Welcome Party?

melb2013

So our wedding is somewhere between 2-6 hours away for most people.  However, the ceremony doesn't start until 5:30, so I thought most people would come on the day of and stay over just the wedding night.  

More and more people are telling us that they plan to come on Friday and make a long weekend of it, which is great!

FI's parents are paying for a rehearsal dinner and while we haven't discussed the details of that yet, FI and I are thinking of having a welcome party at the hotel in the evening for all the OOT guests who arrived early.  The hotel has a small function room that they don't charge for as long as you pay for some food.  We were thining about just putting out some sodas, cheese and crackers, fruit, veggies, that type of thing.

What does everyone think about something like that?  FI's parents said they would pay to have some OOT guests for the rehearsal dinner, but I don't want the rehearsal dinner to get too big or too expensive.  This way, it could just be immediate family and WP for the rehearsal dinner.

How would we invite people to this welcome party thing?  

SSaltzman87

I think that'd be a great idea!

It could be super casual, maybe word of mouth?

MrsBad13

I think thats a great idea. Im thinking of doing something like this. I say word of mouth as well !

FLGatorGal88

I agree with PP.

jmozul01

word of mouth or even maybe put it on your wedding website if you have one

rswans

I'd say word of mouth. If you want to make sure people know or are reminded,  if you're doing a welcome bag, you can put a note in there or or the hotel has a block for guests, have the person at the desk inform them.

bburkel

We will be doing something simliar, since our wedding is on a Sunday, and most people would be coming into town for the weekend.  We've posted it on our website, and will probably include a small card in the invite to invite guests to our house on Sat afternoon for a BBQ.  

TogetherPerfect

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_may-2013-weddings_welcome-party?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:ea657a87-d1dc-4588-999f-31c9deeef720Discussion:3f1c5210-3480-4638-8943-c4637c0cc1fePost:41f3f4fe-67a9-4a71-bce4-825e536dd862">Re: Welcome Party?</a>:
[QUOTE]word of mouth or even maybe put it on your wedding website if you have one
Posted by jmozul01[/QUOTE]
I like that idea of a welcome party, and I agree with this.

RebCappon

Awesome idea!

Texasgal05

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_may-2013-weddings_welcome-party?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding Club BoardsForum:ea657a87-d1dc-4588-999f-31c9deeef720Discussion:3f1c5210-3480-4638-8943-c4637c0cc1fePost:a80cad65-c970-4375-8d14-8b2099542880">Re: Welcome Party?</a>:
[QUOTE]I'd say word of mouth. If you want to make sure people know or are reminded,  if you're doing a welcome bag, you can put a note in there or or the hotel has a block for guests, have the person at the desk inform them.
Posted by rswans[/QUOTE]


I think this is a great way to let everyone know.

melb2013

Thanks, girls!  I think we're going to play it by ear- we want to see how many people actually end up coming Friday night before making a decision.  I think it would be nice though.  What time do you guys think we should schedule it for?  Maybe 8:30?

emmyloveseddie

I like that I idea too : I will say 8.

rswans

 I'm not sure what time your rehearsal and dinner are, but give a little extra time in case things go long (which has happened at every rehearsal I've been at). 8 or 830 would be good since it's still not too late for getting sleep before a long day.

aprahamian2

Great idea! Your OOT guests will appreciate it. I would say 8:00 if possible.