Tulum is one of the world’s top wedding destinations. This beautiful resort town is home to a variety of luxury resorts, each offering multiple wedding venues to choose from, making it easy to customize your wedding. Whether you’re dreaming of a small, romantic elopement or a lavish ceremony, a resort and wedding venue is waiting for you in Tulum.
One of the biggest considerations when planning a wedding is the price tag. In this guide, we’ll break down the average Tulum, Mexico wedding cost and offer up some tips to help you plan your dream wedding in Tulum.
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Why Celebrate a Destination Wedding in Tulum?
There is no shortage of reasons why couples from around the world choose Tulum for their weddings. To start, the town is one of Mexico’s most picturesque. It’s home to stunning white sand beaches framed by turquoise blue waters. Lush tropical jungles border the town, with mysterious ruins left behind by ancient Mayan civilizations dotting them. It’s truly paradise.
Many of the resorts in the town are designed to reflect the area’s natural beauty rather than distract from it. The result is a largely laid-back, bohemian, natural feel that’s perfect for relaxed couples looking to integrate natural beauty and boho elements into their wedding day.
When it comes to destination weddings, there are tons of local experiences and culture for the couple and guests to enjoy during their stay. Take an excursion to a cenote, experience Mayan traditions, or take to the water on a snorkeling excursion. There’s truly something for everyone.
With so many resorts and activities to choose from, Tulum makes it easy for couples to plan a truly customized, unforgettable wedding experience.
Your Two Options for Planning a Wedding in Tulum
While there are endless resorts and wedding venues to choose from, couples first have to choose between two primary routes for planning a wedding in Tulum: booking an all-inclusive resort wedding or planning a custom, independent wedding.
Resort All-Inclusive Weddings
The most popular option is a resort all-inclusive wedding. Not only are there tons of options to choose from, but this is also the simplest, most convenient option for couples planning a destination wedding.
With a resort all-inclusive wedding, you’ll book an all-inclusive resort package that covers your stay, food, and most activities. Then, you’ll book a wedding package through the resort that covers many of the expenses of your wedding. This includes the venue, catering, decorations, and more.
Couples don’t have to worry about finding local vendors, navigating costs and packages, and then coordinating everything from home, which could be hundreds or even thousands of miles away. This also often works out to be cheaper, as working with independent vendors can add up very quickly.
Most resorts offer multiple different wedding venues and packages to choose from, so you can choose an option that fits your style as well as your budget. In some instances, resorts may even offer a complimentary wedding package with a qualifying stay, saving you even more money.
Custom / Independent Weddings
The second option is a custom or independent wedding. This is similar to what you might book if you were to get married in your hometown. You’ll choose a wedding venue in Tulum, and then book independent wedding vendors for your catering, decorations, officiant, and sometimes even table and chair rentals, depending on your venue.
While this option does give you more freedom to customize your wedding, it can be difficult to plan. You’ll be working with many different vendors, sometimes with time zone differences and language barriers that you’ll need to navigate. You’ll also pay each vendor individually, which often adds up much faster and results in a more expensive wedding.
How Much Does a Wedding in Tulum Cost?
Let’s take a look at the typical price ranges you’ll see from these two wedding options
For resort wedding packages, you can expect to pay between $5,000 and $15,000 for a basic to mid-tier wedding, with the average being around $7,000. Costs may be higher for a luxurious resort or a large and elaborate wedding ceremony, or lower for a small ceremony or elopement.
For a custom wedding, the typical cost is between $15,000 and $50,000, depending on guest count and preferences, but it can go much higher.
The major wedding expenses that go into the cost of a custom wedding include:
- Venue rental (May be a separate cost for the ceremony venue and reception venue)
- Catering and bar packages
- Photography/videography
- Florals and décor
- Entertainment
- Hair, makeup, and attire
- Officiant and legal paperwork
- Transportation and accommodation for guests
Destination weddings are often smaller in size, with an average guest count of 30 to 60 people. The more guests you invite, the higher the cost of your wedding. Higher guest counts may require a larger venue in addition to more food.
All-Inclusive Perks & Discounts
Booking an all-inclusive wedding package offers a number of benefits. The biggest is the convenience and cost savings. Instead of booking every element of your wedding separately, many of your expenses will be included in your all-inclusive resort package. This includes your venue, officiant, cake, flowers, catering, tables and chairs, and often even a champagne toast.
There are also other potential perks that some resorts offer. For instance, some offer a room discount for your guests or group booking incentives. Some resorts even offer a free wedding package if your room or guest rooms meet specific requirements. Most wedding packages include complimentary wedding planning. You may be assigned a coordinator who will help you choose any options available and make sure that everything is ready for your big day.
These perks can lead to even more savings compared to custom weddings.
But when you book an all-inclusive resort package, it’s still important to read the fine print. You’ll want to make sure that you know exactly what’s included before you book a package, as inclusions can vary widely from one resort or package to the next. If you don’t see something included, ask about the cost or availability of adding it, and don’t assume that it’s an option. You may need to book a higher package to include your wedding must-haves, so it’s important to ask upfront so you can make sure that you’re choosing a package that fits your budget.
What About a Custom Wedding in Tulum?
Custom weddings often have far fewer opportunities for discounts and deals, as couples are working with many different vendors. Not only that, but working with so many different vendors from afar, especially if you don’t speak Spanish or are trying to coordinate things from a different time zone, can be stressful.
A custom wedding typically involves a local Tulum venue. For this, you could book a private villa or a venue with a beach or jungle setting. The cost of these venues and the size can vary widely. The venue might be able to recommend some vendors that they often work with, but you’ll need to book these individually. The resort is a wedding that’s fully customized to fit your style and wants. But the cost is a lot more complexity in the lead up to your wedding, as well as higher costs.
Why Do Resort Weddings Cost Less?
Why do resort weddings offer so much cost savings for couples? When you book a resort wedding, they know that you and your guests will also be booking a stay at their resort. The result is that they are willing to offer a discount on the wedding itself.
Resorts are already paying for food and drinks, so they can pass on bulk discounts on your catering and drinks for your wedding ceremony, too. They have in-house vendors to provide your decorations, officiant, and more, allowing them to offer discounts in those areas as well.
Finally, resorts are already home to tons of beautiful spaces. They have pristine beaches, luxurious pool decks and terraces, and often gardens or jungle areas. This means that they already have tons of built-in venues to offer couples.
For those couples, the logistical trade-off compared to a custom wedding is huge. You won’t need to find and communicate with multiple venues in the lead up to your wedding. If you have a question, you’ll simply reach out to your wedding coordinator, and they can answer it. On your wedding day, everything you need will be right there on site, so you’ll never have to stress over a vendor no-show.
But while a resort wedding is cheaper and more convenient, you will have less control over the aesthetic and overall experience compared to a custom wedding.
Ways You Can Reduce Wedding Spend
If you’re working on a budget, there are a variety of ways that you can reduce your wedding spending and save some money. Some tips we have to help you keep your Tulum Mexico wedding cost in check include:
- Trim the Guest List: Fewer guests mean lower catering and accommodation costs
- Choose Off-Peak Dates: Book during low season (summer/fall) to take advantage of discounts and still enjoy Tulum’s year-round warm weather
- Opt for an All-Inclusive Resort Package: Resorts often offer bulk pricing and in-house vendor discounts, as well as discounted or complimentary wedding packages for qualifying stays
- Skip the Extras: Forego pricey add-ons like fireworks or elaborate lighting and instead embrace the hobo feeling of Tulum with a simpler wedding
- Choose a Weekday Wedding: Venues and vendors often offer lower rates for Monday–Thursday events
- Book Group Rates for Accommodation: Resorts and hotels typically offer discounts for large room blocks. You can also shop around for resorts with more affordable rooms and wedding packages to save some money
Start Planning Your Dream Destination Wedding in Tulum Today!
Now that you know what goes into a Tulum, Mexico wedding cost, it’s time to start planning your own destination wedding. Tulum is a truly beautiful backdrop for your wedding ceremony. Whether you’re dreaming of a large wedding with all of your family and friends or a smaller, more intimate affair, there’s a wedding venue and package that’s perfect for you.
While a custom wedding may allow you to personalize your day, an all-inclusive resort package makes it easy and convenient to plan a destination wedding, and can help you save money and budget for your big day. No matter the option you choose, we encourage you to embrace the magic of Tulum and enjoy the process of planning your wedding.
Regardless of your budget, Tulum is the perfect place to plan a memorable, one-of-a-kind celebration that you’ll cherish for a lifetime. All you have to do is fill out an online wedding planning form to get started planning your Tulum destination wedding of your dreams.
