If there's one thing we know about planning a Florida wedding... weather backups are a must!
You’ve spent weeks, months, maybe even years planning your big day and you’ve likely picked a date well before the weather could be predicted. The day finally comes and the weather is looking more like rain than sunshine. Well, on the bright side, they do say that rain on your wedding day is good luck, however it definitely puts a damper on your outdoor venue. What now?
Since you’re unlikely to know the weather forecast until your wedding is just around the corner, having a weather backup to rely on just in case is important. In the best case scenario, you don’t even wind up having to depend on your back up plan. However, if you’ve been planning for contingencies, having to depend on your weather backups doesn’t have to mean your special day is ruined!
Planning ahead and ultimately loving both plan A and plan B will give you one less thing to worry or stress about on the day of your wedding. Think about it this way: Having a back up plan that makes you feel like nothing can rain on your parade, not even rain itself, is better than a last minute backup plan that makes you feel uncomfortable. It may not have been your first choice, but your wedding weather back ups shouldn’t feel like a punishment.
A good way to approach coming up with a “second best” option to your well thought out, picture perfect day, is to understand that your original plan and your weather back up will be siblings, not twins. Enough alike to capture and incorporate all of the things that are important to you on your wedding day, but different, unique and special in their own ways.
In our experience with an outdoor venue space, as well as calling Florida and its unpredictable weather home, having a back up plan can grant couples peace of mind that their wedding day can still be perfect, rain or shine. It’s also important for couples to talk through what their back up plan looks like.
Whether it be a wedding planner, or in the case of our venue a coordinator which our couples work with months prior to their wedding, it’s crucial to sit and talk through the nitty gritty details:
Who should the coordinator contact when it’s time to make a weather call?
Oftentimes our couples want to be contacted directly, while other times they do not want to worry and leave it in the hands of mom or maid of honor.
What time does the call need to be made to move to plan B?
In some instances these calls need to be made as far out as a week in advance to make sure everything needed is available. In our case, we typically make the call about 3PM day-of to hold out for any unexpected changes in weather.
What will your indoor/backup space look like?
You have your wedding weather backups. Great! Now it’s time to talk about what your outdoor wedding would look like indoors. Our coordinators work closely with couples to put together room layouts based on the couples needs. This includes a weather backup in our indoor reception space, DinoDigs. It’s important to make sure that details like table placements, power needs, spacing, etc. all translate nicely if needed.
Who will connect with all your vendors?
Conversations about weather backups should be had with all your vendors. Our coordinators reach out to vendors when planning what plan B will look like to ensure all their needs will be met, and in the case that we need to move inside, the coordinators will call and communicate the new plan of action to everyone. If your venue does not have a coordinator, and you will not be using a wedding planner, make sure you are checking in with everyone who may be affected by this change.
Your wedding day is one of the most special days of your life. The planning, while exciting, can also be a bit overwhelming at times. The best tips we can offer for couples who want to make sure they have all the little details covered, without having to stress on their big day, is simply to ask your vendors and your venue lots of questions, talk through the different possible scenarios that you may encounter, and trust that even if weather drives your wedding inside your vendors will work nonstop to make sure your day is just as special.
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