Wedding ceremony at 3pm??!!

msbkb

Hello everyone!

I found the venue of my dreams!  However, there is a huge price difference in me starting the wedding at 3pm versus 6pm.  If it starts at 3pm the reception ends at 9pm.  If it starts at 6pm the reception ends at midnight.  I really want an evening wedding b/c I want my guest to PARTY at the reception!  For some reason I'm not sure if people will really drink and get down at a 4pm-9pm reception.  

Are afternoon weddings common these days?!!  My mom is saying with the huge price difference we can have an after party somewhere after the reception ends at 9pm PLUS have extra money to put towards the honeymoon.  I totally get what she is saying b/c the price savings is $13k.  I guess I'm just really stuck on wanting an evening wedding.

I need some advice, comments, suggestions - anything lol.  Is anyone having a 3pm wedding?  Thoughts?

jaberjamie

I honestly think your mom has the right idea.  I love afternoon weddings!  I think the key is to have an after party so you get what you are really wanting A PARTY!  My cousin did an afternoon wedding then had an after party at the venues outdoor loft...had the dj stay, ordered in IN N OUT burger ( there will be one in frisco very soon) and it was a blast!  I think there are ways to get what you are wanting without having to do an evening wedding.  

carmen9311

since i am catholic, we only had an option of a 3pm or 7pm wedding. we opted for the 3pm since mass is long and we didn't want our guests to be starving. with that huge of a price difference, i would do the 3pm start. if you want to do an after party, you definitely can!

llc2011

I was MOH in a wedding that started at 2:30pm.  The reception did end early, but they had shuttles from the hotel to her parents house for an after party.  It was really fun!

NMac2010

I would definitely do the 3pm and have an afterparty. 13k is a LOT of money that you could use towards other things. So, I agree with your mom! A couple of friends of ours stayed at the Gaylord on their wedding night, and had the after party at one of the bars at the hotel. Which was great, because they could just go back up to their rooms afterwards, as well as anyone who didn't want to drive home after drinking.

meghanttu08

13k is WOW!!  Def. do that. The past wedding I went to was an afternoon wedding. It ended early so we all went out and did whatever afterwords (it was OOT and my cousin was getting married). It was great cus we could bond with family we've not seen in a while!

juliebug1997

Our ceremony was at 2 PM and our reception was over by 8 PM.  I know that many of our friends and family got together at the hotel and had a wonderful time.  We were exhausted.  We opened presents and went to sleep. 

fallbride1109

I understand your feelings--but $13k is ALOT of money.  Some girls have an entire wedding for that.  So I also vote after party.  That sounds like the best of both worlds.

msbkb

Thank you all for helping me keep things in perspective!  $13k can go towards after party and still have money left to go towards honeymoon.  You all are so right!

Tiffany618

Yeah, I don't have anything to add except that I had an entire really nice wedding for less than $13k.   Definitely go for the earlier time.

tdq

Add me to the go with the 3pm crowd. My best guy friend had an afternoon wedding and we all went out afterwards together and had a blast.

serlace

My wedding was over by 10:30ish.  We served alcohol and people still drank it.  I know a lot of people went back to the hotel and had an "after party" in one of the rooms.  I went to bed.  I was so tired.  Our entire wedding (including HM) was less than 13k.

FebDallasBride

We have a 3pm ceremony, 3:30-7:30 reception scheduled.

With all the out of town guests, we decided this would be best as we are wanting to spend time after the festivities with them, and we'll probably bar hop afterwards.

pattc

Your mother is right. Have a party after the reception.