Have you ever thought it would be amazing to travel all over the world to do hair or makeup for weddings?  Maybe you've had a long time client ask your pricing if they were to have you come do their wedding in some tropical locale- only to realize that you don't have a system in place for how to charge them appropriately?

The first step to actually becoming an artist that does travel for weddings is to have a clear cut pricing structure in place BEFORE you start getting brides asking about doing destination weddings.

What is a Destination Wedding?

Every business owner is going to have to set the parameters for themselves on what constitutes a destination wedding.  It doesn't always mean somewhere out of the country or even out of your home state.  Personally, anything that is more than three hours away from my house, I consider a destination wedding.  Additionally, if I need to leave my house before 5 am, I'm going to require a hotel the night before where the wedding is taking place so that I'm not getting up super early, driving, standing on my feet for hours, and then driving home exhausted.  That's just a recipe for disaster.

How Will You Get There?

Depending on how far away the wedding is taking place, you may be able to drive.  In this instance the costs for travel is pretty straightforward- you'd calculate it based either on a set rate per mile round trip or a set rate per hour of driving time round trip.  

If it's further away and requires either a train or a plane flight, make sure to add the cost of the ticket into your travel quote.  I highly recommend researching the costs prior to quoting her so that you know how much is required.  Don't just make up a number and get stuck covering the distance later.

Who Books Travel?

Make sure you're booking all your own travel arrangements, otherwise you run the risk of the bride purchasing the cheapest and least convenient options to save some cash.  If there is a group rate at the hotel, she should be able to let you know what it is and how to arrange it.  If you'd rather use your own rewards programs to earn points towards travel perks of your own, go for it!  Find out what the best deal will be after the fact.  You're not going to be invoicing her for what you actually spend after the fact.  She's going to be quoted the lump cost for your travel at the beginning of the process, so if you can find a way to save some money down the road, all the better.

What Else Should Your Rate Include?

Your travel cost shouldn't just be the straight mileage/ticket/hotel costs.  There are other things that need to be compensated for such as:

• Per diem for food costs.  You're going to be away from home, so you'll likely have to purchase food while traveling.
• Childcare.  If you have to pay for a sitter to watch your children while you're away, add that into the travel quote.  You shouldn't have to eat those costs!  
• Lost wages.  You are turning away other work during the time you have to be traveling for the wedding, so make sure you include what the value of that lost time is worth.

It's NOT A Vacation

Imagine if you had a corporate job, and they wanted you to attend a conference in Hawaii for them.  But they ask you to take paid time off or vacation days to go, because they only want to pay you for the hours you are working and not the time you have to travel for the conference.

That's what it's like when you book a destination wedding.  You're not booking a vacation.  You're still there to work.  The locale may be really nice, but if the "vacation" time is still on your dime, you're only saving on the airfare and getting a pretty crappy deal in return.

You aren't really going to enjoy the location's perks unless you also pay for someone else to come with you and take the time off to enjoy it, so make sure you're getting paid for the entire time you are away from home.

How Much Time?

If you have to take a train or fly to the destination, I recommend at least three days worth of time.  You'll want to make sure you're arriving early in the day the day before the wedding and leaving at a reasonable hour the day after the wedding.

Putting Together The Quote

Remember, you're not sending the bride an itemized list.  You're not getting reimbursed for specific travel expenses after the fact.  You will be putting together all the costs I've outlined above and then quoting your bride one final number based on that total. She doesn't need to know everything that's included in that total or why you feel the need to charge for certain things.  Your rates are yours, and you shouldn't ever defend them.

Brides do not understand the costs that go into running a business, and it's a waste of energy to try to educate them.  Don't fall into that trap.  It will drain you if you're always feeling like you're defending your prices, and it will make you start to question them.  Either they can afford you, or they can't.  Let them move along if it's the latter, and someone else can undercharge and undervalue their time in your place.

Now that is all just the travel portion of your quote.  This is going to be in addition to all your regular rates you would be charging if the wedding were local.  Do not be convinced to let a bride woo you with offers to cover your travel if you will do the wedding hair or makeup for free.  If you wouldn't work for free at home, why would you work for free out of town?  We've already established you're going there to work, not have a vacation.  

Resist the temptation of saying yes to these types of requests.  You'll still have bills to pay when you come home.

Looking to learn more about the realities of becoming a destination wedding hairstylist or makeup artist?  I have a full masterclass on the subject in my membership: Masterclass Magic!  It's one of the five bonus masterclasses that's included when you join for only $27/month. You can learn more about it here!