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Two Ceremonies - One Day

parijatsparijats
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in South Asian Weddings
We are having an inter-faith wedding and worried we are cramming too much into one day.  We plan to have a Hindu ceremony from 5:00pm - 6:00pm, have our guests directly break into the cocktail reception for the next hour from 6:00 - 7:15pm while we change outfits and then reconvene for a Jewish ceremony from 7:30 - 8:00pm.  Afterwards we would go straight into dinner and dancing.  Did anyone consider this type of arrangement?  I've seen a lot of couples do one ceremony in the early afternoon followed by lunch and then do the second ceremony in the evening.  What are the pros/cons to each option. Appreciate the words of advice!
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Re: Two Ceremonies - One Day

  • deux.etoilesdeux.etoiles
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    It's totally possible, but I think you may want to start a little earlier because with your jewish ceremony from 7:30 - 8:00, you prob won't be having dinner until around 9:00.  We're starting our wedding(s) at 4:00 with the Christian ceremony first, then Hindu ceremony immediately afterwards (we're not changing clothes).  We're having a cocktail hour from 6:00 - 7:00 and starting dinner after that.  So it is definitely doable!!The reason I didn't want to do the morning/lunch/afternoon/reception combo was just that it makes for a really long day, and I didn't want people to have to wait around all afternoon with nothing to do.  This way if they want to go be tourists in the morning, they can...and they don't have to worry about changing clothes three times in one day :)
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  • sisterghsistergh
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We're doing something similar, but with the baraat at 3:30-ish, the Hindu ceremony lasting until around 5, then we'll change while the guests have a snack, then reconvene for the Christian ceremony at around 6.  Then the guests will do cocktail hour while we do photos.  I like the idea of the guests going straight into cocktail hour, but I think my fi's parents would flip out if folks were drinking right after the Hindu ceremony and with the mandap in the background.  It was a huge deal to tell them there'd be alcohol at the reception.  Not sure if your situation is similar, but something to think about.  Also, you might want to think about pictures.  I'm not opposed to us seeing each other ahead of time for photos, but with this changing while everybody waits around, it's hard to do. 
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  • AmyS627AmyS627
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We did our ceremony and reception fairly close together. An hour in between, and a cocktail hour. I felt like we didn't get as many pictures as I had wanted, but the time we finished blessings and everyone left the ceremony site. If pictures are important to you, make sure you have plenty of time for them. Our biggest issue was that we weren't able to get pictures in both sets of outfits. I didn't change into my indian outfit until halfway through the reception, and I think our photographer got maybe 2 pictures of me in it.
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  • jar297jar297
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Hi, this is my first post . . . I have just started planning my wedding for June 2010 and am also having two ceremonies.  We are starting with a Catholic ceremony at 3:30 - 4:15 with a snack time to follow from 4:15 ish until about 5:30 while FI and I get changed.  We'll then do a baraat followed by a shortened Hindu ceremony from 6 to 7pm.  Cocktail hour will follow that and then the reception. My FI is SA and I am not.  Since most of the guests will be from his side we chose to have the Hindu ceremony later to ensure that most guests could attend and also to help make child care issues easier since we are not having children at the wedding.
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  • ESJ'sBrideESJ'sBride
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Hi Pari, FI and I are doing two ceremonies and one reception all in one day.                                                                  Hindu Ceremony will be at 9am followed by lunch. Catholic Ceremony will be at 2pm followed by receiving line and pictures with guests and wedding party. Cocktail hour will start at 7- however our guests are welcome to arrive early (travel time from Catholic Ceremony to Reception hall is approximately 1 hour) Here are the PROS- 1. One fee for hair and makeup (you just do it once). 2. You get it all done in one day3. Pay for photographer once4. Limo and Reception hall once5. Although it will be a long day for guests-  we have plenty of room for them to linger and socialize as well as plenty of food which is the most important thing (especially for SA's). We let our guests know ahead of time that it would be a long day  -so there aren't any surprises.6. You have no confusion on what day to call your future anniversary.CONS1. It's a long day2. You need to make sure you have enough time in between ceremonies for dress changes and to make sure you, your FI and your wedding party eat and can change too (if there are dress changes)3. There may be a slightly higher cost for vendors since you are asking for their services in a longer time frame vs. the usual 5-6 hours.4. If there will be a lot of kids involved/invited - you may need to think of accomodations for them.I hope that helps!
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  • ESJ'sBrideESJ'sBride
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Sorry for the weird text- oops
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We were concerned about the day being two long so we are doing the two ceremonies together, and alternating religons on each step.  All in all, we want the ceremony to be 1 hour plus the baraat, so hopefully it'll work out!
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  • Knottie_22382024Knottie_22382024
    edited December 2011
    I did the Catholic ceremony at 1PM and the Hindu ceremony at 5PM followed by the reception.  There was a slight lunch in between.  It was a long, long day, but I would have it no other way.  Everything was done in one day and I feel like both traditions got equal billing.  There is no question that it's a long day, but with careful planning and a good DOC, you can do it and love it.  I had a copy of my itinerary on my desk at work and left it there while I was away for the wedding.  When I came back to work and saw it there, I thought to myself, "Who is the lunatic that pulled off this day?"  I cannot believe I did it, but I am so happy I did and glad I did it in one day.  You will be so pumped that you will not notice the fatigue.  Just one word of advice - leave for your honeymoon at least a few days later to recover.
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  • Rye's BreadRye's Bread
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We just did the whole day thing and it turned out great!  Our Catholic ceremony was at noon followed by lunch then the Hindu ceremony at 4.  Though it was a long day, our ceremonies were only about 45 minutes each and everyone had a blast.  The kids did great and stayed at the reception till 11pm.  The only glitch was that some family members could just not get ready on time.  Even if we only had one ceremony though, I think that would have been a problem.  They just don't understand being on time.  Our ceremony ended at 6 and we went to the hotel, got changed, got my hair fixed, and was at the reception by 7:15.  We only missed cocktail hour. 
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  • parijatsparijats
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Thanks for all the responses.  Just a few follow-up questions.  Sistergh and jar297, when you say that you plan to have a "snack" in between the Hindu and Christian ceremonies, what do you mean?  Is a snack essentially a cocktail hour, but without the drinks?  Also does your venue charge you more to have both a snack and a cocktail hour? I don't think we'll be able to do a morning and evening set-up.  I feel like our guests won't know what to do with the time.  They'll have to drive all the way home and come back.  It also makes for an incredibly long day. Thanks for all the advice.
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  • sisterghsistergh
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We haven't finalized our "snack" yet, but we're planning to do samosas, laddoo, probably fruit, and maybe a cheese plate and something Southern like little vegetarian sandwiches or something.  We'll probably do mango lassi and some other drinks, too.  Our venue will let us bring in outside food but not an outside caterer as long as it's not during the reception, so we're planning to do this part on our own.  We'll keep this part vegetarian and alcohol-free. 
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  • jar297jar297
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Our snack will be a light bite - just enough to keep people through the next ceremony.  We decided to wait until after both ceremonies to serve alcohol, so for the snack we will have assorted soft drinks, coffee, and tea.  Since it is a late afternoon snack, we plan to serve assorted finger sandwiches similar to a British tea time along with some bite sized sweets.  Our reception site is charging us about $8 extra per head, yet since we only expect about 1/2 of our 300 guests to be there, we have a lower minimum on the snack time than for the reception.
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  • Knottie_22382024Knottie_22382024
    edited December 2011
    We had a light snack in between at the hotel that was chosen for the guests.  Honestly, my mom took care of it and I never got a bite, so I have no idea what was there.  It was just snack type items and maybe some chicken and veggie platters.
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  • Nicole Krish...Nicole Krish...
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Just wanted to add to check out this page: http://Krishnaswami08.googlepages.com/sabio-planning for more advice in the FAQ section & in the Timelines section. GL!
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