If you've been to any weddings recently, then you might have noticed something different at the gift table. Instead of a large table for all the gifts and one tiny card box set to the side, the card box has taken center stage, and it's gotten bigger and bolder.
More couples these days plan to use the money they're given as wedding presents towards the honeymoon. Rather than using a simple cardboard box with a slot cut into it for cards, they're decorating the boxes to match the location of their honeymoons and setting up framed explainers on the table so guests can read about where the couple plans to go and how many contributions to the box will be spent. Most guests drop their cards in the box, but some who've brought gifts will throw in some cash when they see what the couple intends to do with the money.
Honeymoon fund boxes have become more popular as the needs of couples have changed. Many couples pay for their own weddings nowadays, which makes it harder for them to budget for a honeymoon. Even after the major expenses are covered, couples often find last-minute expenses, such as added details for the centerpieces or transportation to the airport from their homes. When these expenses pile up, the honeymoon budget shrinks.
Fewer couples are in need of home goods, a popular wedding present, because they're more likely to live together before getting married. Those wedding present staples, such as sheets and towels, won't be needed, and couples would rather have money as a gift to put towards the honeymoon.
But a honeymoon fund box might not be the answer for couples looking to take the ultimate dream vacation. In fact, it has some serious drawbacks, and it might not be the best solution for any couple looking to pay for their honeymoon with gifts from their wedding.
Here are three reasons why it might be best to ditch the honeymoon fund box — and one great alternative.
Better budgeting for the wedding and honeymoon
The biggest challenge facing so many couples paying for a wedding and honeymoon is how to balance a honeymoon budget when you're still sending off checks for the wedding. Maybe you thought you could afford airfare for your honeymoon, but now a forgotten wedding expense has blown a hole through your budget.
It's tough to balance these budgets at the same time. You need to book your airfare and accommodations, but those are major expenses. How can you set a honeymoon budget when your wedding budget isn't even set?
Relying on a honeymoon fund box won't help you better balance your wedding and honeymoon budget because you have no idea how much money, if any, you'll get from your guests. Maybe everyone will give you a card, or maybe people will give you gift cards or physical gifts. Perhaps you'll receive enough gifts to cover for just your accommodations, but not your airfare.
Your honeymoon should be a special time for you, but it's not worth going into credit card debt over a vacation. To stop you from overexerting yourself, set up a honeymoon fund online instead. Honeymoon funds like Hitchd allow couples to create a registry of gifts that wedding guests can give, but instead of toasters and vacuums, couples can add “airfare” and “spa day” as gifts. Guests can browse gifts and pick one or pay for part of a larger gift, such as accommodations.
Create the perfect honeymoon registry. Start your honeymoon registry
No access to the gift money while booking the honeymoon
As any traveler knows, booking rooms and seats on an airplane can be a major guessing game. Do you wait an extra week and risk the plane filling up to capacity? What if you have to wait a week because you reached your credit card limit and cannot pay it down until you get the funds from your honeymoon fund box at your wedding?
When you don't have access to your gift money, you risk losing out on some exciting experiences on your honeymoon. You might miss the better-timed flight or the nicer room in your preferred hotel. Other experiences, such as spa days or snorkeling trips, may be booked to capacity if you wait too long to book your time because you're not sure you'll have the money in your budget to pay for your honeymoon.
Some couples aren't even able to access their honeymoon fund boxes until after their honeymoon. Because they're leaving to go stay in a hotel or catching a flight right away from the reception, they don't have the chance to look in their box and see what gifts they received. That can be difficult for couples because they won't know how much they can spend while on their honeymoon.
With a honeymoon fund, the money you receive as gifts from your guests becomes available right away. Through Hitchda, you can link your bank account to your online account and transfer the money right away. Even if you receive a slew of gifts in the few days leading up to your wedding, you can schedule a transfer once you arrive at your hotel and use the money right away.
No sure-fire way to know who gave what
When you crack open that honeymoon fund box whenever that may be, you may find cards inside, but you might also find cash tossed inside. It's not uncommon for guests to bring a little extra cash at weddings, as “dollar dances” and similar traditions are popular in many cultures. Some guests like to throw the extra cash in the honeymoon fund box.
But how can you know who gave what? How will you be able to thank them when you write out thank-you cards. With wedding gifts especially, you want to be sure you properly thank every single person, but you can't thank someone who just threw cash in the box.
With cards, it's easier to track and write thank-yous, but what if you lose the card? You might throw them out by accident or lose them if you happen to be moving soon after you return from your honeymoon.
To avoid all of these potential pitfalls, honeymoon funds like Hitchd keep track of everyone who contributed to your big trip. After you return, you can write out thoughtful thank-you notes and tell your guest exactly how you enjoyed their gift. Your notes will be more personal, and your guests will feel appreciated that you took the time to tell them about your trip.
Honeymoon fund boxes may have been a good solution at one time, but a honeymoon fund online like Hitchd offers couples more benefits to accomplish the same goal. In the end, the couple still gets to take an extravagant trip, but now with Hitchd, they have a better tool to budget for their trip, access their contributions, and remember who gave them which gift.
Create the perfect honeymoon registry. Start your honeymoon registry
Looking for the #1 way to fund your honeymoon? Hitchd.com has you covered.
Hitchd is a new type of honeymoon registry that helps fund your adventure of a lifetime. Think of us as your very own wishing well, Kickstarter, and travel planner, all rolled into one beautiful experience.