Now that you have a planning schedule and you know how much work is involved, and how much money you have to spend, you need to determine if you need any kind of assistance with the wedding planning and coordinating. Some couples know their limits right away and are sure that they want someone to oversee every detail, every step of the way regardless of any services provided by the wedding location. If you are not absolutely sure you need full-service or if you can’t afford to pay full freight, I suggest that couples enlist the help of a wedding planner or travel consultant in the beginning to help them get started and get on the right track. Often couples will hire me simply to help them find the perfect destination and locations that will meet their needs and budget. This also gives the couple a chance to get to know the planning profession before they commit to the long haul. Once you decide on your wedding locations you can reassess and decide if you feel confident that they will provide all the service and resources you need.

Planners can be found through wedding associations, tourism bureaus, the Internet, and sometimes referred by wedding venues. The 2 wedding associations in the United States are the Association of Bridal Consultants at 860.355.0464 www.bridalassn.com or the Association for Wedding Professionals International 800-242-4461 www.AWFPI.com.

It is possible to plan the wedding yourself if you have a lot of time, access to the Internet, and some help from the wedding venue. If you feel you really want to tackle the planning on your own I suggest that you first make contact with the tourism bureau both near home and at the destination to see what kind of resources they can provide. Ask the wedding venue if they have a list of service providers that they can provide you with. Find out if there is a wedding association you can contact. Subscribe to any local wedding publications and check out any wedding websites in the region. You might also pick up a telephone book as a resource. You can certainly do all of the legwork on your own if you are patient, persistent, resourceful and if you have a lot of time to devote to it.

The one area I would not skimp on or consider doing yourself is the actual event orchestration. If you want to keep your sanity and actually enjoy the most important trip and day of your life, I highly recommend hiring a group escort and a wedding coordinator. Either/or might live at the destination, which is usually less expensive than bringing someone from the U.S. but it is all a matter of your level of confidence.

Wedding and travel consultants charge in a variety of ways. They may charge you an hourly rate at least in the beginning if they are being hired for a small job such as researching locations. They may charge a booking fee which may include the research and the reservation. If they are coordinating all of the reservations or selling you a package they will most likely be getting a commission from a tour company or the resort or hotel. Note that travel agents no longer get paid commissions by the airlines even though the process of finding the best flights can take a bit of time! This is why they now charge you a consultation fee and/or a booking fee. Wedding planners that contract all of the service providers through their company are probably charging 10 – 15% in addition to the cost of the goods and services. Be sure to ask and understand your consultant’s fees.