The appeal of a destination wedding can be irresistible. Planning weddings around holidays makes sense—many people have more time off work during the holidays and kids are out of school. But keep in mind that also means that guests may have their plans set already.
Letitia Baldrige, a D.C.-based etiquette expert for more than 50 years (she served as Jackie Kennedy’s social secretary and chief of staff from 1961 to 1963), thinks timing is key. “I think destination weddings are great provided you realize most people will be unable to come, so pick a weekend that would be easy for the greatest number of people to attend, which requires many telephone calls and a great deal of time on your part.”
Baldrige suggests couples choose a day when their guests will not be inexorably bound to a family event, which unfortunately rules out some holidays. “In other words, stay away from Christmas, New Year’s, Easter, the Jewish High Holidays, and Ramadan,” she said. “Of course, if you only planned this to be a small family event, you will not have trouble with the dates.” With that in mind, Labor Day and Memorial Day are also questionable—not to mention big competition with other weddings and high travel costs.
All said, communication and consideration is key when planning a destination wedding around any holiday. If you choose to do so, at least be sure you account for planning every minute of your guests stay, Baldrige says. “So they won’t feel they’re wasting precious vacation time they could spend in a place they care about a lot more.”