Some Advice for Planning Your Greek Wedding: Budget and Forethought

As I previously stated, having a destination wedding takes a little more forethought and organisation.  Working out  your budget and sticking to it is also going to take a little more work as you will probably not know what the going rate for suppliers is.  The best way to gauge this is get at least 3 quotes for things and compare the prices.  Obviously having your wedding abroad will reduce your numbers more than if you were having it at home and this can be a godsend to your budget.  The downside to it is you are going to have to factor in any reckie trips you take out there and more transport costs.

The key to all of this is good research and organisation.  If you have a friend who has got married in Greece or knows someone who has, ask them if you can have a look at their planning file/book.  This could give you a good indication of what is needed and how much it may cost.
Help keep costs down by planning your wedding in the off season or at least the low season.  This will reduce accommodation and flight costs and may also affect the price of your suppliers.  I got married on the cusp of the low/mid season and this cut E100's off the prices of our accommodation and transport.
Another factor to look at is if you are going to freight anything out to your wedding.  This can end up being a lot cheaper than purchasing it on the ground but you need to check what customs rules there are and any strike actions that may be going on across Europe (if you are shipping from the UK a french strike is going to affect your freight time).

Image from The Life of Brian

Now I know I am making this all sound a little like hard work, it is not but it does entail some planning.  If you get your ducks in a row early it will lead to a much smoother process and therefore less stress.  Keeping as close in budget as you can can be hard when you get carried away with the excitement of the moment.  Try and keep a cool head and remember the Greeks like to haggle so don't be afraid to try and knock the price down a little.  Most of our final quotes were at least the 2nd or 3rd drafts and we finally got what we were wanting at a price that we deemed reasonable, so don't be shy because the suppliers certainly won't!

Most importantly, enjoy the process.  When all your hard work and planning comes together into an amazing wedding it makes it all worth while!

NY