Can I Still Plan a 2021 Wedding?
Landon Jacob Photography
We’re well into 2021… year 2 of the COVID pandemic, and there is so much light at the end of the tunnel as vaccinations increase and gathering restrictions are eased. If you became engaged anytime in the past year and have been waiting for the moment to start planning your wedding, you’re likely asking the questions so many other couples are:
“Is it too late to plan a wedding for 2021? Should I wait until 2022 to get married?”
First things first, no – it’s not too late for 2021. Vaccination rates are increasing, restrictions are slowly but surely loosening, and more and more jurisdictions are allowing private events at larger sizes. If you’ve set your heart on a wedding this year, it is possible. But I’d be lying if I told you that planning a wedding this year will be easy.
Landon Jacob Photography
Here’s what you need to know if you’re going to wed in 2021 and are just starting to plan your wedding:
Availability will be incredibly limited. Many venues and vendors have squeezed an entire year’s worth of bookings from 2020 into their limited calendar dates for this year already. Finding a date may be a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack at this point. The more flexible you are – the greater degree of success you’re likely to have. If you are unwilling to budge on the idea of a Saturday wedding in the fall in your hometown, it may be best to snag a date for 2022. But if you’re game for thinking more broadly – there’s real potential for an incredible wedding on a nontraditional day or perhaps in a destination you hadn’t considered before.
Couples who hire planners will have a much more fruitful planning experience. This is not a shameless plug for our line of work – it’s the cold, hard truth. An experienced full-service planner will have access to a network of sources and a depth of research you just can’t tap into on your own. They’ll be a thousand times more efficient than you can be on your own when it comes to your time, your budget, and your vision in order to bring your wedding to life in a short timeframe - even in an environment where venues, vendors, and resources seem scarce. Trust me. We’re in the thick of this with a few clients right now, but their weddings will be amazing, this year.
You need to move quickly. If you score the proverbial jackpot and find an incredible venue for a date later this year… don’t sit back and rest on your laurels. You need to expedite all other major decisions, because you won’t be the only ones who need caterers, photographers, tuxes, bridesmaid dresses, hair and makeup artists, a band, transportation, a wedding cake, invitations, tabletop rentals, flowers, and the list goes on. If your natural tendency is to procrastinate, or if your work schedule is so demanding that you don’t have large pockets of time to devote to working on your wedding, then 2021 may not be a good choice for you… or, once again: you really need to hire a full-service planner.
Of course, even if you’re a speedy decision-maker who hires an incredible planner, finds a venue, and books a dream team of professionals to bring your vision to life this year… it is entirely possible (if not likely) that pandemic uncertainty will still exist.
If you ultimately decide to wait until 2022, it’s important to know this: All the bullet points above still apply. 2022 will fill up for many venues and vendors more quickly than any other year. Demand is high already, and who can blame anyone? We’re all just long past ready for a return to joyful celebratory experiences, aren’t we?
