How to Price Destination Wedding Services

From the first day of establishing my planning business in New York City, I was adamant regarding two tenets of pricing: simplicity and transparency. In the 15 years since, these principles have become even more crucial as special event clients are getting savvier, and their access to information is getting greater.

Pricing can be especially tricky to set for destination wedding services and there are several key components to consider, no matter what your role is in the industry: your time and creativity, the logistics relevant to your role in the wedding and travel for you and your team.

photo credit Allan Zepeda

Time & creativity

Your time and creativity is the main currency of your business, regardless of the location of the wedding, and the easiest way to charge for that currency is with a flat fee. How do you determine what your flat fee should be? I calculate it based on the average amount of time I spend on projects of that type as well as the amount of creative effort likely to be required for a project of that type.

I love a flat fee model because it is easy for clients to understand (simplicity!) and once I explain the value of my time and creativity, it cannot be undercut since there is no one else like me—or like you (transparency!).

Because destination weddings require additional time (in many cases) for new research, and additional time away from my office, I add a small premium—no more than 10% of the total fee—to my flat fee.

photo credit Allan Zepeda

Logistics

Logistics for destination weddings can vary greatly based on the location. I happen to do a lot of domestic destination weddings. The logistics for these events are more manageable than when I do international weddings. However, no matter the mileage, logistics for any destination wedding are greater than doing a wedding in a backyard.

I factor the extra time that I believe these logistics require into my flat fee (simple and transparent!), however I always remember to BUDGET for the cost of logistics outside of my cost so that I am providing the utmost value to my clients. These logistics may include shipping or trucking of materials, favors and gifts, the receiving charges that most hotels and resorts add on, customs charged for overseas, guest travel and transportation, as well as local maneuvering.

If you choose to itemize additional fees for your clients for destination logistics management, that is totally fair and reasonable. However, I would encourage you to be as transparent as possible so that you maintain the trust of your client.

photo credit Allan Zepeda

Travel costs

When my team and I travel more than 60 miles from our home base in New York City, I require that my client covers “reasonable travel costs.” For me this means economy class plane or train ticket as applicable or gas and mileage reimbursement for the vehicle that I own and/or reimbursement on rental vehicles required.

If air travel is more than 6.5 hours (for me that means outside of the U.S. or beyond Western Europe), I request either economy plus or business class air travel, depending on the distance as well as my client’s budget and level of comfort with the costs involved.  Remember, destination travel is work, not vacation. Your clients will appreciate when you respect their budget and treat it as such.

I also require a daily meal and expense stipend for each person working on my staff.  This flat fee will vary slightly based on the location (it’s more expensive to eat in Paris, France than it is to eat in Woodstock, Vermont), but I always charge a flat fee per person per day. Why? Simplicity! My client doesn’t want to see 27 receipts for coffee and pizza and I don’t want to have a conversation with them about why someone on my team ordered fish instead of pasta. Simpler for them and simpler for me. 

photo credit Allan Zepeda

This is a system that I find works well for my business and my clients. You may find that it isn’t a fit for you—and that is OK! There is no one right answer for how to price your services, but I would strongly encourage you to look carefully at your pricing to ensure that it is relevant and systematic—pulling a number out of the sky or allowing the client to dictate your price will put you on a problematic path. 

Happy travels!

Lindsay Landman is the founder of New York City-based Lindsay Landman Events, which has been producing innovative weddings and special events across the globe since 2001. Lindsay is a go-to media resource and was recently named one of the top planners in the world by Vogue. She teaches a 5-week course on Destination Wedding Planning at the Event Leadership Institute.