From the carry-on essentials to the dress that will make everyone ask who you’re wearing.
Destination weddings are, objectively, the best type of wedding. A few days in the sun, a reason to wear something extraordinary, and an excuse to treat the whole trip as a holiday. The only catch is that “what to wear” becomes a much more complicated question when you’re also trying to fit everything into one suitcase and keep it presentable after a three-hour flight.
We’ve done the hard part. Whether you’re heading to a terrace in Tuscany, a villa in Andalusia, or a clifftop in Santorini, this edit covers everything you’ll actually need, from the dress to the dry oil, the heels to the SPF mist. We tested, obsessed over, and in some cases genuinely couldn’t stop thinking about every single thing on this list.
Pack well. Look incredible. Have the time of your life. Here’s where to start.
How we chose
We looked for pieces that could either survive a carry-on or justify checked luggage. Everything had to earn its weight: either solving a real packing problem, looking extraordinary on the day, or doing both simultaneously. Pieces that would crease irreparably on a plane, require dry-cleaning immediately after wearing, or only work for the ceremony itself didn’t make the cut.
Jaki Ruby Halterneck Satin Dress in Ivory, £180
Best for: the elegant, understated guest who still manages to look like the best-dressed person in the room
The dress you reach for when you want to look polished without trying too hard. Jaki’s Ruby is a floor-length halterneck in 100% viscose satin, cut in Italy, and it has that rare quality of being a dress you could genuinely wear to three different weddings without anyone thinking twice. The ivory colourway is classic without being bridal, the side pockets are an absolute gift, and the fabric has just enough movement to make the whole thing feel effortless rather than formal. It runs slightly large, so size down if you’re between sizes.
Don’t overthink this one. It’s the kind of dress that photographs beautifully, travels well, and doesn’t require Spanx, a specific strapless bra, or a six-month gym commitment to look good in. We love it.
Ieena for Mac Duggal Style 49981 Pleated Charmeuse Strapless Tiered Gown, from $458
Best for: the wedding where you want to make a proper entrance
If the Jaki is the “effortlessly elegant” choice, this is the “stop the room” option. Mac Duggal’s style 49981 is a strapless floor-length gown in pleated charmeuse, with a sweetheart neckline, a keyhole cutout at the bodice, and a full tiered ruffle skirt that moves incredibly. It comes in sage, terra cotta, fuchsia, spring green, and ivory, which means there’s a version for every wedding colour palette. The silhouette does the work so you don’t have to: it’s one of those rare formal gowns where you put it on and immediately feel like you belong at a very glamorous outdoor ceremony somewhere warm.
The fabric is 100% polyester charmeuse, which sounds less exciting than silk, but is actually considerably better for travelling, since it doesn’t crease the way silk does mid-flight. Fully lined, concealed back zip, approximately 60 inches floor length. Yes.
Aquazzura Bow Tie Pump 105 in White
Best for: the shoe that makes every photograph
Come on. It’s Aquazzura. The Bow Tie Pump has achieved the kind of quiet iconic status that means you will still be reaching for it in ten years’ time. The white nappa leather version is made in Italy (natch), with a pointed toe, skin-revealing side cutouts, and that signature upward bow at the heel that is, frankly, the detail that tips the whole shoe from “very good” into “obsessive.” The 105mm stiletto heel is long enough to be genuinely elegant and not so high that you can’t make it to the reception without removing them.
Fits large, so take half a size down. The cushioned leather insole is a blessing for anyone who spends a ceremony on their feet. Edgardo Osorio reportedly cites Marilyn Monroe on the power of the right shoes. He’s correct.
Lauren Ralph Lauren Jayna Perforated Leather Mary Jane Flat, £135
Best for: the rehearsal dinner, the day-two brunch, the long walk to the welcome drinks
The heels are for the ceremony. These are for everything else. Lauren Ralph Lauren’s Jayna has been quietly doing the rounds as the flat that people actually want to wear rather than just the flat they packed because they knew they’d need one. The perforated nappa leather gives it a bit of texture, the Mary Jane strap lifts it above basic ballet flat territory, and the polished “LRL” logo at the back is a genuinely lovely finishing detail. An all-leather upper, lining and insole means these feel like they were made for your feet after about forty minutes.
They’re also the shoe you’ll wear on every other trip you take in the next two years, so the £135 goes a long way.
Reformation Lilibeth Cape
Best for: turning an outfit into a look
The Lilibeth Cape is, technically, just a cape. In practice, it is the piece that takes whatever you’re wearing and makes it feel considered. It’s a high-neckline, asymmetrical-hem georgette cape in 100% viscose, designed to float rather than cling, with a dry handfeel that is much more luxe than it sounds on paper. Wear it over the Mac Duggal gown for the outdoor ceremony and remove it for dinner. Wear it over the Jaki dress for the evening drinks. Wear it over nothing in particular and feel like you have your life together.
Reformation designed it to have a relaxed fit throughout. Dry clean only, which is worth noting before you pack, but frankly for the compliments this earns, the trip to the dry-cleaner is absolutely worth it.
Rat & Boa Vida Earrings
Best for: accessorising without overthinking
Rat & Boa describe the Vida as an evolution of their Hibiscus collection earrings, just scaled down for a more understated effect. The result is a small, finely detailed pair that adds the right amount of drama to both a simple satin dress and a full tiered gown without competing with either. This is the Rat & Boa signature: jewellery that somehow manages to look like a styling decision rather than an afterthought. Pack these and nothing else and you’ll be fine.
Jacquemus The Small Calino
Best for: the bag that fits your phone, your lipstick, and a thousand compliments
The Calino landed on the runway in Spring ’24 and has had people in varying states of wanting it ever since. The small version has a distinctively curved leather body, a gold-tone engraved hoop handle, a magnetic closure, and precisely enough room inside for your phone, a cardholder, and your keys. It is, in short, exactly the right size for a wedding where you won’t be the one carrying the table plan. The gold hardware against the leather is the kind of detail that photographs brilliantly under outdoor ceremony lighting. Worth every bit of luggage space it takes up.
Reiss Tailored Suiting
Best for: the second outfit, the smart daytime look, the woman who doesn’t do occasion dresses
Not every wedding guest wants to wear a dress, and this is where Reiss quietly excels. The tailoring is precise, the fabrics are considered, and the suits read as intentional occasion dressing rather than office workwear repurposed for a Saturday. A Reiss blazer paired with a midi skirt or tailored trousers is, genuinely, one of the most reliable wedding guest looks there is: polished enough for a ceremony, relaxed enough for a long lunch, and infinitely more interesting than a wrap dress.
Shapermint Essentials All Day Every Day Scoop Neck Bodysuit
Best for: smooth confidence under any outfit
No explanation required, no embarrassment here: the right bodysuit makes the difference between an outfit that works and an outfit that really, really works. Shapermint’s All Day Every Day bodysuit does exactly what the name promises without digging, rolling, or requiring you to think about it once it’s on. Packing this under either the Jaki or the Mac Duggal is, to be completely honest, the kind of decision you will not regret.
The Skin Diary Age Defence Moisturising Day Cream, £92
Best for: the daily SPF you’ll actually want to wear every morning of the trip
Here’s the thing about sun at a destination wedding: it’s not optional, it’s everywhere, and it matters significantly more than it does on a grey Tuesday in London. The Skin Diary Age Defence is a day cream that happens to contain SPF50 PA++++, and it’s the product that converts even the most reluctant SPF-wearers, because it absorbs instantly with a velvet-matte finish, doesn’t pill under makeup, and provides 24-hour hydration as a side effect.
The technology behind it is genuinely impressive: encapsulated UV filters that sit on the surface of the skin rather than absorbing into it, DNA repair enzymes inspired by the research recognised by the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and an antioxidant complex including bilberry extract and raspberry seed oil. In clinical testing, it provided a 60.8% improvement in skin moisture immediately after application. Eighty-eight percent of the 58-person consumer trial said their skin had a healthy glow. We are believers.
Labareau The Glow Getter, €49
Best for: in-the-moment SPF top-ups without destroying your makeup
Once you’re at the venue and the ceremony is underway, reapplying sunscreen over a full face of makeup is essentially impossible with most products. The Glow Getter is the answer: a bi-phase mist that you shake, spritz from arm’s length, and suddenly you have a hydration hit, an SPF 20 top-up, and a makeup-setting layer all in one. The formula has SPF 20 via photostable UV filters (Tinosorb S among them, which is reef-safe and non-hormone disrupting), triple-layer hyaluronic acid, prebiotic inulin, and vitamin E. There is no white cast, no greasy residue, and no disturbing of your contour. A travel-day essential and a wedding-day essential simultaneously.
Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse 50ml Shimmering Multi-Purpose Dry Oil
Best for: the golden glow that makes summer skin look effortless
A classic for a reason. Nuxe’s Huile Prodigieuse in the shimmer version is the body oil that makes bare arms and decolletage look like you’ve been on holiday for three weeks even when you’ve only just arrived. The lightweight dry-oil formula absorbs quickly rather than sitting on the surface and transferring to everything it touches, which matters enormously when you’re wearing ivory satin. Use it on legs, shoulders, and décolletage the morning of the wedding and thank us later.
Buy: Boots (in-store and online)
Chanel La Crème Main 50ml
Best for: hands that look as considered as the rest of the look
Wedding photographs include hands. A lot of hands. Chanel’s La Crème Main is the hand cream that actually addresses this: a rich, nourishing formula that visibly brightens and softens, with the kind of luxe texture that makes applying it feel like a small daily ceremony. The 50ml bottle is the perfect travel size and slips into the Jacquemus Calino without difficulty.
Tom Ford Vanille Fatale Eau de Parfum 50ml
Best for: the fragrance that makes you unforgettable
Scent is the most personal item on this list, but if you don’t yet have a Tom Ford EDP in your life, Vanille Fatale is an excellent reason to start. It’s warm, honeyed, and compelling in the way that only a small number of fragrances actually are: the kind of thing where people ask what you’re wearing within twenty minutes of arriving. For an outdoor wedding in warm weather, a vanillic scent worn lightly is exactly right. The 50ml is ideal for travel.
Consider this list your complete packing brief. Everything here works harder than it needs to, takes up less space than you’d expect, and looks considerably more expensive than some of it actually is. Now book the flights.
