7 Ways to Raise Money for a Fabulous Honeymoon ...

I’ve already discussed this popular tradition so I won’t go into it right now. As you now, the point is to allow all your guests to pay to dance with you and your groom. They can pin the money on your clothes or you can decorate a special basket for this purpose. If money dance is not a popular tradition in your area you can have the DJ announce it and explain the procedure or do it a bit more elegantly and tell your closest family members to start it and invite other guests to join too.

It may sound tacky or cheap but wait, don’t shake your head just yet because, in some countries, giving cash instead of material presents is a tradition. Flower shops even sell special envelopes so you can show up carrying a nice flower arrangement with a cute envelope, (containing the amount of money you’d normally spend for a wedding gift) attached. Why not include these envelopes with your wedding invitation and politely ask the guests to “chip in” and skip all that present shopping drama.

Google wedding traditions that involve receiving money and find a nice way to incorporate them in your wedding. There is a Greek tradition that takes place three days before the wedding and involves throwing money and rice onto the bed the newlyweds will sleep in. In my country, for example, the father of the bride is supposed to personally deliver invitations in a very special way. A special bottle is decorated and filled up for the occasion, a bottle which he takes with him and must pour drinks and make a toast for every house he visits. The guests have to drink that drink and pin some money onto the bottle. LOL, I guess here, in the Balkans, we really have a lot of traditions that involve both giving and receiving money.

Consider renting everything you won’t really need after the wedding is over. Be creative too and save by making your own wedding invitations, flower arrangements and decorations. You can rent an arch and pay big bucks to get somebody to decorate it with dozens of white roses or get a bunch of white balloons and ask your bridal party to help you arrange them and form a huge, fluffy arch. Have fun thinking of new DIY activities to keep yourself and your family members busy and remember to keep the calculator close by and carefully monitor cash flows.

If you can’t get yourself to break the ice with the traditions that involve receiving money, how about getting rid of all those stuff you don’t use anymore or you’ve never used in the first place? Your impulse buys could be somebody’s fabulous finds and if you manage to get your fiancé to pitch in too and auction all those collectibles, sporting gear, gaming consoles and God knows what, you just might raise enough cash to go on that honeymoon you’ve been dreaming about.

Human wedding planners now have serious tech competitors – various software packages you can install and use to plan your wedding like a pro, for just a fraction of the price you’d pay for a living and breathing pro. Trial versions are usually free so you can test various wedding planning programs until you find the one that suits your needs. Cool, huh?

Your know what they say, “Early bird gets the worm!”. So, if you want to snag your “worm” too, you better get rid of that nasty habit of doing everything in the last minute. Big brands have sales too so you can snag perfect wedding attire for you and your groom by simply leaving yourself at least a year’s time to hunt for sample sales and special deals. This strategy will enable you to use the benefits of early booking and low cost flights so you can even book two ridiculously cheap tickets and cut the cost of your dream honeymoon by half!

Do you know of some other ways to raise money for a fabulous honeymoon and still manage to have a fabulous upscale wedding? I’d have to employ some of these too so I’ll definitely let your know how it all turned out. I’m hoping my fabulous honeymoon is just a money-raising strategy away!

Top Photo Credit: Orin Zebest