Is My First Choice Reception Site Too Far?

roanoke1977

Hi All,

I appreciate any and all feedback I can get on this issue. I located my absolute dream wedding venue recently.  It is beautiful and I could not ask for anything more. It is truly incomparable to any other venues closer to home. However, it is approximately 1 hr and 10 min away from our(my fiance and I) hometown, which is also where the majority of our guests would be coming from. Is this too far to ask guests to travel? I really worry about inconveniencing people even though I know the day is supposed to be about my fiance and me. 

Furthermore, we plan to have both the ceremony and reception at this location so there would be no need for any guest to travel between sites.  Three nice, but resonably priced hotels are located nearby (under 10 minutes away) and we would arrange to have shuttles to and from the hotel. So, in total, the guests would either drive to the site and home from the site, or, drive to the hotel and home from the hotel (shuttle takes to and from site). Thanks in advance for your feedback!!

GoodLuckBear14

Where is it, where are you exactly and what highways would they have to travel to get there?

roanoke1977

Thanks for the responses. We are in Wilmington, DE and the reception site is in suburbia 20 minutes north of philadelphia. So, its most just 95 and then about 3 turns off of the exit. Not too complicated but not the most scenic drive.

roanoke1977

*reception AND ceremony site that is.

orangehills

I would say it's fine. If it's a Saturday, usually there is less traffic. I've been to weddings between an hour and 2 away and you just deal with it! If people don't want to spend the night, they may drink less and leave early for the drive home though.

Avion22

You say "I" a lot in your post.  "I found MY dream wedding site."  "I couldn't ask for more."  Does your fiance like it as much as you do?

I would find it odd to travel over an hour to attend the wedding of people who lived in the same town as me and the rest of the guest list.  Are there absolutely no suitable venues in Wilmington?

rlavach

Well considering that's less than what I have to drive to get to work, I wouldn't mind. I usually say that if people around you often drive longer distances to get places, then it's no big deal. But if you live in an area where people mostly stay within their town or those immediately surrounding it, then it's going to look like a long drive for them.

GoodLuckBear14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_is-my-first-choice-reception-site-too-far?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:5Discussion:c522d2d2-04e3-4806-9802-9b971a2a1907Post:f03db249-ef1a-4ded-a5ea-d46fe7883f87">Re: Is My First Choice Reception Site Too Far?</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks for the responses. We are in Wilmington, DE and the reception site is in suburbia 20 minutes north of philadelphia. So, its most just 95 and then about 3 turns off of the exit. Not too complicated but not the most scenic drive.
Posted by roanoke1977[/QUOTE]

That's not too bad for this area.  I doubt anyone would stay overnight.  The only thing I would worry about if if they will run into Phillies, Eagles or Flyers traffic.

ETA - I am still curious about which venue this is and how many people you will have as guests. 

Lilshell812

I think as long as the ceremony & reception are at the same place, the distance would be fine. Maybe you should keep looking around Wilmington in case you do find a comparable venue that you like just as much. Before booking my ceremony/reception sites, I looked into EVERYTHING with a 20 mile radius. And I mean EVERYTHING!

Also if you have a decent amount of older guests, it might call for some further discussion. I know my grandparents don't drive at night so they would have no choice but to rent a hotel room.

alithebride

i think an hour if the ceremony and reception are in the same place is just fine!! an hour really isn't that much especially since you said most of your guests are coming fromt eh same place. my guess is that a lot will carpool.
you might want to reserve a block of hotel rooms in case people do want to stay over.

AdeleDazeem

It's totally fine.  I've never not traveled for a wedding - one hour drive up to seven hour plane ride! 

[Deleted User]

It sounds like you got everything covered. Ceremony & Reception at the same site, hotels nearby & shuttle services provided for those who opt to get rooms because then you don't have to worry about people drinking & driving either. I say go for it. Be prepared there may be a few people who decline to come due to the location & possible babysitter issues, but to plan a wedding where 100% of people show up is pretty impossible. Since you've got things covered go with your dream venue. Just send out invites early or include on STD about location so that people can plan for it with travel & finances.

Good luck & enjoy

GoodLuckBear14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_is-my-first-choice-reception-site-too-far?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:5Discussion:c522d2d2-04e3-4806-9802-9b971a2a1907Post:b0dd952d-9633-4472-9663-d14cf550a443">Re: Is My First Choice Reception Site Too Far?</a>:
[QUOTE]It sounds like you got everything covered. Ceremony & Reception at the same site, hotels nearby & shuttle services provided for those who opt to get rooms because then you don't have to worry about people drinking & driving either. I say go for it. Be prepared <strong>there may be a few people who decline to come due to the location</strong> & possible babysitter issues, but to plan a wedding where 100% of people show up is pretty impossible. Since you've got things covered go with your dream venue. Just send out invites early or include on STD about location so that people can plan for it with travel & finances. Good luck & enjoy
Posted by Erikan73[/QUOTE]

While this is always a possibility, I doubt it.  While the hour and ten minute drive between, say, Cleveland and Youngstown seems like a long way (and I made this drive many times between my office and the Courthouse there), the same drive between Wilmington to north of Philly really doesn't (I've also made this drive several times). My daily commute to and from work, depending on traffic, is between 35 and 50 minutes.  It's really just something that most people in the area are used to doing.

stantokm

Since the ceremony and the reception are in the same place, I think that an hour is perfectly reasonable, though I would drive home after instead of spending the night.

A third of our guests will be driving two hours to get to our wedding and most of the others will travel for a a few hours more than that.  I don't think of it as inconveniencing guests because they won't come if they don't want to make the drive.

DramaGeek

An hour drive to a wedding is no big deal.  An hour drive between ceremony and reception would be a huge problem.  I think you're totally fine.  If you're really concerned, have your ceremony earlier in the day so people are driving home earlier, instead of leaving the reception at midnight.

loca4pook

I think you are fine and agree with others that it depends on how used to your guests are to traveling for weddings. Here in chicago, an hour wouldn't matter since most are used to it..

With that being said, realize you "might" have guests who just dont want the hassle of driving far, so they might decline...YOu might want to look at guestlist and decide if that's a possibilty to decide

NOLAbridealmost

An hour drive to a wedding ceremony/reception is no big deal at all.   I can't imagine anyone declining because of it.  PPs nailed it: as long as the ceremony and reception are close together, the overall distance to get there doesn't matter.   It's only rude to expect people to travel a long distance between the ceremony and reception.