WEDDING PLANNING GUIDE
From setting your budget and finding the right venue to choosing vendors, planning your ceremony and organizing the wedding weekend, this guide will help you understand what to do — and when to do it.
Start from the beginning or jump straight to the stage you're working on
THERE'S A LOT TO PLAN.
BUT THERE'S A CLEAR
WAY THROUGH IT
Between choosing France and arriving at your wedding day, there are hundreds of decisions to make. Some are exciting. Others are easy to overlook until they affect your budget, timeline or plans.
The key is knowing which decisions need to come first — and which can wait.
Use this guide to work through your wedding one stage at a time, from the big decisions that shape everything else to the details that bring the celebration together.
START WITH THE BIG DECISIONS
Before you start comparing photographers, flowers or table settings, get the foundations of your wedding in place. These four decisions will shape almost everything that comes next.
FIND YOUR VENUE
Learn what to compare beyond beautiful photographs — from accommodation and catering to access, restrictions, rain plans and potential additional costs.
PLAN YOUR WEDDING
STEP BY STEP
Once the foundations are in place, work through each part of your wedding in an order that makes the next decisions easier.
02 — VENUE
Your venue affects far more than where the wedding takes place.
It can shape your budget, guest experience, catering options, accommodation, transportation, timeline and even which vendors you can choose.
Learn how to search, compare and evaluate venues before making one of your biggest commitments.
03 — VENDORS
Build the team that will turn your plans into the actual wedding day.
Learn how to find and compare photographers, caterers, florists, musicians and other wedding professionals — and what to clarify before signing a contract.
04 — CEREMONY
Plan a ceremony that is beautiful in photographs — and works just as well in real life
Think beyond the ceremony style itself: location, layout, guest comfort, sound, light, weather, timing and what happens immediately before and after.
06 — LOGISTICS & TIMELINE
Bring all the moving pieces together before the wedding day.
Vendor arrivals, setup, transportation, ceremony timing, dinner, speeches, music, guest movement and the unexpected all need to work as one plan.
07 — DESIGN & DETAILS
Once the foundations work, make the celebration feel like yours.
Bring together the setting, flowers, stationery, table design, lighting and personal details without losing sight of the experience you're creating for yourselves and your guests.
A BEAUTIFUL WEDDING IS MADE OF HUNDREDS OF SMALL DECISIONS.
The ones that matter most aren't always the obvious ones
What happens if it rains an hour before the ceremony?
Who moves the chairs afterwards?
When can your vendors access the venue?
How will guests get home after midnight?
What isn't included in the price you've been quoted?
Good planning means asking these questions before they become problems.
PLANNING FROM ABROAD
Destination weddings come with an extra layer of decisions
You may be choosing a venue you have only seen online, working with vendors in another country, managing payments in euros and asking guests to plan an international trip around your celebration.
These guides focus on the questions that come with planning a wedding in France when you don't live here.
Can Foreigners Legally Get Married in France?
How to Plan a Wedding in France From the US
When Should You Visit France Before Your Wedding?
How to Plan a Wedding Venue Scouting Trip
THE THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW TO ASK
Some of the most expensive wedding planning problems begin with questions couples didn't know they needed to ask.
VENUE
The venue looks perfect.
BUT DOES IT ACTUALLY WORK FOR YOUR WEDDING?
CATERING
The quote looks complete.
Does it include staff, rentals and overtime?
CEREMONY
The garden is beautiful.
What happens if it rains?
NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NEXT?
START WITH THE FRANCE WEDDING PLANNING CHECKLIST
A practical checklist to help you organize the decisions, bookings and details involved in planning your wedding in France — and see what to focus on next.
You'll also receive occasional planning guides, venue discoveries and new resources from France Wedding Studio.
