What Being a Wedding Planner is Really Like – Day-to-Day Life of a Destination Wedding Planner

When people hear what I do for a living, they usually think it’s super glamorous and exciting – and it is! I love meeting clients, sourcing vendors, and creating unforgettable weddings for my clients. But being a wedding planner – especially one who plans lots of Cape Cod and Boston destination weddings – also requires tons of work, planning, and attention to detail.

Here’s a peek into the day-to-day life of a busy wedding planner:

A wedding planner only works in the summer months and gets the rest of the year off, right? Ha! This is a common misconception. Off-season is full of cake tastings, venue tours, stationery meetings, and all of the behind-the-scenes planning to gear up for the busy season. More and more couples are opting for early spring, late fall, and December weddings, so we really don’t have too much of an “off season” anymore.

On an average day in the months where we don’t have a ton of weddings, emails run my life for sure. I pride myself on being quick to respond to any questions from current brides and potential new leads. Also, I spend a lot of time working on planning and designing things like invites, flowers, and doing those meetings with vendors during their “off season” as well.

I also try to spend as much time with my family this time of year, and I always take an end of wedding season vacation, too.

We spend a lot of time in the “off season” meeting with our full service planning couples. Traditionally, our full service couples come to us before the venue search. I ask them to have the budget talk, look at their guest list, find some dates that work for them/their families/their work schedule, and then we can begin the planning process!

Day-of couples usually come to us about a year before their wedding, once they have their venue. For our day-of couples, we’re traditionally on the next tier of vendor booking with the photographer and entertainment. Not to say we haven’t had a day of couple come to us 6-8 weeks before their wedding, and we are happy to accommodate that!

Ok, so what does a day-to-day during busy season look like? If it’s a weekday or non-event day, it’s confirming timelines, talking to vendors, and keeping up with the emails. We are checking weather, tying up loose ends, and making sure everything is taken care of for our couples. Sometimes it’s delivering welcome bags, picking up things at the post office, pretty much any little task you can imagine.

Destination wedding weeks can be super busy. Sometimes, our couples are coming in from across the country and might be seeing a lot of their wedding details in person for the first time. Even couples who are coming from Boston for their Cape Cod destination wedding have a lot to do, so they usually get in town anywhere from Tuesday-Thursday.

Usually Wednesday we’re checking in with rentals and vendors. We try to see the couple the first day they arrive, before friends and family arrive and they’re in “host mode.”

Friday is all about setting up, ceremony rehearsal, and making sure my team is ready. We check the weather and monitor it all day, pack emergency kits and snacks, and just get ready for the busy weekend ahead.

What does an average wedding day look like for a wedding planner? Short answer: get the caffeine ready. Usually it’s a 14-16 hour day for us. We are the first ones on scene and usually the last to leave. We check in with the venue first thing, check in with our couples as they are getting ready, and lots of driving/ circling, texting, and on our feet. Some days we walk as much as fifteen miles getting stuff done! We arrive in the morning in our “setup” clothes, and then change about an hour before first look or ceremony. We are there at the end of the party to pack up the car or deliver the personal items back to wherever they need to go! We try to snack, drink water, and sit, but sometimes that doesn’t happen. We are there for anything the couple or vendors need/forget. Sometimes we are out buying ice, socks, bug spray, or driving back to a house to pick up a groom’s forgotten cell phone, things like that! We’re there for whatever our couples need.

What’s in our wedding kit? This can change from wedding to wedding, but we’re usually very well prepared for any scenario. Scissors for loose threads, safety pins to adjust fit of a dress or fix a snapped bridesmaid dress strap, and tissues for happy tears are all essentials.

It’s the week of a summer Cape Cod destination wedding with lots of outside events planned, and rain is in the forecast. How do we deal? We always chat about this scenario in the beginning of the planning process. We book tents ahead of time, and have a plan B before the week of the wedding. The Cape can be tricky with weather, so actually temperature is something we deal with a lot – it can actually end up being chilly and windy, even in the summer. We can always add tent heaters or patio heaters, or tall fans if it’s warmer than expected the day of your wedding.

Three things we tell our brides not to forget on their wedding week: Sleep, drink lots of water, and stay out of the sun!

Three things we tell our brides not to forget when they get back from their honeymoon: Obtain a copy of her marriage certificate, get her dress cleaned, leave reviews for all your wedding vendors!

Looking for more bridal trends and inspiration? Head to our blog to check it out!