Worried about 7pm wedding

lseago

We are supposed to have our wedding at 7pm (30 min ceremony) because we are getting married in a catholic church (2pm or 7pm were the only options). my sister is extremely worried because she says nobody will have fun since they will eat late and that they will leave at midnight regardless of what time the reception starts.

anyone have experience with 7pm weddings? how did it go?

SoonToBeMrsHoz

How far away is your ceremony from your reception?
Do the guests have to leave at midnight ( ie, is that how long you have the room for)?

MsLaura31

I think it'll be fine. Most guests will realize that if they normally eat before 8 or 9, then they should have a snack before the wedding.

We're having our ceremony at 7, but it's in hopes that the heat will break a little by then.

bobbileighb

I am planning on doing a 7:30ish ceremony and my reception is at the same location and we are not doing portraits in between so we should be eating by about 8:15.  My hope is that since the invitation will state dinner and dancing to follow that people will know to eat a light snack but that dinner will be served.  How long of a gap are you planning on  having in between ceremony and receptioon, I think if you keep it shorter you should be fine.

Terriniski

I think it should be fine - I just went to a 7 or 7:30 wedding last month.  We didn't eat anything before, and after the ceremony (about an hour) we went to the reception site, where they had chips and salsa/queso out for people to munch on until the reception formally started around 8:30.  I confess to eating the entire favor (box of M&Ms) before dinner was served because it was there and marginally better than multiple trips to the chips and queso station.  I think as long as you have something like an appetizer available when guests get to the reception, you'll be fine.

Valeriekay23

Wow I had the same issue Iseago!  Except they said 12 noon or 7pm.   Of course I chose 7 because I'm not getting up early on my wedding day.   We aren't doing a full mass and recpetion is set to start at 8:15ish.  It'll be fine, like everyone else said people should know to eat a light snack since it'll be a later dinner.And if you have appetizers it'll keep them busy.  Don't worry everything will turn out fine!!!

fallbride1109

My wedding was at 7 --but we were serving cocktails by 7:30 or so.  Dinner started at 8:30.  My reception was over at 11:30 and there were plenty of people still there.  Many weddings go to midnight or even later.  Definetly try and have appetizers for the guests while you are taking pictures before the reception.

NMac2010

Um, I'm having my ceremony at 7pm and I've never once worried about people not having fun! That's ridiculous!

We are having our ceremony and reception at the same venue. With our package, we only get 4 hours total. So, our ceremony will last about 30 minutes, and then about 30 minutes for pictures. We will be in the reception with our guests about 8-8:15ish, and we have to be done by 11pm. I think that's a reasonable amount of time. This is your show, you can make the reception last as long, or as short as you want. (Given the time constraints of the venue of course). So, if you don't want it to last until midnight, then speed up the process!

As far as eating, I'm pretty sure people won't wither away from hunger because they have to wait until 7:30 to eat.

We are having a mexican style buffet. So, while we're doing pictures after the ceremony, we are going to have chips and salsa/queso out on the tables, as well as drinks (open bar) so they can munch and start drinking. As long as people have alcohol, normally they won't complain! haha.

I think you'll be fine. Just remember, you can't please everyone. This day is about you and FI.

cfibelkorn

My wedding ceremony starts at 7pm (and its on a Friday) then we will do cocktail hour with hors d'ourves (sp?) for about 30 mins while FI and I go take picture and then dinner will be served around 8:15


More people eat at 7 or 8 than you think If they tend to eat earlier than that they will know to grab a quick snack before heading to your wedding

JennaV26

No offense to your sister but that's the craziest thing I've ever heard (okay maybe not the craziest, but it's up there)! People will definitely have fun at your wedding, regardless of what time it starts!

Just make sure your guests know there will be dinner served so if they want to eat a snack ahead of time they can. If it makes you feel any better my sister's ILs are invited to the wedding and they called her panicking because my ceremony is at 6:00 and they said that was "a weird time to get married" because they didn't know whether or not there would be dinner. Huh?? Just let everyone know!

danac2010

My wedding is at 7 and we are doing a buffet that the caterer will start abuot 20 minutes after the ceremony end 8-8:15 while we are finishing pics.  I didn't want every sitting around waiting and didn't want everyone to get full on snack foods so I decided not to wait and just let everyone start eating and drinking. I don't care that Uncle Bob is going to start eating before I entered the room.  Our reception goes until 11 and I think it is plenty of time.

lseago

Thank you guys for the vote of confidence! Our reception site is about 5 mins away by car and we are paying for guests to valet... there is a quick cocktail "hour" starting at 8:00ish and I am guessing all the guests will be served dinner by 8:45. There are hors d'oeuvres, so I think they should be fine. 

I guess my sister's reception was really long... her cocktail hour started at 5:15 and her reception went until almost midnight. most people stayed the whole time and had a blast, so she is worried I will think mine is too short. I was thinking it would go until 1:30 or 2.... but maybe I just think that because I am used to staying up late?