Welcome Event for Destination Wedding

knottie054ba123b416d1e0

Hello All! Would love to get a pulse on the etiquette around welcome events. As we all are, my fiance and I are trying to stay on budget. We will be having our wedding in Maui, and although 95% of our guests will be traveling from the states, the flight can be quite far for those not living on the west coast.

Would it be rude to have a non-hosted welcome event the day before? It is technically not an international destination wedding, but might as well be for many folks in terms of travel time. Curious to know thoughts on this in general.

We are also looking into more affordable approaches such as:
1. A hosted happy hour event (3-5pm) at a bar.
2. An dinner time/evening welcome event at a fancy bar - hosting apps, but cash bar
3. An after dinner evening welcome event at a less fancy bar - hosting first drink.

What would be more favorable out of these? Are any of these tacky? Would love any suggestions as well for keeping a wedding event affordable. We'd like to have one so people can have a chance to mingle and meet each other before the wedding!

charlotte989875

knottie054ba123b416d1e0 said:

Hello All! Would love to get a pulse on the etiquette around welcome events. As we all are, my fiance and I are trying to stay on budget. We will be having our wedding in Maui, and although 95% of our guests will be traveling from the states, the flight can be quite far for those not living on the west coast.

Would it be rude to have a non-hosted welcome event the day before? It is technically not an international destination wedding, but might as well be for many folks in terms of travel time. Curious to know thoughts on this in general.

We are also looking into more affordable approaches such as:
1. A hosted happy hour event (3-5pm) at a bar.
2. An dinner time/evening welcome event at a fancy bar - hosting apps, but cash bar
3. An after dinner evening welcome event at a less fancy bar - hosting first drink.

What would be more favorable out of these? Are any of these tacky? Would love any suggestions as well for keeping a wedding event affordable. We'd like to have one so people can have a chance to mingle and meet each other before the wedding!

I would do a fully hosted #1- happy hour at the bar. It’s not a meal time so food wouldn’t be expected and people can do what they want after the happy hour. The other two are either a little questionable from an etiquette standpoint (#2 you’re having an event at dinner but only hosting apps and having people buy their own drinks) or logistically difficult (#3 how are you policing who has had their first drink). 

My cousin got married in Chicago in the summer, she lived there both families did not- she hosted happy hour the night before and it was great. Everyone got to do what they wanted for dinner and it was clear dinner wasn’t expected.