Friday/Sunday Weddings

ciferri053015 · January 2015

Has anyone had a wedding on a Friday or Sunday? What were the pros/cons of it or any issues you ran into?

KatWAG · January 2015

There have been lots and lots of thread on this topic. You might want to search past threads

ciferri053015 · January 2015

Thanks.

PrettyGirlLost · January 2015

There's a recent thread on the Reception Ideas board where this is being discussed: http://forums.theknot.com/discussion/1048470/friday-vs-saturday#latest

ShesSoCold · January 2015

I had a Sunday wedding. It was a ceremony and then dinner and was wrapped up by like 11:15. My brother had a Friday evening wedding.

Both are totally fine, but you need to consider your guest list. If most of your guests work 9-5 jobs, if you go with Friday, you may want to consider starting later in the evening so people won't need to take time off work or decline the invitation. If you go with Sunday, you should consider a brunch or early afternoon wedding because most people likely have to work the next day.

ciferri053015 · January 2015

Thank you!

yogablossom · January 2015

My good friend had a Friday wedding in August a few years ago. It was completely lovely! I was in her bridal party so I had to take Friday off from work, and I had to take Thursday off from work for the rehearsal/dinner. I think you'll find with Friday weddings, people will either have to take work off that day, or leave early, or they may not be able to make the wedding because of where they live, if they are out of town, etc. I am not so sure as to if it's better, worse, or the same with Sunday weddings.

mikenberger · January 2015

Also, when you post across multiple boards, it's helpful to post XP with your title as to indicate as such

MnHGirl · January 2015

My cousin had a Sunday wedding. It was a nice ceremony by the lake around 1pm (to allow families to go to church beforehand if they so chose to). The reception was at a local place with a plated lunch and she had a DJ play for a few hours. It was a dry wedding but being a Sunday afternoon I feel that was fitting and no one really seemed bothered by that. The reception wrapped up around 5-6 pm which still allowed guests to travel home and even catch a some evening flights.

poodledoodleooo · January 2015

I've been to both and honestly hate both. Fi has a mandatory "Sunday is me day" stance on life, which I have basically adopted. I really like reserving this day for church, family and myself.

Fridays are a hassle because of work. I really HATE using PTO for a wedding.

it doesn't mean I won't go to weddings held on these days. It does mean I am more likely to show up late or skip the ceremony, which I hate doing, but if you are getting married at 5 on Friday I can't make it till later. Or I'll leave early so I can still have some of my "me" day.

arrrghmatey · January 2015

We're having our wedding on a Friday because it was significantly cheaper and all of the venues we looked at didn't have any Saturdays available in the months surrounding when we wanted to get married. We also polled our VIPs and close friends prior to selecting a date as to whether they'd rather attend a Friday or a Sunday wedding, and *everyone* told us Friday was preferred. Most of our friends have work-from-home Fridays so it worked out well in our situation. If you are thinking about a Friday wedding, it wouldn't be a bad idea to check with your VIPs and consider your bridal party being able to take some time off.

I personally hate Sunday weddings, because every one I've been to was a evening ceremony/reception. The most recent one we attended was a 6:00pm Sunday ceremony and then a reception that went until 11:00pm. Most people had to take off before the cake-cutting (we left right after) because of having work the next morning, and because of this there was significantly less drinking. No one was getting wild because no one wanted to have to go to work with a hangover the next morning. It was still a nice wedding, but I wish I was in a position to stay longer and drink more.

I personally would rather take a few hours off from work to attend a Friday wedding and be able to stay up later, drink a lot, and have a day to recover from the hangover rather than attend a Sunday evening wedding where I'd have to watch what I drink, cut out early, and get up for work the next morning.

Sunday morning/afternoon weddings I would do.

[Deleted User] · January 2015

I know Sundays are very popular and well liked on these boards, but I personally hate Sunday weddings. Sundays are always a lazy day for me. I run errands, clean the house, cook and get ready for the work week. I don't mind visiting with friends, going to lunch or even an afternoon picnic/baby/bridal shower; however, there is nothing enjoyable about a Sunday wedding. I just can't get into the mood for a wedding when I know I have to work the next day.

I'm fine with Friday weddings. Yes, I might miss some of the celebration because of work. But, when I do get there, I'll be in weekend mode. I know I can stay out a bit later because I don't have to be up early. I'm not in weekend mode on a Sunday. My mind is already thinking about getting back to work and all my responsibilities.

As an OOT guest, I would rather take a Friday off of work than a Monday. The beginning of the work week is usually busy and filled with meetings. I don't like missing important meetings or getting behind in the beginning of the week. Fridays are a little easier (at least for me) to take off because I generally don't have meetings or important deadlines that day.

southernbelle0915 · January 2015

I'm not a fan of either personally.

But if a couple has to do it because budget and whatever else, I think most people agree a later Friday (like 6pm ceremony, then reception) wedding is perferred. For Sundays, I personally prefer a brunch wedding - that way I have time to travel if I need to and I'm not out late into the night on a work night.

SP29 · January 2015

Best to consult your VIPs. Neither is wrong, but people have their own opinions/preferences for each.

One of my friends is getting married on a Friday this March. It is OOT for us, so we're taking vacation from work and flying whether the wedding is a Fri/Sun/Sat or Wed! However, one of my friends is a teacher and it would be more difficult for her to find a sub for a couple hours so she can leave early- she is considering that she might have to miss the ceremony (which starts at 4pm).

An option for a Friday wedding is to have the ceremony start later.

Myself, even if the wedding were in town on a Friday, I'd probably take the whole day off, but I get good vacation time.

I would also be fine with a Sunday, but expect guests to leave early.

huskypuppy14 · January 2015

I think it depends on the kind of wedding/reception you want. If you want an all out drinking and dancing party, than a Friday would probably be best. If you want to have a more low key afternoon/early evening wedding than a Sunday would be better.

It's best to consult your VIPs first though no matter what day of the week you pick.

fwtx5815 · January 2015

We're having a Friday night wedding with the ceremony starting at 7 pm. 100% of my fiance's family is OOT so it was likely going to be slightly inconvenient no matter what.

We've nixed the rehearsal dinner and formal rehearsal - so we aren't making the WP do anything the day before. Just a family dinner and quick rehearsal with my Fi and the minister.

I might be the only one but I like to have something fun to look forward to Friday night, even if i've had a long work week. But I can see why some people don't care for Friday/Saturday weddings.

Butterflyz419 · January 2015

I'm getting married on a Sunday in June, both for reasons of budget and sentimentality (the date is our anniversary) and having an evening reception. I fully expect that this will lead to more declines, which I'm cool with, the date was too important to me to change and all our VIPs are fine with it. For those that do come, I doubt we'll have many leave early. Over 75% of our guest list is OOT, if they come, they're spending the night anyway so I doubt they'd leave the party early. Most of the in town people are VIPs who wouldn't leave early and the rest live so close that I'd assume they'd stay till near the end if not to the last minute. I haven't been to a Friday wedding myself, although I feel like it would work better if your guests are majority local and as long as you keep in mind rush hour traffic patterns when determining your start time.

wrigleyville · January 2015

If the wedding is in town, then a 7:00 or 8:00 wedding on Friday gives me time to go home, change, and get to the wedding. If it's a Sunday wedding, then I prefer a brunch/lunch wedding since I have to work the next day.

If I have to travel, I won't go to a Friday wedding unless I'm really close to the couple, as in a sibling or best friend. A Sunday brunch wedding might be okay, as I could travel home afterward, but if it's during the summer or a holiday weekend (when flights are insanely expensive), I'd only go if it were a sibling.

theartistformerlyknownas · January 2015

wrigleyville said:

If the wedding is in town, then a 7:00 or 8:00 wedding on Friday gives me time to go home, change, and get to the wedding. If it's a Sunday wedding, then I prefer a brunch/lunch wedding since I have to work the next day.

If I have to travel, I won't go to a Friday wedding unless I'm really close to the couple, as in a sibling or best friend. A Sunday brunch wedding might be okay, as I could travel home afterward, but if it's during the summer or a holiday weekend (when flights are insanely expensive), I'd only go if it were a sibling.

All of this.

tj&cw · January 2015

We are having a Sunday morning brunch. For us it has nothing to do with budget or anything like that...it is just our favorite meal...we go to breakfast/brunch every Sunday our time together.

Still doing all the bells and whistles....but again we are the couple that throws the great parties in our group. Wedding is at 10:30AM, cocktails, dancing and food...we will be done at 3

Friends of ours got married on a Friday night...a lot of fun. They wanted April 1st as their wedding date. If the date is important to you then you might need to think about doing it sometime other than the traditional 'Saturday"

Have fun choosing

CourtC77 · January 2015

We're doing a Friday wedding and I have gone to many of them over the years. I actually prefer them as it still leaves me the rest of the weekend to do other things. However, I also have generous paid time off at work so I dont find it an issue to take the day off for a wedding. We're having and prefer a smaller wedding with those that are closest to us (we invited 100) so we figure those are the people that will most likely take the time to come. You would know your crowd best. I have never been to a Sunday wedding so I can't speak on that but that's generally my relaxing day so i would definitely prefer a Friday or Saturday over that.

larrygaga · January 2015

I personally could never make it to a friday wedding and I will most likely show up to a sunday wedding hungover but present and happy.

Be prepared for people to be bitches about it. Also be prepared for more than the usual amount of people not being able to go.

hyechica81 · January 2015

my brother did a friday wedding ceremony was around 430 till 530 reception started at 630 with a half hour drive to venue, he had a lot of oot people show up. i did a saturday evening wedding ceremony at 500 ending a little after 6 reception started at 7 and they had a 45 minute drive. and i had less oot people show up

pinkcow13 · January 2015

We are having a Friday evening wedding. Everyone is well aware, and no one had any issues with it. Our crowd is all about parties, though.

Although Sundays are my lazy day, I love weddings, and I love parties. If I had to choose, I would choose Friday over Sunday. I would be fine with either one, though. I went to a Sunday wedding before and had a blast. Honestly, as long as there is food or booze, IDGAF.

thisismynickname2 · January 2015

One additional bummer about Sunday weddings.

I attended an OOT wedding on a Sunday and had my Monday off work. No big deal to me. But, because so many people were from out of town, the bride and groom did a group bachelor/bachelorette party Friday night. Then they had lunch the next day (also optional for any guests), then the rehearsal dinner Saturday night.

By Sunday? Everyone was exhausted. There was barely any dancing. The whole wedding just had a "blah" vibe. Venue was gorgeous, food was nice, DJ was good. But man, people just were done with wedding stuff by then.

And there was me, who didn't attend Friday or Saturday activities, who came ready to party. And no one wanted to dance with me

indianaalum · January 2015

I had a Friday wedding,

Pros:

Saved a TON of money as many of my vendors gave me a discoutn since it was on a friday

My other pro was that the catholic church would do the ceremony for me later afternoon so I could have my evening reception (they won't do afternoon weddings on Saturdays)

Cons:

I had quite a few declines. not sure if it was due to this or not. I never heard anyone tell me "no because of work" but that might have been the case

[Deleted User] · January 2015

Having mine on a Sunday this coming October. Cut my venue and bar costs in half because there's no minimum bar price for Sundays and they even discount the room price for that day.

I've also had people tell us they were excited to not have to take time off on Friday from work to travel. (Brunch wedding, so many of our guests can travel Saturday, go to the wedding late Sunday morning, and be home with a few hours left to relax on Sunday evening.)

Blackbird230 · January 2015

I will be having a Sunday wedding. However we are doing like an 11/11:30 ceremony with reception following so everything is done by 5 p.m. If people need to travel they can, but we don't have anyone flying either. Driving far distances, yes, but nothing more than 4 hours.

amuhl10 · January 2015

We're having our wedding on Sunday. Sunday weddings definitely aren't for everybody. At first, I was completely against a Sunday wedding. Just seemed wrong to ask my guests to take Monday off of work. My mom finally told me that it's wonderful that I'm thinking so much about my guests, but I can't literally revolve my entire wedding around them. It's a party to celebrate MY marriage and I'M paying for it. If they really have anything negative about the date, they won't come.

It ended up working well in the long run. FI is from Colorado (we live in NY now) and was previously in the military so we will have a lot of out of state people. We figured this way it will allow them to fly in friday/saturday, be able to have rehearsal dinner on Saturday night and then they can stay over at our venue (has rather expensive guest rooms) for cheaper than the standard rate because it is a Sunday night. It's honestly up to you- go with your gut instinct and go with what you can afford. I couldn't afford a Saturday night or a Friday night and the second cheapest (behind a Sunday) was a Saturday afternoon and I didn't want to get rushed out of the venue so they could get the Saturday night wedding started.

AuroraRose41 · January 2015

We are having a Friday wedding in July. It saved us a lot of money because the financial minimum was lower to book the ballrooms that we have, and we will be able to do some very nice upgrades for our guests as a result and afford a honeymoon too. We plan to do the ceremony at 6 pm, and as the date gets closer if we do have people say that work might be an issue then we can always look into pushing it back a little, but so far no one has complained about the date.

It does help that many of my family members are retired, we have a decent number of teachers on our invite list who will be on summer break at that time, his family is normally off on Fridays or done with work around 3 pm, and many of our friends do not work 9-5 M-F jobs and would have had to request the day off no matter what day it was on. It worked out for us and most of our guests (so far), but I understand that it doesn't work for everyone.

Tomandlesley · January 2015

I hate Friday nights weddings because I always feel so rushed to get there. I may get off early in Fridays but my FI doesn't get off till 5 so by the time he gets home showered and ready it's almost 6 and we haven't even left if it was to start at 7 or later i guess it wouldn't be so bad but the majority I have been invited to are at 630
We are considering a Sunday afternoon wedding but it's still in the talks

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