Travel Fees- Breaking Down the $$

Travel fees will vary depending on each vendor & business type- so this is subjective to myself and most likely many/ all other makeup & hair artists. 
When you hear “travel fee”, most people think of it as a fee to cover the cost of gas & mileage on the car. While this is partly true, there are SO many more factors we consider when creating travel fees. Let me break it down for you!

1. Gas & Mileage: As mentioned above, this is the obvious one! The travel fee will include what the actual gas and “wear and tear” on the car will cost. So, for further away destinations, this piece will cost more. 
2. Prep & Packing: As a makeup artist, I bring a directors chair, large folding table, lighting system, and two kit bags with me. Not only is this a lot to pack up and carry around, I spend a solid hour prior to a wedding making sure everything is organized, sanitized, and ready to be seamlessly unpacked at the venue. 
3. Time: Another big piece to the travel fee is the actual time we spend on the road. For example, if we travel 2 hours one way to the venue, and 2 hours back home- there is 4 hours of our day spent on the road. If you factor that on top of the 4-6+ hours we are physically working a wedding, it makes for a very long day! Time on the road is also time spent taken away from possible other clients. 
4. Unpacking & Setup: Once we actually arrive at the venue, we get to unpack everything we brought. For some venues, this could mean lugging everything up flights of stairs, across resort areas, over gravel driveways, through elevators, etc. Plus the actual unpacking and setup in the room when we arrive. 
5. Re-packing: After we finish the best part of our job- actually doing makeup and hair(!!!!)- we have to re-pack and bring everything back to our car. While this seems like an easy pack and go situation, I always make sure to put everything back in an organized fashion so nothing gets damaged or broken while driving. 

And there you have it! All of the bits and pieces we factor into our travel fees. While the makeup and hair is the best and most fun part of our job, factoring in our time is important as well. 
PS- we love to travel! Seeing new parts of Vermont (or anywhere!) is incredible, and we are so lucky to do it. My goal with this was to simply provide education. Questions? Shoot me a message on the Contact page.
PC- Amelia Marie Photography