Zanzibar (Tanzania) is attracting an ever increasing number of visitors to its exotic shores, and as it does a new market is emerging: destination weddings. Destination weddings in Zanzibar are gaining popularity as an attractive alternative to more traditional home weddings. They offer couples exclusive weddings in dream destinations, along with significant cost savings and fewer family pressures. Planning a wedding from thousands of miles away attracts different pressures, but with a local independent wedding planner to guide couples through unchartered territory, its fairly smooth sailing.

Castaway Weddings & Events managing director, Pamela Matthews, said: “The beauty of having a local independent wedding planner is that their advice is impartial. Their choices are unrestricted. They are not driven by commissions. Planners will prove to be priceless and the savings they make will more than cover their expense.

 A planner will be a new best friend, confidant, and even a shoulder to cry on!”

1 – A WEDDING PLANNER WILL HELP YOU PICK THE PERFECT VENUE

Zanzibar has well over 400 hotels and 200 tour operators, making picking the perfect wedding and honeymoon venue an almost impossible task. Zanzibar’s hotels range vastly in style and budget, so there really is something for everyone but booking last minute and during peak seasons will limit choices. Book six months to a year in advance, especially if wedding parties are large.

An independent wedding planner will be familiar with hotels, venues, their products and services. They will help you find the perfect place by carefully considering your needs and offering impartial advice.

2 – A WEDDING PLANNER WILL SAVE YOU PRECIOUS TIME

Planning a wedding is exciting but can also be extremely time consuming. The average wedding takes around 250 hours of planning. That’s over six weeks of full-time work (based on a 40-hour working week) or 25 weekends, that’s half a year, (based on 10 hours each weekend)!

For couples without the luxury of plenty of free time or preferring to leave the legwork to the experts, a wedding planner is the perfect solution. A wedding planner can help with as much or as little, with anything from designing a wedding to hiring a stylist to managing the legal administration. They bridge the knowledge gap between couples and Zanzibar, acting as their eyes and ears, and imparting pearls of wisdom to help save precious time and money.

3 – A WEDDING PLANNER WILL MAKE YOU SAVVY SAVINGS 

A destination wedding can offer significant savings as groups are generally smaller but don’t expect everything to be cheaper as island destinations may have to import some goods and services such as flowers and videographers.

It’s difficult to get good deals as an outsider. But a local wedding planner will already have relationships with suppliers and be in a good position to negotiate. Good supplier relationships can lead to better offers, greater flexibility, and a more personal touch.

Cost savings can apply across the board but buyers beware, as care must be taken to strike a fair balance when negotiating. Pressuring suppliers to reduce costs beyond their comfort zone can lead to poor products and services. This will lead to expectations not being met and disappointment on all sides.

It’s crucial that couples have realistic budgets and strictly stick to them. A wedding planner can help manage budgets, but it’s simply not possible to meet unrealistic high expectations with unrealistic low budgets. Couples can have dream destination weddings within their means, but should realistically manage budgets as well as expectations.

4 – A WEDDING PLANNER WILL MAKE SURE YOU GET THE LEGALITIES RIGHT

To avoid the most serious disappointment of all – returning home after a dream wedding only to find that the marriage isn’t legal – it is critical to check legal marriage requirements and to make wedding applications well in advance. This will leave plenty of time to resolve any unforeseen or last minute hitches.

Legal requirements, administrative processes, and costs can vary depending on countries of origin and type of wedding. A wedding planner can advise on the requirements and ensure that applications are approved by the Registry in advance of a wedding.

5 – A WEDDING PLANNER WILL ENHANCE YOUR VISIT BY SHARING LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

Although a wedding planner’s role is self explanatory, they can also be a rich source of information offering an insiders guide on what’s hot and what’s not, including the best attractions, restaurants and bars around the island. They can offer insight into life in Zanzibar; offering couples a rich holiday experience.

Zanzibar receives an increasing number of visitors year on year; currently attracting over 500,000. Around 200,000 visitors fly directly into Zanzibar, while 300,000 fly indirectly from the mainland following a safari.

Although its close neighbours, Seychelles, Maldives, and Mauritius are more established destinations, as Zanzibar develops it tourism industry, it is becoming a destination to watch out for.

Will & Jada Pinkett-Smith, John Legend and Chrissy Teigan, Prince Charles and Camilla, Bill and Chelsea Clinton, Freddie Mercury, Tom Cruise, Jesse Eisenberg, Amanda Seyfried, Naomi Campbell, Danny Glover and Peter Andre are just a handful of celebrities that have enjoyed wiggling their toes in Zanzibar’s sandy shores!

The name Zanzibar, let alone all that it conjures up, intrigues visitors… Beautiful palm-fringed white sand beaches perfect for unwinding, sailing, diving, dolphin watching, fishing and kite surfing are typical island offerings.

 But when combined with the cultural attractions of Stone Town (a UNESCO World Heritage site) with its rich history of the spice and slave trade, as well as the best safari in the world just a short flight away on the mainland, Zanzibar reveals itself as a highly attractive and diverse destination for those wanting a truly unique destination wedding.