Everything Borrowed? 7 Subtle Wedding Savings

Cutting your wedding budget doesn’t have to set guests’ tongues wagging about a dreary location or bland food.

During 2008, couples spent an average $21,814 on a wedding, according to The Wedding Report. That’s 24% less than they spent in 2007. But many couples are trimming their budgets in ways that aren’t immediately apparent to guests, says Joyce Scardina Becker, the founder of Events of Distinction, a San Francisco wedding design firm. “Guests don’t necessarily notice something missing at a wedding,” she says. “It’s what’s inconvenient, when their needs haven’t been met.” (For example, it might be better to keep that open bar and limit liquor options instead of asking guests to dig out their wallets for a cash bar.)

Here are seven cost-cutting trade-offs couples are making that aren’t obvious to their guests:

Old: Credit cards
New: Cash

Wedding vendors are eager to avoid credit-card processing fees and -- with the recession putting pressure on future bookings -- maximize their upfront pay. Offer to hand them cash or a check, and you may be rewarded with a discount of up to 10%, says Samantha Goldberg, a wedding planner based in Summit, N.J., and a counselor on The Style Network series “Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?”

Old: Saturdays
New: Fridays or Sundays

A Saturday wedding package can cost 10% to 20% more than an identical service during the rest of the weekend. For example, the Hermann Hill Vineyard and Inn in Hermann, Mo., charges $3,875 for its Ultimate Wine Country Wedding Package if you schedule for a Saturday. For a Friday or Sunday, you’d pay $3,325 -- 14% less.

Weekday nights can be even cheaper, but not always. You may bump up against corporate event demand at some venues, which could actually increase the price, Becker says.

Old: Separate ceremony and reception sites
New: One location

If you book a venue that can host the ceremony and the reception, you can spend a little less on flowers and other decorations, says Vanessa Wakeman, the founder of The Wakeman Agency, an event-planning firm based in New York. You’ll also save on transportation costs, she says.