When to send wedding save the dates: a UK timeline

Save the dates are the first formal announcement of your wedding — the moment your friends and family realise the planning has gone from rings and ideas to a real date on the calendar. Get the timing right and your guest list books out the right weekend; get it wrong and you'll be sending invitations to people who've already booked Glastonbury.

The traditional UK timeline: 8–12 months out

For a typical UK wedding, post your save the dates 8 to 12 months before the day. That's far enough out for guests to put it in the diary without it feeling too premature, and it gives them time to book holiday from work, organise childcare, and book travel and accommodation if they're coming from any distance.

Eight months is the lower bound — fine for a low-key UK wedding where most guests are local. Twelve months is the upper bound — better for a peak-season date, a destination, or if your guest list includes a lot of overseas family.

When to send earlier than 12 months

• Destination weddings — send 12 to 18 months ahead so guests can save and book flights.
• Peak-season dates (June, July, September) — UK venues book out fastest, and your guests will be balancing other weddings on the same weekend.
• Bank holiday weekends and Christmas — your guests have other plans too. Earlier notice gives them time to choose yours.
• Overseas family — visas, flights and accommodation all take longer to organise. 12 months minimum.

What goes on a save the date

Five things, in this order: your names, the wedding date, the city or region (or full venue if you've confirmed it), the phrase "invitation to follow", and an optional wedding website link if you have one. That's it. RSVP deadlines, dress code and accommodation details belong on the full invitation, which follows 4–6 months later.

What to do if you're behind

If you're less than 8 months out, skip the save the date entirely and send the full invitation a little earlier — say, 5 months out instead of 4. The save the date is a courtesy, not a requirement; the invitation is the document that needs to land in time for the RSVP deadline.

And if you're more than 12 months out and worried? Don't be. Send anyway. Better that your wedding sits in the diary alongside their next holiday than gets squeezed out by a stag do they booked last month.