Australian Wedding Planning Checklist

This is the wedding planning checklist for couples who want a wedding that feels like them, for the people who aren’t interested in getting stressed for stress’s sake, for the couples who want to optimise for joy. This is the Withers Wedding Method planning checklist for a perfect wedding.

1. Start With Why

• Why are we getting married?
• What do we want the day to feel like?
• Who is it for?
• Are you having a wedding or an elopement?
• Rough idea of guest list numbers
• Consider how “people like you” get married, not how “everyone” does it, but how do the two of you mark this occasion?

Geust list is the biggest contributor to the total wedding budget. The average cost per head is about $200 per person, probably more by the time you read this, so that’s simple maths. 100 guests is $20,000 at that price. Invite everyone you need to be there to mark that occasion, no more, no less. For you that might be zero, four, forty, or four hundred people.

2. Choose Your Team First (Before Setting a Date)

Lock in your primary team first, then coordinate on a date that works for everyone:

• Celebrant
• Photographer
• Videographer
• Florist
• Caterer / Private chef
• Hair and makeup
• Music / DJ / Live musicians
• Venue or ceremony location
• Planner or on-the-day coordinator (optional)

Move vendors from the list primary list if you don’t consider them primary to your wedding, to the list below.

Now send them all a message asking for availability when you are looking. For example you might say:

I’m locking in my primary wedding team which I’m hoping you can be a part of, so I’m trying to find a date that works with everyone in March 2032, preferably a Tuesday or a Sunday.

The best advice I can give is to set a wedding date based on cash budget. Like this: (total cost of wedding you’d like to have - how much cash you have towards that budget today) / how much cash you can save per month = how many months away your wedding should be.

Find the date that works and you’ve done most of the hard work in wedding planning already.

Other vendors you might consider:

• Cake baker
• Stylist
• Lighting and AV
• Hire company (furniture, decor)
• Transport (car, bus, boat)
• Content creator
• Pet chaperone
• Stationery designer

Once you have a date based on a budget you can keep set from a guest list of all your favourite humans, send out the invitations!

3. Legal Stuff

• NOIM lodged with your celebrant at least one month before and within 18 months of your wedding date. If you’re one of my couples I’ll help you complete this so it’s done correctly.
• Celebrant will provide details for obtaining your official marriage certificate - which is different from the commemorative, but still legal, Form 15 “yellow” certificate issued on the day of your Australian wedding.
• Witnesses must be 18+ (two needed).
• Discuss name change if relevant.

4. Accommodation & Travel

• Book at least three nights so you don’t wake up on day two as a married couple and rush to check out.
• Book travel - flights, cars, transfers - if it’s a destination wedding.
• Share recommended accommodation venues with guests if helpful.

5. Ceremony Planning

• Work with your celebrant to structure a ceremony that feels right for you.
• Write personal vows.
• Decide if you want a bridal party, or if they’ll just enjoy as guests.
• Decide on readings or music if you’d like them.
• Plan how you’ll arrive at the ceremony (car, walk, boat).
• Lock in a ceremony time on your timeline by collaborating on the time with your venue, photographer, and celebrant.

6. Celebration / Reception

• Will it be at the same venue as your ceremony, or somewhere else?
• Book catering:
  • Sit-down meal, shared plates, grazing table, or cocktail-style
  • Canapés for post-ceremony
  • Optional extras: ice cream cart, late-night snack bar, espresso martinis, wood-fired pizza for later
• Drinks:
  • Consider season-dependent options:
    • Water stations in summer
    • Mulled wine or hot chocolate in winter
  • Decide on bar service (open bar, BYO, dry hire with bartender, no alcohol)
• Decide on music (DJ, band, curated playlist).
• Think about speeches (who, when, how many).
• Book your celebrant as your MC so you have a professional running the night.
• Cake or dessert plan if you want one.

7. Outfits & Accessories

• Choose outfits you feel yourself in.
• Wear shoes appropriate for your location and event (gravel, sand, forest, dancefloor).
• Break in shoes early.
• Weather-appropriate layers (jacket, umbrella, sunscreen, hat).

8. Final Details

• Rings
• Wet weather plan, talk to your venue.
• Timeline for the day (coordinate with vendors)
• Seating plan (if having one)
• Marriage certificate ordered post-wedding if needed

9. On the Day

• Eat something.
• Drink water.
• Be present and let yourself enjoy it.
• Let go of small things.
• Get married.
• Have the best day!

Remember

• The ceremony is the wedding. Everything else is a response to the ceremony: the photos are because you look hot and got married, the reception is a post-ceremony celebration.
• Do what makes sense for you; you don’t need to do things just because “it’s tradition.”
• Keep it human and joyful.