How To Pick Your Wedding Date + Savvy Tips To Get It Right

Yes! You are ready to set your wedding date. This is massive, I am so excited for you.

When it comes to choosing your wedding date, you want it to be just right. To avoid any clashes, to ensure the weather is optimal and the atmosphere just so. Not to mention keep to your budget. Am I right or am I right?

Let’s kick off my easy plan to get your wedding date ringed in your calendar. Woohoo.

Photo: Amy Faith Photography

When To Set A Wedding Date?

It’s really a personal choice when to set a wedding date. It could be that you would like to have a long, relaxed engagement and not give your date much thought.

Perhaps, you’ve already had a long engagement and are now keen to get the ball rolling. Or maybe you just can’t wait to get hitched. Whatever your situation, it’s absolutely fine. There is no normal when it comes to weddings or engagements.

The best way to choose when to plan your wedding date is to do so when you are both ready. Don’t feel pressure to set your date if you are getting comments or opinions. Don’t feel rushed into date setting if you need some breathing space or need to save up.

Do you! My best advice though if you are newly engaged is to plan your engagement and wedding in this order:

1. Share Your News
2. Buy Your Engagement Ring
3. Host A Party
4. Set The Date
5. Choose Wedding Roles
6. Decide On Your Budget
7. Find Your Venue
8. Send Save The Dates
9. Discover Wedding Ideas
10. Start Wedding Planning

The timescales for these may wildly vary or you may tweak the order. There are no rules, but this order should make sense in a practical way. For example, you can’t book suppliers, until you have your date.

How To Pick A Wedding Date?

There are some important elements to consider when it comes to picking a wedding date. From seasons and budget to birthdays and timescales. Let me guide you every step of the way.

Consider The Season

Take a moment and close your eyes. What do you envisage for your wedding, what is the weather, what are the sights and smells? Do you have a favourite season?

Hopefully, this conjures up a vibe for the season of your wedding. Perhaps you imagine a cosy, candlelit winter wedding or a festive Christmas wedding? Maybe a Halloween wedding is your jam or an autumn wedding with rich tones?

Spring may be your favourite time of year with a cool breeze and Spring bulbs. Or maybe a balmy summer wedding with a light evening and sunglasses all around.

For wedding flowers, seasonality can impact what’s available for your wedding date. Especially if you want to be sustainable and use less mileage for your flowers.

Photo: Liza O’Malley Photography

Weekday or Weekend?

The day of the week is important to think about. Generally, weekends work best for weddings, there is a reason Saturdays and bank holiday weekends are popular. And often most expensive!

If you want to party into the early hours and you don’t want your guests to head off early to bed. Then it’s important to think about work commitments, both for yourself and guests. Not everyone can take annual leave and some folk work shifts.

So you could try to go with the availability the majority of you and your guests can work with. That being said, you may prefer a more laid back vibe. A micro wedding at brunch or an elopement. Perhaps you think a Friday wedding would be fun to skip a day off work. Or maybe a midweek wedding will work for your budget.

Photo: Ginger Beard Weddings

Weather Considerations

I say this all the time. The weather is pretty much the only thing about your wedding you can’t control.

So if the weather is high on your agenda, please try to let it go now. It will only cause you unnecessary stress and heartache. However, by the laws of probability, searching the average weather forecasts should guide you on your wedding date.

If you are hoping for a hot wedding or a snowy wedding, then you will be able to work out the best time of year to get hitched for your chosen destination. If you are having a destination wedding, it’s worth looking for times of the year when major weather events could occur. To then steer clear of these dates.

Photo: Lee Garland

Favourite or Disliked Numbers

Do you love symmetry? Do you have a favourite number or a digit you hate?

Think about what numbers you’d like in your date, perhaps to remember or feel like you are off on the right foot to your marriage? Do you like palindromes? Some wedding dates have been really popular in previous years such as:

• 07/07/2007
• 08/08/2008
• 09/09/2009
• 10/10/2010

Or future wedding date ideas such as:

• 03/03/2023
• 04/04/2024
• 05/05/2025

Photo: Thyme Lane Photography

Important Birthdays

When looking at your calendar take into account immediate family and friends’ birthdays. Including your own! If your wedding date falls on someones’ birthday it may be worth popping them a message to show you care. You could also do something to make them feel special on the day.

Maybe you fancy getting married on your birthday? Go for it. Make your wedding two celebrations in one! Or if you can and would like to avoid these key dates.

Photo: Ed Godden

Milestone Anniversaries

Do you have an anniversary already? It may be nice to round things off and get hitched on the same date. Perhaps you could tie the knot on the date you first met, or perhaps you want a different date for whatever reason.

I actually married my husband on our ten year anniversary. It certainly makes things easier having just one key date in your relationship and future marriage to remember.

Photo: Barbara K Photography

Take Inspiration From Astrology

Are you into horoscopes and astrology? You could look to the sky to find inspiration for your date if that’s something that’s meaningful to you both.

Photo: J S Coates Wedding Photography

Think About Budget

Your wedding budget could be a key factor in setting your wedding date. Perhaps you need time to save up or an off-peak time of year may save you cash. Midweek weddings can sometimes work out cheaper too, depending on the venue.

The best thing to do is research. Speak to venues, get quotes and see if the time of year makes any difference. Then you can make a decision that suits you best.

Photo: James Merrick Photography

Timescales For Planning

Planning a wedding in a shorter time frame can be more challenging. But, it really depends on your wedding day vision and plans.

If you are going all out and planning a huge wedding with a lot of logistics and details, a wedding date further away may be sensible. Furthermore, you may just want to extend the pre-wed and really enjoy the run-up to your day.

If you just can’t wait to be married, there is no hard and fast way of choosing your date. You can plan a wedding quickly! For my wedding to my husband, we planned our wedding fast. We booked a registry office four weeks in advance.

Then after our wedding, we had three weeks to plan our wedding party. It all worked out great and is totally achievable. Just be realistic with what you want to plan and how much spare time or help you have to do so.

Photo: Denise Winter Photography

Upcoming Events

It’s a good idea to check out big events that may be happening around your wedding date. For example, major sporting events could accidentally take over your wedding. You may forget about a bank holiday weekend where the roads will be busy and leave you rushing around on the morning of the wedding.

Whatever it may be, it’s a good idea to check your calendar for events that may clash for example:

• World Cups
• Olympics
• Jubilee
• Bank Holidays
• Religious Festivals

Photo: Kazooieloki

Booked Holidays

It could be a good idea to check with your close wedding party if they have any big holidays booked. But it’s also worth thinking about when you’d like to get away for your honeymoon.

The time of year for certain destinations may be off-limits and if you want to go straight on your honeymoon it’s worth thinking about.

Photo: Benji North Photography

Supplier Availability

You may be restricted to particular wedding dates if you have your heart set on a particular wedding venue or wedding supplier.

Let’s face facts, great venues and suppliers can get booked up years in advance. If you have someone or somewhere in mind, it may be worth pinging them a message to see what their availability is like.

This is where off-peak weddings can really come into their own. More flexibility and availability are real possibilities.

Photo: Scott Carney Photography

How To Announce Your Wedding Date?

Hooray! You’ve set your wedding date. It’s time to share it.

Sending save the dates is a great idea, as quickly as you can. This will hopefully ensure your guests keep your wedding date free. You can send announcements digitally or by post, or even face-to-face. Just try to make sure you remember all your guests.

So, there you have it. My step-by-step plan to get your wedding date booked. I hope that’s been helpful? Do let me know, I love to hear from you.

Further Reading

• Wedding Checklist & Timeline
• Free Wedding Planning Spreadsheets & Tools
• How To Plan A DIY Wedding