Maui Weddings: How to Save Money and Not Compromise on Quality
So you decided to have a destination wedding in Maui and you’re on a strict budget, but you don’t want to compromise on quality. Who could? Here are some great ways to save on your Maui wedding without haggling with vendors to lower their prices to fit your budget.
Getting married on the beach instead of a resort
Reserving a place at a Maui resort starts at around $2000, and that’s just the site fee. Because you don’t pay a site fee for a Maui beach wedding, it really is an attractive option to get married in Maui and save a lot of money. You still get all the things you came to Maui for: the natural beauty, the great weather year-round, the nostalgia, and the romantic, laid-back atmosphere; not to mention the spectacular photos of you and your wedding party on the beach. Oh, did I forget to mention that you save a ton of cash?
Book a wedding package
Now that you know you want to get married on Maui, where do you start? Beginning to contact Maui ministers, find out how to obtain a marriage license, contact Maui photographers, or try to find quality Maui wedding florists? Don’t do any of these things. It’s much faster and easier to book a Maui wedding package. The price is usually the same, or less expensive, than booking each vendor a la carte, because Maui wedding coordinators often get a discount on the vendors’ price due to the volume of clients they send to each vendor. So save yourself a lot of work and book a Maui wedding package. Also note: If you book a wedding package, the coordinator should already have a working relationship with the booking vendors, so you know you’re getting quality. Putting your faith in a few Google searches on your own, without knowing the integrity of the vendors you choose, leaves a lot of uncertainty that you “don’t want” on your wedding day.
Lower hosting costs without the pain
Lodging is one of the biggest costs for anyone having a Maui wedding, but lodging costs are one of the easiest to cut without suffering. Here are some tips:
Instead of spending $400-$500 a night at a resort, rent a condo. There are many vacation rental websites where you can easily find a condo in the area where you want to have your wedding. You can often get a condo of the same quality as one of the resorts for two-thirds or half the price. Some additional savings that a condo can provide compared to a resort are: There is no daily parking fee, which can be up to $30 per day. Also, condos often have beach chairs, coolers, and fun things like boogie boards that you can use for free, which can add up to additional savings over buying them yourself or renting them out.
I understand you want to go stay at a resort, you are in Maui and you want to experience it. Just stay in a condo most of the time and stay at the resort for a couple of days after your honeymoon ceremony. This way, you’ll have the savings you want and feel like you also had a fun and luxurious vacation on Maui.
Reduce your food expenses
One of the best ways to save 50% or more on your grocery bill while on Maui is to rent a condo and cook your own meals. The condos have great BBQ areas and if you get the right condo you can enjoy the epic view and sunset while you sip your Maui Mai Tai and eat your home cooked dinner. Obviously, you’ll be dining out frequently, but there’s no point in paying $10-$20 per person for a resort breakfast every morning when you can have it for $3 in your condo.
Whatever you do, don’t compromise on the quality of the most important part of your wedding, the ceremony itself. You want to have quality professionals to work with and the cost reduction on your wedding day really shows in the quality of your photography and especially the flowers. You traveled a minimum of 2400 miles to get to Maui to have an amazing wedding and you can’t expect quality for the cost of a plane ticket. Cut costs elsewhere to get the wedding you want. Because the providers you really want to work with usually don’t offer discounts on their services. The best never do!
