Private Villa vs. Hotel

Have you ever asked yourself how to decide between a Private Villa as a location for your destination wedding or a Hotel? Either option could be great, it all truly depends on the priorities you want for you and your guests the day of the event.

When you choose a Hotel as location for your Wedding, you have the advantage that all the activities that you do will happen in one place (on property) usually the same hotel where your guests are already staying, You will save in transportation expenses, as you do not have to get your guests to a different venue the day of the wedding and most of the time, if you have everything onsite you get wonderful deals on meals for your guests and even SPA. The Wedding set-up is usually included in a package if you hold a minimum number of rooms. This package will include tables, linens, chairs and general décor at a great price. However, you can only use the furniture and equipment that the hotel owns, so if you want pink linens, the hotel might only offer beige and blue, which means that you would have to do an outside rental of your color linens.  You can also get packages on alcohol and food for the day of the wedding.

Another wonderful advantage about a hotel wedding is that you can wake up the day of your wedding and you don’t have to go somewhere else! You can be in your room, open the window, take a deep breath and begin your wonderful and unique day.  Lastly, by being onsite at a Hotel, you can be assured that all guests will arrive on time, as they are already on property and don’t have to drive anywhere.

So now … you are probably wondering why you should even consider a Villa location, based on the above advantages of a hotel. Well, when your wedding is at a Villa, you have the plus of personalizing everything exactly as you want it and have always envisioned it. You can pick your own vendors for décor, food, alcohol, music, everything! Most of the time, without any rules or regulations. Additionally, a Villa can be a very private venue, because the house is yours for the day (or more) and hotel guests will not be walking around watching you get married. Only your guests will be there.

If you have the right wedding coordinator who can outsource everything, the sky is the limit. You can do something very simple and elegant with a low budget, buy alcohol at a local store, which will cost you much less than alcohol at a Hotel and this will allow you to choose your favorite drinks and special wines. You can pick the  top catering company at the destination, so that your guests get a real feel for the culture and your likes. You can even stay at the Villa for your honeymoon night.  Transportation can be arranged to arrive to the Villa.

In terms of budget, both venues (hotels and villas) can be very similar, depending on what you want. At times, a Villa can be less expensive because you do not have to go through a Hotel to hire vendors, so prices tend to be less. That said, a hotel might offer a package that is hard to turn down, that includes everything from food, drinks, music, décor and a honeymoon suite.

Make sure you have a wedding planner to guide you though each option. Make comparisons with budgets and prioritize what you want and envision.

Cheers from Cabo!

One Happenings – Weddings & Events

Leslie Bost & Adriana Dupinet

***Wedding Planner is a regular bi-weekly ESCAPES magazine on-line column by Adriana Dupinet and Leslie Bost, Wedding Planners and Event Organizers from ONE Happenings Weddings & Events.