Planning · · 8 min read
What a destination wedding in Mexico really costs
A candid breakdown of the budget for a 100-guest, three-event weekend across our destinations, and where the money actually goes.
Marisol Vega · Founder & Creative Director
Nobody publishes real numbers, which is why couples arrive at fit calls with a budget they built from a blog post and a hope. Here are ours, from celebrations we’ve actually produced.
The scenario
100 guests. Three events: a welcome party, the wedding, a farewell brunch. Full-service planning with Altamar. Prices exclude guests’ own flights and rooms, the couple’s travel, attire and rings.
Total range by destination
| Destination | Typical all-in |
|---|---|
| Los Cabos (resort) | $280,000 – $400,000 |
| Los Cabos (villa buyout) | $220,000 – $320,000 |
| Tulum & Riviera Maya | $230,000 – $340,000 |
| Puerto Vallarta & Punta Mita | $220,000 – $330,000 |
| San Miguel de Allende | $190,000 – $290,000 |
| Yucatán haciendas | $180,000 – $270,000 |
| Oaxaca | $170,000 – $260,000 |
Where it goes
Roughly, and it shifts with priorities:
- Venue, food and beverage: 35 – 45%. The biggest line, and the one destination affects most. A Cabo resort plate runs two to three times a hacienda plate.
- Design, floral and production: 20 – 30%. Lighting, furniture, builds, tenting, power. This is where Tulum and the haciendas cost more than their venue prices suggest, because you’re bringing infrastructure with you.
- Planning fee: 8 – 12%. Ours is fixed and quoted after the fit call.
- Entertainment: 6 – 10%. A band from Guadalajara, a DJ from Mexico City, mariachi, a calenda.
- Photography and film: 4 – 7%.
- Guest experience: 3 – 6%. Transfers, welcome gifts, the website, the guest line.
- Stationery, hair and makeup, officiant, gratuities, contingency: the rest.
The three things that move the number most
- Guest count. Every guest is a plate, a chair, a transfer seat and a gift. Cutting from 120 to 90 changes more than any other decision.
- Number of events. A fourth event (a rehearsal dinner separate from the welcome party, a beach day with catering) adds 10 to 15 percent.
- Venue type. Resort vs. villa vs. estate vs. hacienda. The venue type matters more than the destination.
What people underestimate
Power and tenting in Tulum. Transportation in San Miguel (the airport is ninety minutes away). Heaters in the highlands in January. IVA, the 16 percent value-added tax, which some vendors quote inclusive of and some don’t. Gratuities for on-site teams. We budget every one of these up front so the number you agree to in month two is the number you pay in month twelve.
What people overestimate
The planning fee, honestly. And the cost of Mexican craft: a hand-thrown black clay plate at every seat costs less than a rented charger from Miami.
If your budget is below the bottom of the range for a destination, we’ll say so on the first call and suggest where the same money goes further.
