Cocktail Hour

kateguess22 · July 2012

We're trying to plan out the reception and we aren't sure if we should have a cocktail hour or not. We could do all of our photos before the ceremony so that after the ceremony is over we don't need to leave our guests to do our formal photos and we could go right into the reception meal. (Ceremony and reception are taking place at the same location.) OR we could have a cocktail hour going on for our guests while we get our photos done. OR we could do our photos before the ceremony and then have a cocktail hour after the ceremony that my FI and I can attend with our guests.

Any thoughts or suggestions? What are you guys planning for your cocktail hour? Also curious what your advice would be if we go with a lunch or a brunch reception instead of a dinner reception? We're getting married in the colder months so we won't be having any of the reception outdoors. Is it a good idea to have some kind of a bridge between the ceremony and the reception meal- such as cocktails and hors d'eurves? Or is this something that we should skip to keep things simple and budget-friendly as long as the meal immediately follows the ceremony? Any tips?

Thanks!!

Summer2011Bride · July 2012

We didnt do a first look, so we had pics after the ceremony. We had cocktails and apps for our guests to enjoy while we took pics.

I don't think a cocktail hour is necessary. If you still wanted one, I think it'd be fun for you and H to be there and mingle with guests while it was going on. However, skipping it would also save you money, so there's that. If it's a lunch/brunch reception, I think going right into the meal might be best. While some people might still drink and you can still offer alcohol, people might drink less during the day at a cocktail hour anyhow.

I think any of the options listed are fine. If I were you, I'd probably skip the cocktail hour to save some money and go right into lunch/brunch.

lyndausvi · July 2012

I like cocktail hours. People generally like to meet and greet family/friends as soon as they see them. Not just at weddings. If you think about going to dinner at someone house. Do you normally just walk in and sit down at the table? No, you shake hands, give hugs, say hello, etc. Cocktail hours gives people that chance to catch up with people they have not seen in a while before they sit-down at their table.

Ours were at the same location. We did most of our pictures before the wedding. Especially family shots and WP shots. Then after the wedding we did about 30 minutes more of photos. Some with the WP (15 minutes worth?), then we released them to have drinks

. After we finished up we went to the last part of the cocktail party.

jessicabessica · July 2012

We took most of our photos beforehand, but we still had a cocktail hour with our lunch/afternoon reception. We took about 15 minutes of the cocktail hour to get some extended family photos with people that we had not asked to come early for pictures, and then we mingled with our guests and got some casual photos.

You definitely don't need to have a cocktail hour if you're going right into the reception. I like having it to give everyone some time to relax and chat with each other before sitting down.

fallbride1109 · July 2012

I think if you do your photos beforehand and you have a lunch reception, then it's not needed. We had a dinner, so we did a cocktail hour and even though we had a first look and had done all the WP photos, we used the cocktail hour to take bride and groom photos.

If you want to save money, I think you can definitely get away with not doing one, as long as your photos are done.

Summer2011Bride · July 2012

Again, I think you need to consider the time of day. If it's dinner time, I can more see a cocktail hour. If it's lunch, I think having people eat apps and drink THEN serving a full meal might be kind of a lot for lunchtime. Even if you choose to forego an organized cocktail hour, it doesn't mean guests can't mingle and talk to each other as they make their way to the reception part of the venue, and it doesn't mean they are chained to their seat once they get there. They can still socialize and move around.

lyndausvi · July 2012

It's funny how different people do different things.

I've mostly attended day weddings. All of them had cocktail hours (30-60 minutes long), with full meals. Never once have I associated cocktail hours to be evening only.

Except for breakfast, I've never associated foods or even amounts of foods with a certain time of day. Sometimes I have a big meal at lunch. Sometimes I only have a sandwich at dinner. Sometimes we have the big holiday meal at 1 pm. Sometimes it's at 6pm.

While I generally eat something lighter at lunch, but that does not mean i don't have a full blown heavy meal and drinks during the day for a special occasion.

Meh. you certain do not have to have cocktail hour at any hour of the day. I really enjoy them prior to sitting down to a meal.

DramaGeek · July 2012

I've only been to one wedding with a cocktail hour and it was very obvious that the guests were used to going straight into the meal, as we all sat at our tables and waited...and waited...and waited....for over an hour until the bride and groom showed up and dinner finally got started. So, I think you need to go with whatever is the norm in your situation, especially if the norm is not to have a cocktail hour.

SB1512 · July 2012

Hi OP my ceremony and reception are also in the same location, and we are doing an evening dinner reception. FI and I are planning on doing a first look so a lot of our photos are taken before the wedding. We are still having a cocktail hour after the ceremony though. I believe there is a wedding before ours, so we cannot get to our venue until 5:15pm, and the ceremony is at 6:30 so we probably won't be taking any photos at our venue before the ceremony. We will use a portion of the cocktail hour to get some additional photos of us after we are married at our venue. We plan to arrive at cocktail hour halfway through and use the remaining half hour to mingle and chat with guests.

lilames79 · July 2012

We are doing ceremony, followed by cocktail reception.. so as soon as it is official, the servers will be going around tuxedo style handing out drinks and hor d'ouerves. We are thinking about getting a jazz trio etc. during that time and we will go get our photos done while everyone is mingling.. then we come back down and have our first dance in the gazebo etc. etc. then our guests are taking a tour of our venue (heritage building) and going up tothe reception room for dinner but out by 830 $:\$
a little backwards but whatever

melb2013 · July 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_cocktail-hour-20?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:c7f0c912-7468-4a4c-8983-066bb12d6691Post:627d74cb-cb70-485c-a9e5-aa389c907f1a">Re: Cocktail Hour</a>:
[QUOTE]<strong>Again, I think you need to consider the time of day. If it's dinner time, I can more see a cocktail hour. If it's lunch, I think having people eat apps and drink THEN serving a full meal might be kind of a lot for lunchtime. </strong>Even if you choose to forego an organized cocktail hour, it doesn't mean guests can't mingle and talk to each other as they make their way to the reception part of the venue, and it doesn't mean they are chained to their seat once they get there. They can still socialize and move around.
Posted by Summer2011Bride[/QUOTE]

<div>I agree with this, but I do like cocktail hours, so we are doing one (having an evening wedding too). We're doing pictures ahead of time and will enjoy cocktail hour with our guests. </div>

Cocktail Hour

Re: Cocktail Hour

Choose Another Board

Search Boards