Destination Wedding Trends Infographic
Favorite Wedding Destinations
Destination Weddings Take Off
American couples are involved in more than 300,000 destination weddings each year. They're not as costly as some people think. 20% of weddings in 2009 were destination weddings.
Couples usually marry at their honeymoon location. In most, guests traveled to the wedding site to attend the ceremony, and part of the planning included vacation activities for guests.
Where do couples go? Nearly half take place in Florida, California and Nevada, and 6 out of 10 destination weddings take place in the continental U.S.
So what does it cost? Average spending is $21,285, not including honeymoon expenses, and more than a third of couples purchased travel, accommodations or activities for some of their guests.
The top destinations outside of the continental United States for beautiful weddings are
- Caribbean - 37% of those traveling abroad to wed prefer the Caribbean - Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, especially.
- Mexico - 25% of couples surveyed preferred Mexico beach destinations like Cancun and Los Cabos.
- Hawaii - Hawaii boasts beaches and scenery that lure 17% of destination wedding planners. The top wedding islands are Maui, Oahu and Kauai.
- Europe - 9% of couples travel to Europe for a romantic setting and an adventure for all their guests.
- Central/South America - 5% of couples traveled south of the border to tie the knot in a region that offers active volcanoes and tropical scenery as a backdrop to their wedding ceremony.