Destination Wedding? How To Show Appreciation For Guests Without Losing Focus

The guests who come to your destination wedding demonstrate how much they want to celebrate your big day with you. But what can you do in return to make them feel special without sacrificing your limited time and getting sidetracked caring for others? Here are five steps you can take on any budget. 

1. Book Rooms Together

If people aren't familiar with your destination area, they will appreciate being housed near each other. This allows guests to spend time together when not involved in the wedding, to dine with people they know, and to pool their knowledge and resources for a better weekend. It also makes them less dependent on you to entertain them and makes things like carpool transportation easier. 

2. Arrange Transportation

Arrange someone to meet your guests at the airport and get them to their hotel when they come — and vice versa when they leave. Being catered to when they first arrive takes the pressure off, especially if anyone isn't a seasoned traveler. And if you make arrangements through a friend, family member, or even a paid service, you don't have to meet and greet guests to accomplish this. 

3. Involve Them in Planning

Find some tasks that various guests can do for you at the destination. This might be something like picking up other guests, steaming clothes, decorating the ceremony venue, or organizing a meal. The delegated task will help you get everything done, and it makes the guest feel important and needed. Everyone wins. 

4. Provide the Wedding Schedule

Be open with your wedding weekend plans. Guests who arrive without any idea what's going to happen feel left out of the loop. They may make their own plans and then become frustrated when they must be changed to accommodate wedding festivities. Or they might expect to be involved in everything. Get everyone on the same page by providing, in advance, written wedding schedules and persons involved in each phase. 

5. Make Welcome Baskets

A welcome basket is a great way to say thanks and help guests enjoy their time. Include fun things like gifts that represent the destination or dinner vouchers for the resort. But use this as a chance to be practical by gifting things like maps of the region, fans (if it's hot), blankets (if it's cold), or prepaid dry cleaning services by the hotel. Arrange someone to give the gifts in your place so people feel welcomed without your actual involvement. 

No matter what you choose to make your destination wedding guests feel comfortable and appreciated, you can do it in ways that make your own work easier. This way, everyone will have a weekend they'll love to look back on forever. 

For more tips for a destination wedding, contact a local wedding planner.