Spring/Beach Destination Micro-wedding

I agree with previous poster. Weddings are not cheap at all. Maybe you should elope with just you and your fiancé somewhere and then turn it into a honeymoon. 3k is not a lot of money when you think about all that goes into a wedding. My venue itself to rent was 3,500 which was about the cheapest in my area - we are only having like 60 people.

Even just looking at micro wedding packages they could be 5k and everything in California seems to be double the price depending the area.

I'm a native Californian and was actively involved in helping plan daughter's wedding in So Cal a couple years ago, and I think you have a lot on your wish list (I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just an observation). To get all that you want, you're going to need a pretty specialized venue, and, especially on/near the beach, that's going to be very pricey. Even though you have a relatively small guest list, venues fitting your checklist are likely to be expensive and hard to find -- most venues are going to be priced for a much larger guest list. (For comparison, we spent nearly $3000 on daughter's welcome/rehearsal dinner for about 35 people at a pretty casual brewery/restaurant, located about 15 miles inland from the beach. It was nice and lots of fun, with a buffet meal and open bar, but no dance floor, no DJ, no karaoke, no opportunity for grand entrance, etc.)

You might have more luck staying within your budget if you consider January or February, on a weekday. Maybe check with hotels located on or across the street from the beach to see if they would do a small event. You might look in Carlsbad, Oceanside, San Clemente, Dana Point, Laguna, Huntington Beach, Long Beach, Ventura, or Carpinteria.

I agree with others that if your potential guests are "30 people you barely like" you might want to consider eloping, and look for someone specializing in beach elopements; perhaps at a beach resort? Good luck!

As a bride on the Central Coast of California I must say- I would be dumbfounded and intrigued if you could satisfy your wish list for even $6,000.

-The beach is relatively cheap here to get married at - they quoted us $350- this is considered a public park and there will be other beach goers there.

- The cheapest venue we looked at came in at $1500 at a small family owned winery- however with having to rent tables (long farmhouse ones were $110 each plus $3.00 per chair, plus a delivery and set up fee of $150). For 30 people you would be roughly looking at another $570 plus taxes.

We chose relatively inexpensive catering of tacos/ mexican food. This is $28 per person. That would be $840 plus taxes and gratuity.

Our DJ is giving us a military discount- at $1300. This does not include karaoke.

Beer/ Wine/Margaritas are coming to about $20 per person.

Of course with all this you would need decor and attire,

Once again, These are the least expensive places for the area... Our wedding has 100 people and we are $20k not including the honeymoon.

From the phrasing of "people you dont like" I feel like you need to sit down with FH and figure out what your priorities for. I as a guest would be horrified if I found out a wedding I went to included me when the bride didn't even want me there.