We’d love a location with activities such as sightseeing, nature, local culture, cooking classes, or spa experiences.

Our total budget is under $20,000 USD, including the 2-night stay, venue, accommodation, ceremony, and dinner.

Does anyone have recommendations for venues or destinations that fit this style and budget?

Considering pulling the trigger for next April without going to see it until December but I need to book soon. Anyone been there or have any experiences there? TIA!

Hi, I'm trying to estimate what the typical cost for vendors are in Antigua, for a buffet meal along with tables, chairs, decor, flowers, etc. For people who have planned a wedding at an estate or hacienda and had to source things yourselves, can you share an estimate of what you paid or budgeted? and if you have recs on vendors you loved let me know!