An outdoor wedding has a unique charm: the unrivaled beauty of a rocky beach, a beautiful botanical garden, or the comforting familiarity of your backyard. However, as lovely as these locations are, preparing an outdoor wedding entails a great amount of legwork. Even though an outdoor event may seem straightforward, it necessitates careful preparation.
This outdoor wedding checklist assures that none of the crucial aspects of planning an outdoor wedding are neglected, including some current recommendations for social distancing due to COVID-19.
From the decorations to the menu, here’s how to have a beautiful outdoor wedding.
1. Select the Venue
Several parks and gardens allow wedding festivities on their premises, but they may not have all the amenities you need. Check if your venue has enough parking, bathrooms, and electricity supply (for lighting, food preparation, and music). You may need to arrange for a generator, valet service, or mobile restrooms.
Furthermore, if you have an outdoor wedding, you’ll almost certainly need some roof coverage. Tents offer the convenience of being able to set up practically anywhere. Place one in your favorite garden or even outside a beautiful mansion, if that’s your preference. Make sure the tent you purchase is suitable for the area you’ll be using it on, such as concrete, grass, or sand.
2. Setup and Decoration
The next step is to plan your décor and setup. A lovely and thoughtful flower arrangement can evoke a wide range of emotions while also conveying the desirable message without using words. Flowers always create a smile and a happy sensation, so if you want the best flower arrangement around Corona Del Mar California, choose wedding flowers Newport Beach CA and make your wedding decoration unforgettable.
On the other hand, Pinterest is brimming with fantastic outdoor wedding ideas that will assist you in maximizing your space. Numerous design alternatives are available, including textured curtains, unique chandeliers, and vibrant pillows. Determine which elements are most important to you, and then work out how to incorporate the items at the top of the priority list into your budget.
3. Check Your Guests List
One of the most difficult decisions to make regarding wedding preparation is who to invite (and who not to invite). Do you want an outdoor wedding because you want a small, private wedding reception with your closest relatives and friends? If that’s the case, limit your guests to your family members, grandparents, a few closest friends, and possibly close aunts and uncles. This may be a list of merely 10-20 people known as a micro-wedding—an ideal event for you.
Or perhaps you want a wedding that is a little bit bigger. If that’s the case, find out how many people are allowed at the venue. Then determine how many individuals you can serve on your budget. Then, cross off everybody you haven’t spoken to over the last year or more as you go through the list. Remember that this is your special day, and the people you invite to your wedding should be people you like spending time with.
4. Rent the Necessary Equipment
Now that you’ve determined how many people will be at your wedding, it’s time to plan the furniture and any party tents and lamps you’ll require. Tables and chairs will take up a lot of room, so prepare ahead of time. Similarly, any extra big table, e.g., cake table, chocolate bar, or gift station, should also be considered.
Make sure to inquire about any deals your wedding planner or caterer may have for renting tables and chairs, tablecloths, and cookware – these are all requirements that may easily add up. Let’s not forget about renting portable restrooms for your guests, which will save you the trouble of flocks of people strolling through your house if you’re having a backyard wedding and provide your guests the comfort of using the restrooms outdoors.
5. Confirm that Parking is Available
So, where will all of your guests be going to park their vehicles? Because there will be so many people, you might want to try and contact a valet service to handle the parking concerns if you don’t have a road close enough to the wedding site that allows for enough parking. If your area has ample parking, make sure street parking is allowed during the hours your guests will be there for the wedding.
Some states and cities prohibit street parking during specified hours, and many others prohibit overnight parking, so do your homework and call your jurisdiction to confirm parking restrictions. Also, if you’re providing valet, please advise guests not to leave valuables in their cars, as you don’t want to be held liable for lost items. Whatever method you choose, let your guests know about it on your wedding invitation!
6. Check Your Insurance Coverage
Pay attention to this because it is likely one of the most important, yet often ignored, elements on your outdoor wedding checklist. Nobody wants to think of something bad happening at their wedding, but it’s essential to be prepared. You can inquire about coverage for your wedding day with your insurance agent, or you can go to a specialty wedding insurance carrier like WedSafe.
Homeowner’s Insurance and Liability, Special Event Insurance, or maybe an Umbrella Policy are the forms of insurance plans you should consider. These types of insurance will protect you in the event of anything from a slip and fall to property damage to a drunken guest driving after your wedding. Also, ask your providers, particularly caterers and bartenders, what insurance they have, as their coverage may be sufficient.
7. Take Care of Social Distancing
There are a few more things to think about if you’re planning an outdoor wedding to practice social distancing because of COVID-19. Make a list of the following essentials for your outdoor wedding:
- Set up stations for hand sanitization.
- Allow your guests to stand during the ceremony (save for those who require chairs) so they can spread out.
- Avoid long table seating in favor of individual tables for 4 to 6 people—and scatter them widely.
- Make circles using petals instead of chalk to indicate locations for small groups to stand 6 feet apart, similar to how public parks are set up for social distancing.
- If you have a large number of guests, host them in shifts rather than all at once.
- Avoid visitor sharing materials such as photo booth props, food utensils and guestbook pens.
- Consider getting wedding insurance in case you have to postpone your wedding owing to social gathering number constraints.
Outdoor weddings are ideal for couples that want a truly heartfelt experience or want to have their dream wedding on a budget. There are numerous advantages to having an outdoor wedding, including affordability and convenience, but few additional aspects to consider and scenarios to anticipate. We’ve put up this thorough checklist with everything you need to know about organizing a backyard wedding, from the location to wedding insurance, to help you stay on track. These suggestions can make planning your outdoor wedding a piece of cake.