Destination Weddings in Dubrovnik, Croatia — 10 Myths Debunked
Pristine white sand with crashing waves in the distance, local people not good in English, complex planning and high prices are some of the myths I usually bust when in the destination wedding planning process with my clients. A ton more myths actually in some cases. For now, I will leave you with these 10 to think about.
So, read on & put your worries to rest:
Myth #1: Guests won’t show up
Reality: Across all destination weddings we organized so far (400 something in the past 12 years), we got a pretty precise idea what’s the difference in numbers between the original invitation list and actual number of people attending a destination wedding in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Overall average, according to numbers we have from our past events is around 20% off. At home country weddings this percentage is in range 10–20% according to Knot. So we can talk roughly about 5% of a difference.
Myth #2: It’s going to cost more
Reality: Weddings in Dubrovnik can actually be far more affordable than a wedding in your country. Of course, it depends which your home country is. Most of our customers are from either West or North Europe, States or Australia. If we take into account all the costs for the day like: wedding breakfast, decór, music, photography and all the rest what’s needed we talk about 30% lower costs of the wedding day in Croatia compared to our couples countries. Apparel, rings and other destination wedding non-dependent costs are excluded, these don’t change.
Having a wedding planner that from the day one takes care and updates the list of all the wedding day costs can minimize your spending. These professionals usually have insight into what locations or services will save you a lot of money. Plus, the reality is that there may be fewer attendees at island weddings and a smaller guest list means lower costs.
Myth #3: It’s a long trip
Reality: Dubrovnik is well connected with all the major cities in Europe, so within max 2 hours you will be here. From the UK flights operate from London’s Gatwick and Stansted airports in addition to Bristol, Edinburgh, Birmingham, East Midlands, Manchester, Belfast international, Newcastle and Leeds Bradford. From 2019 there is a direct flight from Philadelphia, US.
Myth #4: It’s going to take far more time to plan
Reality: The research process is so simple once you have it structured. Rather than heading to numerous on-site meetings in your home country, by carefully planning a destination wedding through emails (+voice when needed) wedding day itinerary and required services get very quickly narrowed down. Photos from past events and prompt information that your wedding planner can supply will make this part easy. We’ve had examples where the basic decisions (venue, ceremony type, rough list of services and budget) were made literally in 2–3 days and the contract was immediately signed. That’s definitely not too time-consuming for a distant Mediterranean wedding. Instead of spending tedious hours poring over information online, it’s helpful to have a specialist who can narrow down the ideal location based on your preferences, & additionally, ease your mind by putting all services together in a meaningful budgeting list. Local wedding planners with hundreds of years of experience behind have the advantage of knowing a lot about the destination and suppliers, so they can provide you with useful assistance and a stress-free planning process.
Myth #5: It’ll look like every other destination wedding
Reality: Traditionally, weddings abroad had a somewhat uniform, cookie-cutter feel. That’s all different in Dubrovnik. Besides many historical sites Dubrovnik is known for, there are plenty of choices outside the Old City (Lapad area) + even more off the city limits. Thanks to nearby islands where Lokrum is the closest one at just 10 minutes from the Old Town, other Elafiti Islands are within 30–70 minutes boat ride and choices widen further. There are more than 50 wedding venues in Dubrovnik.
Myth #6: Too many guests will show up
Like, everybody will like to attend? That’s a true part, but keep in mind that the guests list is hard limited by you. And, not everybody will be able to make it. There is a trip involved, spending at least one night in Dubrovnik with accommodation costs. There will be some people who won’t be able to make it. Those who care for your wedding will do their best to show up, that’s what matters.
Myth #7: Covering trip and accommodation costs for all the guests will bring me out of budget
Reality: You won’t be doing that. Almost nobody does that. In very few events we’ve had couples taking care of plane and accommodation costs for the entire party. What is expected pretty much aligns with the costs you would have at a wedding in your country where main covered costs come in a form of wedding dinner dishes. For drinks things differ. What our couples usually do is that they cover drinks costs up to a certain point, what we call “behind bar money”. After that amount is exhausted, the couple decides either to extend or the cash bar starts.
Myth #8: If I get married in summer I’ll miss my summer vacation
Reality: The truth is far on the opposite side. By paying for the trip you would be getting a gratis like opportunity to enjoy your days in Croatia as your holiday days. We as planners don’t insist on long meetings and multiple site inspections. By the time you get to Dubrovnik everything will be anyway agreed good time before, and yes we will push to close all possible details before your arrival so our suppliers can prepare. After the wedding (or before) you can use the opportunity to visit places in a wider range like islands more to the north like Hvar or Korčula, or completely leave the south Croatia and go to middle Dalmatia in Zadar or Šibenik, Krka waterfalls or even do some hiking in national park Paklenica (3 hours drive from here). I just mentioned a couple of most common places, there are many more, and in case you will have enough of Croatia, Italy is close just from another side of the Adriatic sea. 45 minutes flight to Rome, or taking a ferry across Adriatic and reaching Naples in a few hours?
Myth #9: I’ll need to collect all the information about Dubrovnik
Reality: You won’t. This city has been in tourism for more than 100 years and it has so many options for any traveler type. Don’t like beaches? Fine, explore the rich cultural heritage. Don’t care about historical stuff, still fine: check the beautiful natural sites on islands or on the mainland (peninsula Pelješac or Konavle?). While heading for your first Dubrovnik stroll let Dubrovnik surprise you.
Myth #10: I don’t want a beach wedding
Reality: Beach weddings account for less than 10% of total weddings we do. The most common wedding ceremony or reception choices in Dubrovnik are sea view terraces, forts, gardens and historical palaces. Boats are another great option where you can host either parts of your event or everything can take place onboard.
