Leave it ’til the last minute!

Planning a wedding is often considered to be a lengthy and stressful process. Non-stop discussions and decisions to make about colour schemes, which songs to have when and who can’t sit next to who – it can start to feel a little bit like your wedding is taking over your life.

Back in the day, it could take a fair amount of time to plan a wedding. But now, with email, skype and photo messaging at our fingertips, planning the wedding of your dreams is far easier and you can make it happen in a couple of months, instead of spending the best part of a year or more stuck in wedding world!

Last minute weddings are becoming increasingly popular as prospective Brides and Grooms learn of their existence. Venues always endeavour to sell all of their dates, but sometimes for whatever reason they don’t – which is where you step in!

If you are able to be flexible with your wedding date, you will find that you can still have the wedding you always wanted but without the months of stress. This way you can save a fair amount of money that can be better spent elsewhere – on your honeymoon for example! Last minute dates are often sold as part of a package and will include all of your meals and wine for the day, as well as a Wedding Manager and often these packages include accomodation or additional extras too.

If you are considering booking a Last Minute wedding, find your venue first. It also might be an idea to find a second venue that also offers Last Minute packages, as you can’t be sure when or how often a date will become available and you don’t want to be hanging on for too long! This way you can also make decisions on things like floristry, colour schemes and entertainment and get in touch with suppliers. You will then be able to find out what they can offer on a last minute basis so when you do book a venue, all these decisions will have already been made. It would be worth keeping an eye on the website of your chosen venue, as often Last Minute packages will be advertised here. You should also visit your chosen venue on Open Evenings and see what other services they can offer to make your planning as stress-free as possible.

When booking a Last Minute wedding, there are a few things you need to consider. Most importantly, your ceremony – if you are looking to get married at your chosen venue, you need to speak with the local Registrars. Contact them as early as you can to check their availability and be sure to check up on this regularly in order to get a ceremony time that works for you. Similarly with Church weddings, do get in touch with them as early as possible to check that their availability matches the dates you are looking at.

As Last Minute weddings are usually booked with six to ten weeks to go before the Big Day, it’s best to send email invitations to ensure a speedy response. It’s also a good idea to call your most important and special guests just before you book to make sure they can attend. After all, your nearest and dearest will make it a day to remember. It is also a huge help if you can recruit some friends, maybe your Bridesmaids and Groomsmen to help with the planning side of things. You will still have a fair bit to organise and if you can delegate some of the responsibility then it will ease the pressure on you.

If you are working to a budget or looking for a great way to save money – Last Minute weddings really are a great way to do it. If you can be flexible with your dates then you will find a package that works for you.