How to Have a Micro Wedding at an Airbnb or Private Residence in the DMV
If you’re planning a micro wedding in the DMV and you’re hoping to celebrate your day at a private residence or Airbnb, Tiny Wedding Co wants to help ensure your day runs smoothly and without a hitch!
Planning a backyard micro wedding in any location takes some extra love and care - there’s lots to take into consideration: weather, set up, breakdown, neighborhood rules, etc., and we’re here to answer all of your micro wedding questions!
So, how do you plan an intimate Airbnb wedding? Let’s discuss!
Get Permission for Your Micro Wedding at Your Airbnb
If you’re planning your DMV micro wedding at a rental property instead of a private residence of someone you know, it’s important to get permission first.
Not all Airbnb’s allow events like rehearsal dinners or micro weddings, so it’s important to ask before making your deposit and confirming the booking.
The last thing you want is for your micro wedding to be interrupted by the management company, or worse, the police! What I love about Airbnb more than some of the other rental websites is that you can search homes and properties that allow events.
Make sure to also research the neighborhood noise ordinance and wrap up your event before then, or move the party inside once it’s time to cut the music.
Hire a Day of Coordinator for your Micro Wedding
At the very least! Some people hear “backyard wedding” and think “easy peasy,” but we’d argue that Airbnb micro weddings call for planning and coordination more than any other type of micro wedding.
Since you’re not holding your wedding at a venue with a staff, you’ll need to have a team on site to take care of setup and breakdown so that you can be present and truly enjoy your day! Your friends and family deserve to enjoy the day, too, so let them sit back and relax while our team handles the logistics and heavy lifting!
Have a Solid Rain Plan in Place
We can’t predict or control the weather (believe us, we’ve tried!),
so it’s important to have a plan B in the case of inclement weather. We recommend making plans to secure a weather-proof tent from one of our recommended rental companies or ensuring there’s enough space indoors for all of your guests to fit comfortably.
We also recommend that our couples get some clear umbrellas in case it’s raining during their portraits. They’re much nicer looking than the standard black ones, and the clear plastic makes for a natural light diffuser, which will be super flattering for your skin!
*Looking for a list of recommended vendors? All of our booked couples receive our recommended vendor list (as well as a list of all our preferred venues and caterers, too!)
Celebrate Your Wedding All Weekend Long
By booking the Airbnb for the weekend, you’re able to…
-Have more fun
-save money
-Host additional wedding-related events
-Stay stress-free
If the house is big enough, you can invite your closest family or friends to stay at the house with you to create a fun-filled weekend instead of just a one-day celebration.
You’re also saving money $$$ by renting an Airbnb for your micro wedding - venue rentals alone can cost upwards of 8-10K!
For just the cost of the Airbnb rental, you could host a rehearsal dinner, welcome party, micro wedding, and a day-after brunch! Renting an Airbnb or hosting your micro wedding at a private residence also allows for a stress-free day.
Instead of going from one place to another, worrying about transportation for you and your guests, everyone gets to stay in one place! This may be extra important for couples with older guests or guests who might need some extra help with mobility.
Plan Ahead For Your Tiny Airbnb Wedding
Once you’ve hired your planner and/or coordinator, you’ll want to begin the planning process right away. While Airbnb or private residence micro weddings tend to be more stress-free on the day of, the leading up to the micro wedding will involve a lot of to-dos. Here’s an abbreviated list, just to name a few:
-Research and book an Airbnb (we can help you with this!)
-Book a Caterer + Rentals (including tables, chairs, linens, and a tent! Don’t worry - we have lots of catering and rental recommendations!)
-Book all of your Major Vendors (Our All-Inclusive Packages include a Day of Coordinator, Photographer, Florist, Officiant, and Cake! Just looking for planning support or day of coordination? Let us know! We can help you with that, too!)
-Book all of your Minor Vendors (All of our booked couples get access to our Recommended Vendor list - a list of vendors we’ve either worked with in the past or have experience working with micro weddings!)
Looking for more micro wedding tips? Sign up for our email list below, and we’ll send them straight to your inbox!
The Micro Wedding Guest Experience
When keeping things simple, we like to encourage our couples to think about the guest experience. For a smaller guest list, this may not mean a DJ with dancing. (Although it might! You know you and your guests best!) Here are some high-touch guest experiences that we think add to the simplicity and intimacy of a micro wedding:
Live music
If you’re choosing to forego a DJ but still want something more than a speaker and your Spotify playlist, we recommend opting for something like a string quartet (perfect for small ceremonies!) or an acoustic guitar player who loves to play covers! We’ve also had couples bring in a harpist for background music and a jazz band for something more upbeat!
AN artist
Live artistry is becoming more and more popular at weddings! You can hire an artist to paint a scene from your wedding - most couples choose their ceremony or their first dance, which they work on throughout the wedding reception! Your guests can watch their progress throughout the evening, and then you walk away with a beautiful keepsake! We’ve also had couples hire illustrators to draw or paint quick portraits of their wedding guests! This doubles as a guest experience but also as a favor!
PHOTO BOOTH
Okay, I know what you’re thinking: isn’t that a little outdated? While the original style Photo Booth trend may be on its way out, there are a lot of cool, new options that are becoming more and more popular! The 360 Photo Booth lets your guests create an interactive video that speeds up and slows down, creating a super fun takeaway and a great activity for guests during the reception!
Interested in learning more about the different guest experiences at our past micro weddings? Shoot us a note!
Get Creative With Your Micro Wedding
While we don’t recommend DIYing too much of your micro wedding, we do encourage our couples to get creative! Since you’re not working within the confines of a typical wedding venue, you can decide on your style and vision from the ground up without having to match your venue’s aesthetic! (We create inspiration boards for all of our couples to help get them started!)
In the micro wedding shared below, you’ll see that the couple chose a coastal theme, which is a nod to the bride’s hometown on Long Island.
They rented an Airbnb that allowed events and brought in chairs, tables, and linens (no tent needed thanks to a beautiful day from Mother Nature!) and brought in catering from the couple’s favorite Italian restaurant.
They kept the decor simple but meaningful: the mother of the bride designed the custom escort cards. Hand-painted oyster shells with a silk dyed ribbon directed each guest to their seat. They had a welcome sign hand-sewn by an artist from Etsy that they hung in the trees, and incorporated floral centerpieces and candles with shades of blues and whites!
Ready to plan your micro wedding at an Airbnb or private residence in the DMV?
Ready to plan your Washington DC or Baltimore Micro Wedding?
The Tiny Wedding Collective offers all-inclusive elopement and intimate wedding planning services for Chicago, Washington DC, Northern Virginia and Baltimore, Maryland. A Tiny Wedding is for couples who want to celebrate their commitment in a thoughtful, stylish way but don’t want the stress and fanfare of a big, expensive wedding. Not all couples fit inside the same traditional box and it’s time that we make space for inclusivity, diversity, and creativity. To find out more about what it’s like to work with us, please fill out our contact form here.