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Chair Rentals for Beach Wedding!

scarlettjwscarlettjw
First Comment
in Wedding Vows & Ceremony Discussions

Hello everyone,

I am having my ceremony on the beach in August.  I was looking at renting chairs for the ceremony.  It is almost $600 to rent 100 chairs and to have them deliver and set it up.  Kinda silly since we are only using them for about 20-30 minutes.  The manager of the restaurant that I am having the reception at, which is across the street from the beach, suggested to not have chairs but to have people stand (but there would be a few chairs in front for grandparents and such).  He said that he has seen it done many times before, and it's too much work and money to use them for such a short time.  Also, since the sand is not a rigid surface, the chairs don't sit very well.  I'm not sure if it I should do this with or without chairs.  There may be people standing around us, getting in the pictures.  I' am on a budget, and $600 on chairs is a pretty pricey.  Please give me your thoughts, opinions, suggestions!  I have no idea what to do!!! 

Thanks!

Scarlett

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Re: Chair Rentals for Beach Wedding!

  • trix1223trix1223 member
    5000 Comments 25 Love Its Combo Breaker
    The manager is wrong.  Very, very wrong.  Let me tell you why, IMO, he's very, very wrong.  You're thinking your timeline. 15 minute ceremony.  Here's a guest's timeline:

    (I'm a church organist, so I'm probably involved in more weddings than the typical person~just so you know where I get my info.)

    Guests begin to arrive 20-30 minutes before your ceremony starts.  Then, it's the very, very rare wedding that actually begins on time.  Let's be charitable and say yours begins 10 minutes late.  Your guests have now been standing for 30-40 minutes, on the beach, in sand, and your wedding hasn't even started yet. 

    Now add your 15 minute ceremony, and include the time for processional/recessional.  Your guests have now been standing for a hour.  They now have to stand to leave the ceremony, perhaps wait in the receiving line, get into the reception venue.  So it's at least an hour and a quarter that you've made your guests stand.  Not good.

    Now:  let's go into logistics.  100 people, trying to stand to watch a ceremony just doesn't work.  Your 5'4" aunt ends up standing behind your FI's 6' frat brother.  She sees nothing.  Nothing.  That happened to me at my niece's wedding.  We all stood in a small space for the father/daughter dance.  I was behind tall people, and missed the whole thing.

    Seating for the elderly?  What about people who can't stand.  My DD had serious, life-saving surgery this year.  Had your wedding been in the 6 weeks after her surgery, she would not have been able to stand.  She's 26 years old.

    My 89 year old father would never, in a million years, take a chair while a lady was standing.  He also couldn't stand for over an hour.

    You need chairs for your guests.  IF you were having a tiny wedding, AND all of your guests could wait in a place where there was seating until the moment of the ceremony, then I might feel differently.

    But I don't.  100 guests.  No seating.  It's just not good at all.
    "Trix, it's what they/our parents wanted. Why so judgemental? And why is your wedding date over a year and a half ago? And why do you not have a groom's name? And why have you posted over 12,000 posts? And why do you always say mean things to brides?" palegirl146
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  • cschuma2cschuma2 member
    Fifth Anniversary 1000 Comments
    Trix said it better than I could have. 

    If you can't afford to seat them, cut your budget elsewhere so that you CAN afford it.  In order to not be rude, you really have no other option.
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  • angiem33angiem33
    500 Comments
    How about looking into a less expensive chair rental?  In my area the white fancy garden chairs were about $3 a piece, but the metal folding samsonite chairs were only about $1. 

    Other than trying that I agree with PP, the timeline will leave your guests standing for a while and there are probably some other areas you could trim your budget to make the chair renal fit.   GL!!
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  • scarlettjwscarlettjw
    First Comment
    Thank you for your opinions.  After reading them I think that I will definitely get the chairs.  About half of that $600 expense is to pay for the company to set up the chairs on the beach.  I was thinking of asking the groom's men and ushers to do that instead.  So if there are 10 guys helping out, then it's only 10 chairs that each guy has to set up.  So you think that is too much to ask of the groom's men and usher's?
    Thanks!
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  • cschuma2cschuma2 member
    Fifth Anniversary 1000 Comments

    I hated asking family to work on the wedding day.  However, we paid to have all of our ceremony chairs delivered and set up and they looked terrible.  My father and my husband's step-dad redid the set up anyway.  They were actually quite happy to do so.

    If you have some people more than willing to help and they will have plenty of time to help, I don't see a problem with it.

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  • KnittibellKnittibell
    1000 Comments
    Go ahead and have them set the chairs up, as long as you trust them- but I bet there's someone in the BP who'd love to oversee this- you just need to figure out who it is!
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  • michelle7102michelle7102 member
    10 Comments
    Having the same problem!  I don't have the budget for chairs for our beach wedding.  (Our budget is $4,000.)  I was considering getting a condo on the beach for the day before and after the wedding.  So I was thinking any elderly guests could wait in the A/C before the ceremony and then after a quick 10- 15 minute ceremony they can leave for the reception. 

    BUT, I only have 35 guests.... 100 guests standing just sounds like too much!  Can you cut the guest list down?  Less people means less chairs to rent!
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  • scarlettjwscarlettjw
    First Comment
    My parents and I decided to just bite the bullet and pay to have the company bring and set up the chairs.  We decided that there's going to be too much going on that day to be messing around with the chairs.  I do think it is important to have chairs, especially in my case.  The invite says that the ceremony will start at 5pm, but we are planning for it to actually start at 5:30, since there are so many of my friends and family that have trouble getting there in time.  So I think it is very important to have them for the guests who are actually on time.  But I think if I only had 35 guests, like michelle 7102, then I'd probably go without chairs.  But a hundred people...and what about the short people.  I decided chairs is just something that I need for my ceremony.
    Thanks for all your comments!
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  • awick14awick14 member
    100 Comments
    I really like the idea of saying the ceremony starts about 30 mins before it actually does. My family is usually on time but i know his isn't always. They are usually 30 mins late I like that idea thanx!
    The most beautiful things in the world are not seen nor touched. They are felt with the heart. -- Helen Keller Daisypath Anniversary tickers
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  • serene82serene82 member
    First Comment
    Don't feel bad about asking guys to help set up chairs, chances our they would jump at the chance to help out instead of standing around twiddling their thumbs in anticipation for event to start.
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