Choosing a Wedding Date

What’s typically the first question you’re asked after telling someone you’re engaged - “When’s the wedding?” right?! Choosing a wedding date is typically one of the top to-do’s after you’ve officially announced the engagement, and it can oftentimes be one of the hardest decisions to make. There are multiple factors involved in picking a wedding date that will help you build a foundation for your perfect day! With some shared insight from your Denver wedding and event planner Partytopia, we hope you and your future spouse easily fly through this process!

As you may have guessed, creating a wedding budget is the first step to almost all wedding-related tasks, and setting the date is no exception. There is a wedding season, which runs from April to October, which means venue prices and the cost of vendors increases during this time of year. Budgeting will need to take place according to your desired time frame or picking a wedding date needs to be influenced by the budget you’ve already set. Choosing a wedding date is also highly shaped by the style of your wedding (theme, overall vibe, etc.), so be sure to choose a time of year that reflects your aesthetic. Some additional factors to consider when setting the date include:

Sentimental/Special Occasion

Maybe it’s your dating anniversary or the anniversary for one (or both!) of your parents. Perhaps you really, really like Thanksgiving, or Valentine’s Day holds special meaning to you both. In any case, there’s a very special date that both of you immediately agree needs to be embossed on invitations for all of time. Choosing a wedding date based on some specific moment in time is a very popular (and probably easiest) option. Recognize that choosing some holidays (especially Christmas and Valentine’s Day) means competing with holiday parties, inflated airfare, fully booked vendors/venues, and celebrating families (unless yours is already in town, which might make it a perfect opportunity). All of this may decrease your attendance and increase your cost.

Weather/Seasons

In terms of American weddings, according to WeddingWire, “76% of weddings occur during the summer and fall months.” Mostly due to the ideal temperatures, choice of flowers, plentiful sunshine, and smaller chance of rain or snow, the most popular months are June and September; for the opposite reasons, the least popular months are December, January, and February. Keeping that in mind, in addition to the holiday aspect addressed above, what matters most is what you’re feeling for your wedding day. If you think rain is lucky, determine what month is the wettest. Do you want sunshine and tulips, then go with mid-Spring. Fur wraps with a snowy background is your perfect day, you should choose winter.

Day of the Week

Although Friday and Saturday are the most popular and favorable days to get married, they’re also the most expensive! Weekend dates may also interfere with certain religious services. You may consider your perfect day falls on a weekday, instead, where venues, hotel, and airfare rates are cheaper.

Convenience

When’s the best time for you to take off from work? Are your VIP attendees available (parents, siblings, bridal party and the absolutely-cannot-get-married-without-you people)? Do you only want to be engaged for one year? Whatever the case may be, it’s important that you’re picking a wedding date that is convenient for you and gives you the platform to have your perfect day. You should not base your choice of date around every person’s schedule, especially because you can never make everyone happy. So choose your key group of people, give them the date (or dates if you haven’t fully settled), and make sure there aren’t any conflicting events that absolutely cannot be rescheduled - then, don’t budge!

Availability of Dream Venue

… or ideal photographer, or the perfect caterer, or any other wedding professional. Maybe you’ve been in love with that particular location since you were a kid, or that photographer’s style of shooting sings to your soul. Choosing a wedding date based on vendors/venues availability can be a good option if you don’t have your heart set on a particular time of year or are finding it difficult to come to a consensus with your future spouse.

Just Because

“Why did you guys decide to get married on that day?” 10/10 or 6/1/16 looked and sounded cool. You flipped through a calender and randomly shoved your finger down on a date. Or, maybe there is legitimately no real reason. Your perfect day doesn’t have to have some big story or hidden meaning because you’re making it special by selecting it as your wedding date.

A few times of year that may be best to avoid when setting the date...

Weekend before “Tax Day” - your attendees might need time to finish filing, or just paid a big ole tax bill and can’t afford to come
Graduation/Prom/Homecoming Season - recognizing potential guests involved in these events won’t be able to attend, you’ll also be competing with the general public: traffic, upcharge of flowers and other accessories, and potentially fully-booked guest accommodations (hotels, rental cars, etc.)
Popular sporting events - Super Bowl, World Series, and the like will discourage some from attending (or encourage them to bow out early if they do show)
Days with bad omens - Friday the 13th, the Ides of March (15th), September 11; if you’re the superstitious type (or someone in attendance is) it may be best to reschedule

Give yourself time! Although it’s always a smart idea to hire a coordinator, like your Denver wedding and event planner Blue Linden, the more time you have between engagement and wedding day, the less stressful and the more true-to-your-vision the day can be.