What is the Average Cost of a Hawaii Wedding?
According to The Wedding Report, the average cost of a Hawaii wedding was $36,228. The Knot, another reputable source states that the average cost for a Hawaii wedding was $32,900. Best Day Ever Weddings, a local Hawai‘i wedding planner with over 10 years of real-wedding experience, estimates that a wedding in Hawaii (with 50 guests) will cost $35,000. How did we come up with that number? Keep reading to find out.
What will you spend on your Hawaii wedding?
This may seem like a simple question, but it's really so much more involved than that. The average wedding cost statistics you find online do not give any details as to how they arrived at that number. This makes it incredibly difficult to gauge what you will actually spend.
What exactly do these average costs include? Are they based on a guest count of 10 or 100? Where are these weddings held? Do they include hotel and travel? An open bar? Did these weddings include a photographer, a videographer, a live musician?
Determining an actual wedding budget without any of these specific wedding details makes it near impossible to set a realistic budget for your wedding.
Let me break it down for you in the simplest way possible so that you can put together some numbers that will make sense for your specific wedding and then come up with a budget for yourself.
BIG PICTURE - Average Costs for a Hawai‘i Wedding
Simple beach wedding - $600-$3,000
($600 for basics - cheap, easy, quick, not fancy, an officiant and an iphone, $3,000 for a professionally planned beach wedding (a nicer, well-planned beach wedding with a professional planner + photographer, officiant, florals, musician, etc. The cost of dinner is not included.)
Private venue, 25 Guests - $30,000
(ceremony, officiant, photographer, private venue for dinner/drinks, videographer, wedding cake, planner)*
Private venue, 60 Guests - $50,000
(ceremony, officiant, photographer, private venue for dinner/drinks, videographer, wedding cake, planner)*
Private venue, 100 Guests - $70,000
(ceremony, officiant, photographer, private venue for dinner/drinks, videographer, wedding cake, planner)*
*based on average total wedding costs of real-life weddings done by Best Day Ever Events. the average cost does not include travel, hotel, wedding dress, favors, etc. These numbers are just to give you a general idea of what to expect to spend based on your actual guest count. Average costs are based on hotel venues in Hawaii (specifically the island of O'ahu) many of which offer ocean-front outdoor spaces with a full staff, private chef, hand-picked menu, private bar plus dance floor, lighting, tables, chairs and linens.
The ‘BIG PICTURE’ average costs above will give you an idea of what you can expect to spend based on your guest count. Of course, these costs may vary depending on the actual venue booked and the actual vendors that you decide to include. For example, a wedding at The Four Seasons Resort O’ahu in Ko‘olina, a 5-star resort with a $250.00 avg. cost per guest may cost $50,000 for a guest count of 20. This is much higher than what was estimated for in the sample above. This would be for a higher-end wedding and more of a luxury experience.
Here’s a basic guide to help you figure out what you can expect to spend on your Hawaii wedding based on your guest count and the vendors you want to include.
hawai‘i wedding budget sample - 50 guests
$3,500 Venue (hotel private venue, possible ocean-front)
$250 Officiant
$3,500 Photography (6-8 hrs with a professional wedding photographer)
$4,000 Videography (6-8hrs with a professional wedding video team)
$2,500 DJ and Emcee (6-8hrs with a professional wedding photographer)
$700 Photo Booth
$350 Cake (2-3 tier custom designed cake with delivery)
$4,200 Planning (a mid-tier planning package, or partial planning to handle half of vendor bookings plus complete coordination on the wedding day, execution of timeline, etc.)
= $19,000
+$8,000 Food and Drinks (+$160/guest for food, drinks- custom menu, cocktail appetizers, drinks, wedding cake / based on 50 guests)
+$3,000 for a Full Open Bar
+$5,000 (extras you want to budget for - hotel fees, state taxes, gratuity, and other misc extra costs)
= $35,000.00
*Sample costs are based on our wedding averages over the last 3 years, all sample costs are just estimates. Actual costs may vary depending on actual venue and vendors booked. Sample total wedding cost does not include travel, hotel, wedding dress, favors, etc. These numbers are just to give you a general idea of what to expect to spend based on your actual guest count. Average costs are based on hotel venues in Hawaii (specifically the island of O'ahu) - not private venues that do not come with a full staff and tables, linens, etc.
The majority of our brides want a photographer, a videographer, an officiant (of course!), a deejay and a wedding cake. So, we consider these items to be the essential basics. You could always bring the total budget down by omitting one of these things or by cutting down the package booked with one specific vendor. For example, instead of doing an 8-hour package with your photographer, do a 4-hour package. A few simple changes like this could save you thousands of dollars.
Budget planning for a destination wedding is essential if you are working within a specific budget. It is something you should start doing before booking any vendors and something you should track regularly to insure that you don’t end up accidentally overspending.
PRO-TIP: Start a Google Doc or Excel spreadsheet and outline your wedding costs before booking anything. List out the vendors you ‘MUST’ have and the vendors that you ‘WOULD LIKE TO HAVE’ or those that you will add if there is extra money at the end. Figure out approximately what you’d like to spend in each specific area. Write down actual numbers even if you don’t know for sure what they will cost. Come up with a total wedding budget. Adjust the numbers slightly until you get a TOTAL WEDDING BUDGET that you are comfortable with. Then as you begin to book vendors, change the numbers and adjust as needed. If you spend more in one area, adjust the amount in another. Most importantly - Stick to your budget!
I hope this gave you a little more insight into the big overwhelming world of wedding planning. Breaking everything down and understanding what real-life costs are will help you get a better idea of how to set a realistic wedding budget. Having a realistic wedding budget specific to your wedding at the start of wedding planning will alleviate so much wedding stress and will get you back on track to enjoying wedding planning.
For personalized guidance and an in-depth outline of what to expect to spend on your wedding, we offer custom planning packages which include complete budget planning. Contact us today to learn more.
Happy Planning ✌️
Nicole
Nicole Salmoiraghi is the author and owner of Best Day Ever Hawaii Events + Weddings, where she helps brides + grooms bring their dream weddings to life. She is an expert planner and has over 10 years of planning experience. Follow her on Instagram, on Facebook and on Pinterest for more wedding inspiration, and Hawaii wedding insider tips.