When planning your wedding, you don’t have to narrow it down to one big day. Why not make it a whole weekend event? This way you can keep the party and celebration going, instead of packing everything into a small 24-hour window. Your guests traveling from out of town will also appreciate this, giving them more opportunities to experience the city where your wedding is taking place, and more time to see you as well.
After your rehearsal dinner, which is typically just the bridal party and immediate family, think about including your guests arriving from out of town, or your local friends who are preparing for your big day, and consider having a welcome party. It can be at a local brewery, bar, or wherever you’d like after your rehearsal dinner. This way you can see your guests before the wedding and talk to them before it gets chaotic the next day, and you won’t feel pressured to speak as long to them during your reception so you can focus on celebrating. It’s also a great way to kick off the celebration for the weekend with your favorite people there, and it makes it all start to feel real!
Boone Town Story, Wonderlab Salon, Carolina Golf Club
Let’s move on to the day after your wedding. It’s always nice to include a send-off brunch the following morning/early afternoon before you and your fiancé take off on your honeymoon. You can hang out with some of your out-of-town guests again and thank your friends and family for coming one last time. This also gives the perfect opportunity to go over and reminisce on your wedding or get a good laugh about those who may have partied a bit too hard!
If you have lots of out-of-town guests who have never been to your city before, it could also be a good idea to add ideas of things to do on your wedding website. This could be anything from your favorite restaurants for them to try, good shopping spots, or any form of sightseeing tour or activity that you think is special to your area and your guests may enjoy. This way they won’t end up feeling stuck in a hotel waiting for your wedding, but more like a vacation with different things to do.
Boone Town Story, Wonderlab Salon, Carolina Golf Club