The Ultimate Guide to Planning the Perfect Backyard Wedding in Alaska
At AKhappenings, we absolutely love it when couples choose to celebrate their love with a backyard or non traditional venue in a place that holds special sentimental meaning for them. There are so many advantages to a backyard wedding including budget savings and convenience but we also understand that planning a backyard wedding comes with unique challenges, and can quickly become a financial burden without the right guidance. That's why we've crafted this comprehensive guide to help you navigate every aspect of planning the perfect backyard wedding in Alaska from logistical details to design and decor.
Photo: The Hitched Hiker
Why choose a backyard wedding in Alaska?
Alaska's provides a backdrop for weddings of any size unlike any other state. Here are a few of our favorite reasons why a backyard wedding might just be the perfect fit for you:
No Venue Costs: Say goodbye to expensive venue fees, allowing you to allocate your budget towards other areas of your wedding that truly matter to you, such as delicious food, statement florals, entertainment, hiring an Alaska wedding planner or beautiful decor.
Control of the Space: Traditional Alaska wedding venues often come with a set of rules and restrictions. With a backyard wedding, enjoy the freedom to design and organize every aspect of your wedding however you want making sure that it reflects your style and preferences. Maybe this means including your furry friends, real candles, or lighting off fireworks without the hassle of needing to get it approved by a venue or pay an additional deposit.
Choose any date you want: Break free from venue availability constraints and choose a date that holds significance to you. This is especially helpful if you are wanting to get married during high season in Alaska (June - September). Traditional venues typically book up at least one year ahead of time.
An Intimate Atmosphere: Need an excuse to keep your guest list small? Backyard weddings in Alaska tend to be more intimate than weddings at a traditional alaska wedding venue. Family giving you a hard time about a small guest list, or not inviting uncle Bob? You can blame it on the fact that space is the limiting factor, because its true, there likely won’t be enough space to comfortably fit a large guest list.
Choosing the Right Season
Summer Bliss: Long days and warmer weather from June to August provide an ideal setting for an outdoor Alaska wedding. Can you picture yourself dancing the night away under the glow of the midnight sun? That’s exactly what we did for our Summer wedding on a Peony Farm in Homer, Alaska.
Photo: Donna Marie Photography
Fall Foliage: For those who love the rich colors of fall, planning your backyard wedding for mid September to early October allows you to highlight the stunning burnt orange colors and foliage as a natural backdrop for your ceremony and reception. Note: The alpine locations accessible by helicopter are especially gorgeous this time of year, check out Darby and Jarrett’s fall elopement at Sheep Mountain Lodge.
Photo: Sarah French Photo
Winter Wonderland: Are you and your partner snow lovers, ready to embrace a winter wonderland? Consider hosting an epic winter-themed backyard wedding, turning your space into a snowy haven. Cozy blankets, warm beverages, and perhaps a s'mores station to add a touch of sweetness to the festivities. Just ensure your guests come prepared in their snow attire, ready to enjoy a winter celebration!
Photo: Donna Marie Photography
Logistics of Backyard Weddings
Power and Electrical
It’s a wedding so you are likely going to want to elevate your celebration with extra lighting, a booming sound system, and top-notch food prep equipment, BUT your home likely won’t handle the power demand. In order to keep from blowing a fuse during the fun, rent generators for the extra power you will be needing. With the help of your anchorage wedding planner, coordinate with each of your vendors to determine their power needs to make sure you are fully prepped for the big day.
Restrooms
If you plan to have over 20 guests attending your Alaska wedding, you will need to rent additional toilet facilities. There are various different options to consider including upscale portable toilet trailers from Special Events Alaska that offer a comfortable experience with amenities like handwashing stations, lighting and more space than traditional porta-potties. Couples often choose to add emergency kits in bathrooms with items such as deodorant, gum, toothbrushes, bandaids, and hairspray.
Lawn Maintenance and Setup
Creating a beautiful backdrop for your special day involves kickstarting the process well in advance, giving plants and flowers the time they need to bloom in gorgeous colors. Often, couples will choose to hire a professional landscaper who can take charge of both design and maintenance so that the space is looking its best for the big day. If you opt for a DIY approach or a landscaper isn't in the budget, make it a priority to have the grass expertly trimmed a few days before the wedding.
A super important aspect of planning a backyard wedding is making sure that the terrain is level and suitable for the placement of chairs, tables, and a dance floor. If a tent is part of your celebration, the rental company will likely want to do a site visit.
Parking
Consider the parking availability for your guests, and make sure that they can arrive and leave hassle free. Look into neighborhood street parking rules and consider hiring a transportation service to bring guests to and from the backyard wedding space. Couples will often times rent a school or church parking lot for guests to leave their cars and make that the pickup and drop off location. If you have ample space onsite but want to avoid chaos, consider hiring a hiring a couple of individuals to act as “parking attendants.” Make sure that your website clearly indicates what the plan is for parking to prevent inconveniences.
Permits
Before getting too far into the planning process or booking vendors, consult city officials for required permits. Some of the things you will need to navigate are noise ordinances, fire codes, health department regulations, and zoning issues. This is definitely something you will want to get assistance with if you have hired a full service wedding planner!
Insurance
It’s always better to be prepared for the unexpected in case an accident happens. We recommend checking your homeowner's insurance coverage to get a complete understanding of what is covered for your backyard wedding property and also contact your vendors to see what insurance they carry. Oftentimes couples will consider supplemental insurance such as WedSure.
Neighbors
As a courtesy we recommend notifying your neighbors about your wedding plans 1-2 months before the big day. Give them details such as your plans for parking, what time your ceremony is set to begin and when your DJ/Band will be playing until. If you plan to party the night away and they will be clearly impacted, we suggest inviting them to the wedding or offering to put them up in a hotel out of consideration.
Clean-Up
When planning a wedding in alaska that is held in a backyard it is crucial to consider a plan for cleanup. A large group will produce extensive trash throughout the day, rent plenty of trash and recycling bins to manage post-celebration waste. Confirm if your caterer handles bin maintenance or see if this is a service that can be added on. Have a plan in place for where the trash is being stored, and who is removing it offsite. Secondly, be sure to take into consideration whether or not running water is needed for cleanup. If you are renting plates or glassware, those will need to be washed before being returned. This is a headache without running water and often gets overlooked.
Plan B
Weather in Alaska is unpredictable and its best to be prepared with a solid Plan B. Renting a tent should be considered a non-negotiable if your backyard wedding space/house is not large enough to move the party indoors. Most major rental companies in Alaska have several tent rental options but be sure to reserve well in advance (9-12 months). For the Wasilla/Palmer/Anchorage/Girdwood area we recommend working with Over the Top Tents and Events or Special Events Alaska. For the Kenai/Seward/Homer area we recommend working with CBC Rental & Supply. Don’t forget tent accessories like sides, fans, or heaters to ensure a comfortable atmosphere.
Remember, a well-planned wedding is a stress-free wedding!
Mastering the Space Layout
Creating the perfect backyard wedding goes beyond just enjoying pretty views; it involves thoughtful planning to make sure that the practical needs of the ceremony and reception go off without a hitch.
Ceremony
Regardless of your backyard's size, thoughtful consideration for the ceremony setup is important. After-all, it is the main focal point of the day and the reason you are having a celebration! Using large trees as a beautiful backdrop, is a great way to keep your guests cool and provide shade from the sun on those blue sky days. To highlight a focal point for your backyard wedding whether that is your home, the mountains, a forest etc. consider arranging the ceremony with you, your fiancé, and the officiant, facing your back away from the view while your guests seat facing the central focal point. This way you will have the views behind you for photos. Make sure to take into account the lighting and shadows for photography, we always suggest chatting with your photographer about this prior to the big day!
Reception
Tents are a game-changer for delineating a reception space in your backyard, simplifying space planning. Collaborate with your Alaska wedding planner to design the ideal layout for the space, including how many tables are needed, what style of tables is best (we love using a combo of different tables) where the food/drink stations should be placed, the ideal dance floor size, traffic flor to and from the bar and much more. It is important to avoid overcrowding the space to to ensure a comfortable environment for you and your guests, even if it means adjusting the layout throughout the day.
We always recommend chatting with your catering vendor to involve them in the planning process and to best assess the space informing you of additional equipment requirements and the space they'll need for efficient service. If you don’t have a kitchen with enough space for prep, consider setting up an alternative food prep area, factoring it into your overall space plan.
Having enough space is the key to guest comfort. It allows for comfortable seating arrangements, meaning that your guests not only have a clear view of the ceremony but also enough room to move around and chit chat during the cocktail hour and reception. This contributes significantly to a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere, allowing everyone to fully immerse themselves in the celebration without feeling cramped or confined.
Photo: Megan Rai Freeman
Designing the Perfect Look for Your Backyard Wedding
Deciding on a backyard wedding means everything from the color palette to the setting – is yours to design. Here's how to transform your backyard into a dream wedding venue that reflects your style and personality.
Choosing your colors
One of the pros of a backyard wedding is the endless options you have with your color scheme. You're not confined by a venues decor, style or predetermined palettes. If your backyard full of earthy tones? Draw inspiration from the preexisting setting of your backyard. Or, go for a bold statement with colorful tones within your florals, linens, and accents.
If you aren’t sure where to begin try creating a wedding mood board to visualize what you do and don’t like and narrow down colors. As part of our partial and full alaska wedding planning packages this is something we tag team with our clients to create a cohesive look!
The Ceremony Setting
Oftentimes the ceremony space gets overlooked by couples since the the space isnt being occupied by long. We highly encourage couples to enhance the space with an arbor or fun backdrop as well as aisle markers that give that WOW factor in person and in photos. Definitely consider repurposing any ceremony decor or flowers you use for your reception to get the most bang for your buck!
Photo: Megan Rai Freeman
Photo: The Hitched Hiker
Elevate Your Reception
Like we said earlier, tents are basically a non-negotiable for backwayrd weddings in alaska unless you are having an indoor wedding or have a pavillion/covered space. The weather is just too unpredictable to chance it! Tents oftentimes aren’t the most attractive space, however thankfully they are basically a blank canvas that you can completely customize. Consider hanging lights, statement floral installations and decor that define areas for dining, dancing and mingling. Lighting is one of the best ways to set the romance ambiance as day turns to dusk. From twinkling fairy lights to elegant chandeliers, lanterns, votives and marquee signs, let your backyard sparkle ensuring your festivities continue long into the night.
Photo: Megan Rai Freeman
Photo: Theresa McDonald Photography
If you get lucky and are able to host an open-air affair, take advantage of the open reception space with tall centerpieces and hanging décor that add a touch of dimension and whimsy to your tablescape.
Creating Your Rentals Checklist
Prepping for a backyard wedding involves careful consideration of every detail, including the essential rentals that will bring your vision to life. While you may choose to DIY or repurpose decor and furniture for some items, having a comprehensive checklist ensures you don't overlook anything crucial. Here's what you'll need to rent for your backyard wedding:
Ceremony + Reception Chairs
Ceremony Decor
Ceremony Arbor or Backdrop
Tent
Cocktail + Dinner Tables
Linens
Catering Tables
Gift Table + guestbook table
Dessert Table
Bar
Flatware and Dishware
Reception Centerpieces
Table Decor
Dance Floor
Lighting
Hanging Decor
Photo Booth
Food Prep/Storage Equipment
Generators
Portable Restrooms + Handwashing Options
Trash and recycling bins
Photo by: Donna Marie Photography
With this comprehensive guide in hand, you're well-equipped to plan the backyard wedding of your dreams. Just engaged and ready to design your celebration with personal touches that reflect your unique love story? Inquire today and let’s start planning your dream Backyard wedding in Alaska! In the meantime, check out our guide on essential first steps after getting engaged.
