Just Engaged? A Guide to Wedding Planning Timelines

Congratulations. The ring is on, the news is out, and somewhere in the middle of it all you’re wondering how much time this actually takes.

The honest answer is that it depends entirely on which kind of wedding you’re having. An at-home wedding and a destination wedding run on genuinely different clocks, and the mistake couples make is applying one timeline to the other. Here’s both, side by side.

Relax, breathe, and enjoy every second of this wonderful, loving moment. You have plenty of time to answer all these questions. After all, this is the first day of the rest of your lives together. When the hugs and kisses of celebrating settle, we’ve designed a wedding planning timeline with tips for the many milestones you’ll want to complete for your dream wedding.

So get out your calendar, planner, and notebook and plan your big day along with us!

At-Home vs. Destination: The Timelines Compared

Milestone	At-home wedding	Destination wedding
Book the venue	9 to 12 months out	9 to 12 months, or 12 to 18 for 30+ guests in peak season
Save-the-dates	9 to 12 months	10 to 12 months. Earlier, because guests are booking flights
Book vendors	Each one separately, 9 to 12 months out	Mostly bundled into the resort package
Guest accommodation	Hotel block near the venue	Room block at the resort, booked by guests themselves
Formal invitations	3 to 6 months	3 to 4 months, with a firm RSVP date
Final guest count	1 to 3 months	6 to 8 weeks
Marriage license	1 to 3 months, at your local courthouse	Depends on the country, or handled at home if symbolic
Honeymoon	Planned and booked separately	Usually just extending your stay

The pattern worth noticing: a destination wedding front-loads the work. You commit to the venue and tell your guests earlier, and in exchange the back half is far quieter, because most of what an at-home couple is still coordinating at three months is already inside your package.

First Steps: What to Do Immediately After Getting Engaged

Wow, reality is sinking in. You are officially just engaged. After you share the exciting news with your family and closest friends, it’s time to share it with the world!

Before you begin planning your wedding in earnest, you will probably want to take a few moments to soak up your engagement. Here are a few things that you can do to celebrate the fact that you are recently engaged without ignoring the wedding planning process:

Host an engagement party or bridal shower: The event could be as simple as having some pizza and beer to toast your news or a formal affair to wine and dine your guests.

Talk to a Destination Wedding Specialist: Our Certified Destination Wedding Specialists are complimentary, and they’ll tell you what’s realistic for your guest count and dates before you commit to anything. There’s no obligation to book.

Draft a Guest List: Make a list of everyone you want to invite to your wedding. This includes researching and updating contact information for sending invitations.

Explore Wedding Venues: First, decide if you want to get married at home or plan a getaway for a destination wedding. They are both options for you to discuss.

At this time, be sure to have open and honest discussions with your future spouse about the type of wedding that you want to have and the experience that you want to provide your guests. This is the first major experience that you will be navigating together, and it’s important that your goals and dreams for the celebration align.

Destination Wedding Specialist Pro Tip: A destination wedding is more affordable than you might think. It’s actually less expensive than a traditional wedding at home. Our team has helped hundreds of couples design incredible budget-friendly, all-inclusive destination weddings and is here to help you, too.

Traditional At-Home Wedding Timeline

9 – 12 + Months Before Your Wedding

This is an exciting and very important time to start booking vendors and getting the word out about your big day. Traditional weddings require you to work closely with a wide range of vendors in your local area, many of whom are in high demand. As a result, you will want to begin the planning process as soon as possible, even if you just got engaged. Act right away because you want to secure the venue at least nine to 12 months out.

Book Your Vendors: Researching, selecting, and booking a venue and vendors is key between nine and 12 months before your wedding. You might have to sign a contract and pay a deposit to guarantee and secure availability.

Take Engagement Photos: Celebrate your engagement with photographs that you can use on your Save-The-Date mailings, bridal shower, and engagement announcements.

Go Wedding Dress Shopping: Have fun shopping for the perfect wedding dress, veil, and shoes. You may have to order your dress and have it altered when it arrives. This takes ample time.

Send Save-The-Dates: Give your potential guests plenty of time to add your wedding day to their calendar and make arrangements to attend with Save-The-Date mailings.

 

6 – 9 Months Before The Wedding

The countdown is on and so is the excitement and fun. At this point in the planning process, you will want to begin tying together all of the details for your celebration. Engage your family and friends with the following activities and events:

Plan Wedding Weekend Events: Design your wedding weekend as a fun and festive experience, including:

• Rehearsal Dinner Celebration
• After-Wedding Party and Reception
• Post-Wedding Brunches & Activities

Book Guest Accommodations & Transportation: Book a nearby hotel block of rooms for your guests.  If your ceremony is located separately from the reception or if there is limited parking, book transportation for their convenience and safety.

Order Wedding Party and Family Attire: Provide guidelines for color and style to your family and wedding party. Either ask them to order their attire or give you their specific information for you to order for them.

3 – 6 Months Before The Wedding

The countdown continues as your big day approaches. This is a crucial moment during the wedding planning process, as you will have to confirm that all of the details are set for your big day and verify that your vendors understand your vision for the event. Reality sets in as you attend to even more important details:

Order Invitations and Schedule Delivery: Select an invitation and RSVP card that is similar to your wedding color, style and theme. Order and mail between three and six months before your wedding date.

Schedule Cake Tasting: Your wedding cake is a symbol of your union and should look beautiful and taste delicious. Schedule a cake tasting with the baker to finalize these details.

Finalize Last Minute Details: Reach out to the venue, all vendors, hotels and transportation suppliers to make sure everyone is scheduled and shows up for their part.

1 – 3 Months Before The Wedding

The big day is drawing nearer, and before you know it, you will be married! In the last few months before the wedding, you will want to make sure that you finalize all of the key details. During this time period, you will want to:

Obtain a Marriage License: Schedule a visit to your local courthouse and apply for and obtain a marriage license.

Finalize RSVPs and Guest Count: The venue, caterer and hotel will need a final count by a specific deadline date.

Finalize Attire and Accessories: Connect with your family and wedding party to confirm their attire and accessories are good to walk down the aisle with you.

Destination Wedding Planning Timeline

Why Destination Weddings Are Simpler

Time flies when you’re planning a wedding, and the traditional route can get complicated fast. It’s a puzzle with a lot of separately moving pieces, each with its own contract and deposit. A destination wedding collapses most of those pieces into one package, and the honeymoon is already where you are. 

Couples are flocking to luxury resort destinations for the convenience, all-inclusive packages, and built-in honeymoon experience. Plus, a destination wedding is easily planned between nine and 12 months before the big day and is much more affordable than a traditional celebration at home.

If you are recently engaged, you know how overwhelming it can be to consider all of the details and create a vision for your wedding day. You can easily eliminate that stress by booking a destination wedding. With comprehensive planning services and convenient, full-service wedding packages, you can enjoy an engagement that is filled with joy, excitement and anticipation, rather than stress and frustration.

Destination Wedding Specialist Pro Tip: Connect with one of our friendly, expert Certified Destination Wedding Specialists who help you tailor and design the destination wedding package of your dreams. We handle everything for a seamless, stress-free wedding of your dreams.

 

RELATED: Your Destination Wedding Planning Checklist

Destination Wedding Timeline Breakdown

9 – 12 Months Before The Wedding

If you are just engaged and you know that you want to have a destination wedding, the next step is to pick a date. While there is some flexibility, it’s best to consider choosing a date at least 9-12 months out. Booking early allows you to access the best all-inclusive resorts in tropical destinations and gives you more flexibility to choose a date during the peak travel seasons, when the weather is usually the best.

Once you have set a date, it’s time to get started planning!

Choose a Destination: Research the many destinations and luxury venues that will make your wedding dreams come true. Your Certified Destination Wedding Specialist is familiar with a treasure trove of destinations and will work side by side with you to find the best one for you.

Book Travel Packages: Estimate the number of guests and book travel packages. You can decide whether or not guests are responsible for booking their own travel arrangements. (For more information about who pays for what at a destination wedding, read our handy guide.)

Confirm Wedding Date and Start Guest List: Contact your resort and confirm the wedding date is secured for you. Now it’s time to start your guest list.

6 – 9 Months Before The Wedding

Your wedding is right around the corner, and you want to make sure your family and friends are ready to celebrate in paradise with you. Even if you are just engaged, it’s important to share key details about your destination wedding with your guests, as they may need extra time to coordinate travel logistics. About 6-9 months before your destination wedding, you will want to:

Send Save-The-Dates: Gather all the travel information and include it with your Save-The-Date invitations. This will give your guests plenty of time to plan a vacation getaway, get time off work, and budget for your big day.

Finalize Details: Connect with your Certified Destination Wedding Specialist to finalize all the details, from the ceremony and venue location, outside vendors (if you are using them), and other activities you are planning. Remember, many details are already bundled into your all-inclusive package.

Destination Wedding Specialist Pro Tip: Share your wedding dreams with your planner. Most venues allow you to tailor packages so you can add personal touches and add-ons.

3 – 6 Months Before The Wedding

The fun really begins a few months before the wedding, when you have the opportunity to customize your itinerary and share information about the wedding experience with your guests.

Make your wedding a vacation getaway of a lifetime. You want your guests to enjoy a wonderful experience before, during, and after you exchange vows. That’s why you should take full advantage of the abundance of things there are to see, do, and explore at your destination. Your Certified Destination Wedding Specialist is ready to show you all the options, so everyone looks forward to traveling with you. 

Confirm guest accommodation and travel itineraries: Make sure that all guests have secured accommodation at your chosen all-inclusive resort and that their travel itineraries align with your wedding day and any other important wedding activities planned. 

Plan wedding weekend activities: Fill the weekend schedule with fun things like welcome parties, group excursions, spa treatments, entertainment and more. 

Destination Wedding Specialist Pro Tip: Most destination resorts feature onsite day-to-night entertainment, nightlife, and kids’ activities your guests will enjoy.

1 – 3 Months Before The Wedding

At this point, you probably feel like you just got engaged, but in reality, your wedding day is coming up soon! The big day is so close you can almost say, “I do!” Now is the time to review all your details.

Finalize Everything: Finalize all your travel plans and guest RSVPs, and prepare for the time of your life. Connect with your Certified Destination Wedding Specialist who will make sure your wedding and honeymoon experience is seamless and stress-free. All you have to do is enjoy every single second.

The weeks leading up to your destination wedding are some of the most special and memorable times in your engagement. At this point, most of the details are in place, and you can soak up the anticipation that comes with getting married in a lush, tropical setting surrounded by the people who matter most to you. Destination weddings provide an intimate, memorable experience for both you and your guests, making them the perfect choice for any couple who is just engaged.

Traditional Vs. Destination Wedding Planning

Your wedding planning timeline will depend heavily on the type of wedding that you want to have. So, if you are recently engaged, you will want to consider the wedding style that you want before you begin creating your timeline. Most couples who have just gotten engaged find themselves deciding between a traditional wedding in their local area or a destination wedding at an all-inclusive luxury resort in a tropical destination.

In most cases, traditional, at-home weddings require a longer planning period, largely because these complex events involve multiple vendors, logistics, and venue coordination. Destination weddings, on the other hand, can often be planned quickly because you can streamline the process by booking all-inclusive wedding packages and using on-site wedding planners. 

Destination weddings offer a more stress-free, time-efficient and memorable experience for couples wanting beauty and simplicity in one convenient location.

Wedding Planning Timeline FAQs

How long does it take to plan a wedding?

Most couples plan over 12 to 18 months. A destination wedding for 20 guests or fewer can be done comfortably in 6 to 8 months, and an at-home wedding with a large guest list usually needs the full 12 months or more because every vendor is booked separately.

Is a destination wedding faster to plan than a wedding at home?

Usually, yes. An all-inclusive resort bundles the venue, catering, coordination, and often the photographer into one package, so you’re making one set of decisions instead of eight. The trade-off is that you commit to your date and tell your guests earlier.

When do you send save-the-dates for a destination wedding?

10 to 12 months ahead for 30 or more guests, and 6 to 8 months for smaller groups, which is earlier than the at-home standard. Guests need that runway to book flights, request time off, and spread the cost.

Do you need to book your honeymoon separately for a destination wedding?

Most couples don’t. Extending your stay at the same resort, or moving to a second property nearby, is simpler and cheaper than booking a separate trip, and it’s one of the real advantages of marrying somewhere you’d want to vacation anyway.

Start Your Dream Wedding Journey Today!

If you’re just engaged, you’re about to embark on a delightful and exciting time in your life. You said, “Yes,” the sparkling ring is on your finger, and your wedding planning journey has begun. Whether you decide to get married at home or take your family and friends on a destination wedding experience of a lifetime, planning is the key to your seamless celebration. 

If you’re dreaming of a tropical getaway or romantic beach ceremony, you can definitely make your dream destination celebration happen. They are surprisingly more affordable than a traditional wedding, take less time and effort to plan, and treat you and your guests to an extraordinary getaway experience. 

Simply complete our easy online wedding planning form and say, “I Do” to a romantic destination wedding today!