Budget Planning Tips And Total Cost Breakdown For Destination Weddings in India

Wedding Venue: Jai Mahal Palace, Photography: The Wedding Story Official

Destination weddings in India are like a long holiday with friends and family. Fun, celebration, and an exotic location to boot! However, planning the cost of a destination wedding can be tricky. Arranging the budgets for accommodation, wedding vendors, caterers, travel, bridal make-up artists, florists, and all other necessary aspects adds up when planning a destination wedding cost and indexing a budget.

The minute one hears the word "destination," they assume it will be a very costly affair! However, that is not always true! Even if you wish to take your vows on a scenic beach in India, amidst the mountaintop of a cosy hotel in a hill station in Mussoorie, or in a boutique resort near your city, there are ample ways to plan a destination wedding on a budget. A destination wedding is always planned and not an overnight affair. If you make it an overnight affair, you will pay a lot more than expected. The location can be as serene as the white sands of Malaysian beaches or as regal as the forts in Udaipur and Jaipur, and all of it can be done within an estimated budget if planned the right way and at the right time. Speaking of average destination wedding costs, Anam Zubair, Director of B2C Marketing at WeddingWire India, shares, "The trend toward destination weddings is rising internationally and in India. According to trusted sources, approximately 15–20% of weddings globally are estimated to be destination weddings. Within India, this trend is growing significantly, with around 20–25% of weddings being destination-based. Average spending can vary widely based on location, guest count, venue choice, and services required. In India, a destination wedding can range from INR 20 lakhs to several crores, depending on the scale and luxury desired. Internationally, costs can go even higher due to travel, accommodation, and other expenses associated with hosting a wedding away from home."

In this article:

1. Destination Wedding Budget Planning Tips

2. How to Find Destination Wedding Vendors in India 

3. How to Plan a Destination Wedding on Budget

4. Best Destination Wedding Locations in India with Costs

From keeping tabs on the guest list to making bookings way in advance to save those extra bucks, we enlist some ways for you to have the destination wedding of your dreams and also save some extra bucks with these destination wedding cost factors that affect it the most!

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Destination Wedding Budget Planning Tips

To plan a fool-proof destination wedding, you must consider various aspects of planning a flawless wedding ceremony. The work that goes into planning is tedious, and every task comes at a cost that must be considered suitable from the first stage of planning the wedding. You must wonder why considering every detail is necessary to prepare a budget for a destination wedding. The answer is to avoid nasty surprises like an overflow in the expected wedding budget owing to miscellaneous expenditures, to be well-prepared with the plans, to be one step ahead, etc.

Various factors will influence your destination wedding costs, and we have identified some major deciding factors in the list below.

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Destination wedding cost factors:

Wedding Venue: The Leela Palace Udaipur, Decor: RashiNidhi Events

Location and Venue

The location and the venue in that location are probably two of the most prominent factors that will affect the cost of your destination wedding.

• Make sure your location is easily accessible by various means of transportation, such as by road, railway, or air. This will prevent any lavish transport arrangements from one city to another. If the process and the route are convenient, you can also rely on some guests to make travel arrangements.
• Try to pick a location that is "naturally pretty and aesthetic", so you do not spend much of your wedding budget enhancing the facade of the area and property you have picked for your destination wedding.

Season and Time

Indian weddings mainly occur during the saaya season, a time considered auspicious for hosting wedding ceremonies by the spiritual and religious calendars. Now, the non-Saya season also has specific wedding dates when you can tie the knot, and you can do it mostly at lower prices than usual.

• Every place in the country and abroad has a season when it receives or anticipates maximum footfall. These peak seasons are when almost everything is sold out and booked, so planning a wedding in a given location can be a task unless you have started planning well to be on top of everything.
• Before you start planning your wedding budget, you have to consider the season and time of your wedding. If it is during the peak Saya season, then you might have to keep a higher wedding budget in mind, while a non-Saaya season or day wedding can often cost less and thus require a lower destination wedding cost.

Travel and Stay 

Destination weddings always require travel and accommodation. During the residential wedding planning process, the only expenses are the venue's rent, F&B, and accommodation for the handful of guests coming from various cities to your wedding. Travel and accommodation costs are mandatory when it is a destination wedding.

• It would be best to consider the destination wedding costs depending on the location's distance from you and your guests' residence. You will also have to decide whether or not you will be covering your guests' travel and stay costs fully or partially. Destinations, where you must take a flight rather than a train, bus, or drive by car, might cost you more.
• Regarding the stay part, you will have various options, like staying in different venues or staying at the same venue as your main wedding venue. How much would it cost per person for either of the methods? This will impact the cost of your destination wedding.

Length of Guest List

The number of guests you invite almost always affects the total wedding cost, whether a destination or a residential wedding.

• The number of people on your guest list will determine the per-head cost and, therefore, the overall price you will have to spend on food and beverages (F&B), accommodation expenses, travel costs, etc.
• With a long list of people on your guest list, you can probably opt for a wholesale rate or prepare a small guest list for an intimate wedding and invest the budget in an unforgettable experience.

Wedding Vendors

The amount you pay each wedding vendor also impacts the destination wedding cost.

• Whether you are looking to hire local vendors or vendors ready to travel to your destination, a lump-sum amount goes into this aspect of destination wedding planning.
• If you are looking forward to hosting a destination wedding on a budget, you can source vendors in and around your destination to avoid transportation costs.

Once you have considered the above aspects, your destination wedding costs will be more precise, and you can plan a more organized wedding budget that will not take you by surprise or burn an unexpected hole in your pocket.

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Estimated Cost Break-up for a Destination Wedding*

Zubair shares, "Estimating the cost breakdown for a destination wedding can vary widely based on several factors, like location, guest count, duration of the celebration, and the specific services desired. It's essential to note that these percentages can fluctuate based on preferences, priorities, and the specific demands of the couple. Some may prioritize photography or entertainment over decor, while others focus more on the venue and accommodation. The overall cost breakdown varies significantly based on personal choices and the scale of the wedding."

All Events’ Venues + Catering Rental: We recommend allocating 45–50% of your wedding budget to venues and catering rentals for all functions. This can increase if you are planning a destination wedding further away from your hometown and have multiple accommodations to arrange. 

Wedding Jewelry: Purchasing wedding jewellery for the bride and groom is the next most significant investment. We suggest keeping this budget separate from the wedding planning budget or allocating a minimum of 15–18% of your budget to this cost.

Honeymoon: Approximately 4–6% is suggested for honeymoon planning. We encourage couples to explore deals or negotiate with airlines or hotels for discounts to help minimize costs for themselves.

Venue Decoration: This call is subjective and depends entirely on the couple's preference and vision. The ideal split for budget destination weddings should be around 5-7%, but some couples might also choose to go all out and spend 10-15% on thematic decor.

Photography and Videography: We suggest allocating 10–13% for pre-wedding or engagement shoots, wedding photography, wedding videography, and albums, owing to the importance of investing in professional services to capture timeless memories.

Wedding Planning: Allocate no more than 5-8% for a wedding planner's fee. It’s an invaluable role, considering destination weddings require logistical planning, negotiating deals with local vendors, and a seamless and stress-free guest management and wedding experience. Still, it can be a considerable cost and needs to be planned well.

Bridal and Groom accessories: This is another subjective choice and depends on the bride's and groom's preferred brands and designers for their wedding day. We suggest keeping this budget separate from the planning costs. On average, this should be around 5% for all events and can be increased if the wedding guest list is small.

Entertainment: WeddingWire India might suggest allocating around 5–10% for entertainment, advising couples to consider local talent or entertainment options to infuse a unique cultural touch while keeping costs reasonable.

Bridal Makeup and Mehndi: Brides should limit this budget to 3–5% to make room for other investments, such as invitations, wedding favours, transportation, ceremonial spending, priests', family, and in-laws' gifts, etc. 

*We highly recommend using the wedding budget calculator to get personalized estimates for cost breakdowns per your total wedding budget. 

How to Find Destination Wedding Vendors in India 

The easiest way to find destination wedding venues in India on any budget is to download the WeddingWire India app and check out our comprehensive list of wedding venues in popular cities nationwide. 

Tailored Search: Our platform provides a tailored search option, allowing you to filter different types of venues according to your requirements. You can find banquet halls, top-rated hotels in your preferred city, wedding lawns, farmhouses, and marriage gardens for open-air weddings, kalyana mandapams, and wedding resorts for destination weddings. You can filter your search based on your budget constraints. You can specify your budget range, preferred location, and desired services to narrow down options that align with your financial plan.

Vendor Storefronts: WWI has an array of wedding vendors, such as decorators, photographers, caterers, bridal makeup artists, mehndi artists, and more.

Wedding Budget Calculator: Couples can use our budget calculator to plan their entire budget in one place. The calculator breaks down total wedding costs into required wedding venue and vendor booking categories and other planning tasks. It further helps to find venues and vendors within the determined budget.

Expert Guidance: We have a team of dedicated experts who follow up on all new queries received on WWI and help brides and grooms in their planning journey.

Real Reviews and Ratings: Access real reviews and ratings from couples who have hosted weddings at different venues. This aids in decision-making and helps you understand the value for money that various locations can offer.

How to Plan a Destination Wedding on Budget

Wedding Venue: Jai Mahal Palace, Photography: The Wedding Story Official

Here are some things to keep in mind if you want to plan a destination wedding on a budget:

1. Pick an off-beat location. Famous wedding destinations tend to be priced at a higher rate owing to their popularity.
2. Plan a wedding during the off-season. This allows a window for the vendors to charge less than their usual saaya season packages.
3. Book your stay in the same venue as the events. This usually results in an incredible discount on the packages quoted by the venue and added fun.
4. Keep the guest list crisp; if that means keeping it short, then so be it. A guest list of 50–100 people in India for a destination wedding is economical.
5. Start making the bookings ASAP—at least a year before the wedding for venues and vendors and six months before the travel dates for tickets.
6. Book in bulk to take advantage of those fancy discounted rates. Anything last-minute will cost you a bomb when you consider destination wedding costs.
7. Do not try to accommodate too many events or days at your destination wedding to fit it into a pocket-friendly budget.
8. Plan everything down to the last detail, whether the number of welcome drinks each guest gets or the kind of flowers used for the decor.
9. Minimal decor elements can cut down on your destination wedding costs. Pick local decor vendors who work near the venue and can source local decor elements to avoid extra transportation costs.
10. You can even use bigger seating tables, reducing the number of centrepieces and other components involved in table decor.
11. Pick your drinks instead of keeping it an open bar if your guest list exceeds 100 people.
12. Include local food and drinks on the menu and keep it short. This prevents food waste and allows guests to enjoy what is served without dilemmas or hassles.
13. Include miscellaneous expenses, such as transporting your outfits or decor elements to the venue, unexpected guests, and a backup plan!

Best Destination Wedding Locations in India with Costs

Numerous places in India are ideal for hosting a destination wedding, and we have handpicked some of the best locations. The average cost is listed below.

Destination Wedding Costs in Goa

Goa is undoubtedly one of the best places in India for you to host a destination wedding. If you are looking for wedding venues by the beach with the salty wind in your hair while you walk down the aisle looking ethereal, Goa is it. It offers a variety of locations, and the old-world charm of the Portuguese roots that Goa flaunts is an added USP. For an ideal destination wedding in Goa, the cost would be between INR 15,00,000 and INR 70,00,000.

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Destination Wedding Costs in Jaipur

The budget depends on how simple or lavish you want your wedding celebrations. The guest list plays a very significant role here. However, we have also heard of couples who have planned an intimate wedding with less than 50 people in Jaipur and have had to spend INR 40 lakhs or more. On the other hand, couples have often planned a pocket-friendly wedding in Jaipur for less than INR 10 lakhs. While these costs are highly variable based on multiple factors, an average of INR 30 lakhs can be considered a minimum wedding budget for a destination wedding in Jaipur with 100–150 guests.  The destination wedding costs in Jaipur can go up to INR 90,00,000.

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Destination Wedding Costs in Udaipur

A popular destination for weddings in India, Udaipur is embedded with a royal ambience, and the forts and palaces will make for a great wedding venue. A fairytale wedding needs a regal backdrop for executing the perfect plan, and when you are working on the destination wedding costs in Udaipur, you will be looking at somewhere between INR 20,00,000 and INR 1 crore. The INR 20 lakh packages would accommodate a guest list of 100 people. For anything more, a royal fort or palace wedding lasting more than one day can cost up to INR 1 crore.

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"Apart from the places mentioned above, some destinations are growing in demand this year primarily because of their scenic beauty, unique ambience, and ability to provide a distinctive backdrop for weddings," shares Zubair. "The trending destinations 2024 couples can explore include Dehradun, Rishikesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lavasa, and Mussoorie."