Whether you live here in Mobile, Alabama or not, planning an out of town wedding is a major undertaking. Not only do you have to arrange venues and wedding catering in Burlington or New York or wherever you're going, but you also have the added hassle of arranging travel and accommodations. If this is your first out of town wedding, you might be pretty close to a breakdown just thinking about all the stuff you have to do. So here's some advice: breathe into a paper bag and follow this list.
Venues
The first step in any wedding plan is choosing and booking a venue. This isn't something you can do over the phone. You can use the internet to make a short list but for the final decision you should actually fly in and look at the Toronto beach homes to make sure they're as good as they look in the digital photos. You'll need a place to hold the wedding (church, beach, park, etc), somewhere to get ready (hotel, rental house, etc) and a reception venue (hall, conference room, restaurant, etc).
Services
The big services book up fast, so you'll need to reserve them in advance. These services include photography, DJ, pastor/justice of the peace/ship's captain, and catering. Toronto and other big cities, as well as picturesque villages should have numerous local options. Interview them all and you should find one you like. But if not, you can always opt to have your trusted local firm from Mobile accompany you out of town, but keep in mind that this will cost a lot extra.
Invitations
When interstate or international travel is involved in a wedding, you should give your guests plenty of advance notice so that they can make travel arrangements - three to six months at least. Your uncle the Toronto architect may find it easy to get to on short notice but Aunt Mary from Tennessee will not. RSVP is especially important in out of town weddings as each person you invite drives up the cost. Don't forget to ask. You might also want to include some info on airline or hotel deals you have arranged that they can make use of.
Travel Arrangements
Visit your local Mobile travel agent or contact hotels and airlines yourself to arrange a group discount for your wedding party. Most businesses will do this and the discount you all receive will depend on how many opt in. Guests are generally responsible for their own flights and hotel fares, so present them with the group option and leave the decision with them how they choose to get themselves to Toronto. Catering companies you hire to come with you, however, will be traveling and staying on your dime, so don't forget their arrangements.
| 