A Guide to Wedding Tipping for Tough Economic Times
Wedding tipping is one of the hidden costs of the marriage ceremony. Like sales tax, people often don’t account for it as they figure out the total price of a wedding. With the typical wedding ceremony costing, on average, $20 thousand, however, a 15% tip across the board could add $3,000 extra dollars of expense.
In these tough economic times, wedding tipping at this rate is nothing to sneeze at. A further consideration is the fact many couples now are taking much of the cost of a wedding on their own shoulders. So what to do?
Here are some tips for reducing your wedding tipping.
Consider a Smaller, More Intimate, Wedding
Since the tip is based on the overall cost of your wedding, you might want to consider a smaller more intimate setting for your wedding. You may feel you need to invite most everyone to your wedding, but this is simply not the case. An intimate setting, meaningful to both you and your spouse, could provide a good way to pare down your wedding list to a tighter group of “essential” guests.
Having a smaller more intimate setting also gives you graceful way of not inviting certain guests you may not really need to have at your wedding. The smaller location often has the added financial benefit of reducing several costs in one fell swoop. You not only do not need to pay the higher fee for a larger location and the accompanying tip, but you also will reduce the catering and serving fees since you will have fewer dishes and fewer servers preparing and serving them.
Ask Professional Friends to Donate Services as a Wedding Gift
If you have talented friends who are musicians or who take photographs professionally, you might ask them to donate their services as a wedding gift. This is a tricky business, but if you present it properly, many friends would be honored to take part in your wedding in this way.
Given the financial times, they also may be feeling the pinch. Being able to offer their talents may not only benefit you financially, but them as well.
Eliminate Unnecessary Services or Extravagancies
One can often trim unnecessary cost and the subsequent wedding tipping by getting rid of extravagancies. Do you really need that fourth layer of wedding cake? Do you need someone to check hats and coats? Do you need the fully stocked stretch limo? Do you need the honeymoon suite for three nights?
Often it is less a question of getting what you want, then getting the most expensive version of what you want. You can trim quite a bit of cost off by getting the more standard limo rather than the vintage limo, for example. You might not need to stay at the most expensive hotel in Hawaii for the honeymoon. Why not consider a quaint bread and breakfast with an interesting location and view?
It is Your Wedding
It is your wedding, however. This has to be a decision between you and your spouse. If you feel not having the total blowout wedding will be too big of a disappointment, then go ahead and have the wedding of your dreams without regard to the overall cost involved.
However, you might consider that going twenty or thirty thousand dollars into the debt right from the start of your wedding will inevitably add a great deal of unnecessary stress to your marriage. Many couples regret the burdens they placed on their marriages by having overly expensive weddings. Learning how to be realistic with your money is one of the first lessons a couple should learn. You don’t want to sow the seeds for divorce on the wedding day.