Cancel uk wedding and go abroad?

Unless you have already sent out invitations/told people they will be invited, you do also have the option of just doing a cheaper/smaller UK wedding, which would both reduce costs AND enable your cousin and grandparent to attend.

You also need to look at how much money you will lose if you cancel the bigger wedding. It might end up being cheaper to stick with the original venue and downsize on numbers than to lose deposits and then pay for a destination wedding as well. Or, you might find that you could afford to pay for your cousin's flight because you're saving so much money on not having the big UK do. You could also livestream for your grandparent - if he/she is unable to travel abroad now, then is it possible that by 2024, travel within the UK might also be an issue?

I would suggest that you and your OH spend a couple of hours working out what kind of wedding YOU (not your family or friends) want to have, who it is most important to have at that wedding and what the cost implications are for all your options.

I suggest seeing how much you can downsize in your current venue first so you don't lose what you have already paid for. Is there minimum guest numbers and if so, are they small enough for the wedding you would like? Your venue dresser could do something to split the room up so don't worry about having small guest numbers in a large space.


From what you have said, it only sounds like you want to go abroad so you can have a small wedding. It's much easier to have a small wedding in the UK and you wouldn't have to compromise on your cousin, flower girls and grandparent coming.

The minimum numbers is 40 in the day and 130 at night time. If we went with minimum numbers for the day time, it wouldn’t be enough to include all aunties and uncles and close friends (my partner has a huge family!). It would mean us having some and not others which we didn’t think was fair. Night time wouldn’t be a problem.
We worked out figures and the cost of the venue alone in the uk would be the same price abroad for venue/flowers/cake/celebrant/food and open bar for 4 hours so we would be saving a fortune😬
We did think of having a live stream if we were allowed and having an allowance set aside for family who couldn’t afford it.
Also, looking at Pinterest and getting some pictures together - the vibe would be so much more us!

View quoted message You don't want to regret your day and feel like it didn't represent you as a couple. If the vibe is more you with what you are looking at abroad then that seems to be the option you are leaning towards.

If you can have the wedding you want after cancelling your current venue and still save money, then there's no reason not to go for it. So it really comes down to choosing between a smaller UK wedding in a different venue which your relatives might be able to attend, or an overseas wedding and a livestream. Only you can know which one will work for you.

Hey! So my partner has a HUGE family also. We also feel alot of pressure as his brother secretly eloped last year, so all eyes are on us to have the big 'party' as they call it here. However..... we have some very close friends who are family, i have 3 siblings, and we travel alot. We weighed it all up and although we are upsetting some people. There is now 30 of us getting married in Italy, My dad doesnt like to travel, my sister neither, which im still anxious about. But when we thought about the big UK wedding, it was just to please others unfortunately. Marriage is so important to us, we are very private and i now cant wait to say my vows infront of very close people. We will likely throw a UK 'party' after, a rugby club/pub for everyone to celebrate. Please dont regret the day, do what you want x

Omg same, also June 2024.
I could have written this x

Omg I’m in the exact same mindset!! I feel like I’m starting to care more about pleasing everyone else rather than focusing on just us. Are you glad you made this decision?? Tempted to cancel our UK wedding