Hi everyone, I'm new on here but a bit late to the game, my wedding is in only 2 weeks and I've been reading the "worst wedding you've ever been to" thread all weekend freaking out that I may be making some of those mistakes. Please let me know if you think any of these are etiquette breaches or might offend people. I really just want everyone to have a good time, we dragged our 25 guests to New Orleans during Mardi Gras (SUPER expensive flights and hotels) so we really want to make sure the wedding is awesome and nobody regrets it.
Our ceremony is in the courtyard of our bed and breakfast, and our reception is at a restaurant that is an 8 minute walk from there.
Some of the things I have read about that concern me:
- People complaining about ceremonies starting late - we put 4:00 pm on the invitation but plan to start the vows a 4:30, I was told that there will always be people showing up late if we started straight at 4:00. Would this upset people and will people be showing up even before 4:00? My fiance and I will be out there greeting our guests before the ceremony begins, so nobody will be standing around bored hopefully.
- People complaining about gaps - Our ceremony will probably end at 4:45 but our dinner doesn't start until 7:00, so over 2 hours in between, is this too long of a gap? We figured this would be just like a cocktail hour, we have appetizers and drinks available and we will be out there with guests as well, probably even taking pictures with all of them.
- Should we arrange some kind of transportation for everyone to get to the restaurant after? It's 8 minutes of walking (according to Google) but to be honest i wouldnt want to do that myself in my big heels and especially if it will be cold out which it might. Plus maybe some of them will be unprepared and have no idea how to get there?
- Should I look into getting space heaters for the ceremony? It's outdoors and I read that the temperature can be as low as 10 degrees C during that time of year
- I am worried we do not have enough entertainment for guests, our reception is just a sit down dinner and open bar. There will be a live jazz band at the restaurant but I dont think people really dance to jazz music, do they (i am not a dancer myself)? I dont think there will be any speeches or toasts, or games. So i am worried people will be bored and leave right after the meal. We are thinking of bringing board games (and giant jenga!) for guests to play after the meal, or maybe finding a club nearby to go to for an afterparty? How upset will people get at the lack of dancing?
- We are skipping a lot of the smaller details like flowers, centerpieces, decor, etc.. is this bad etiquette? We did hire a decorator but got a cheapie package so we have no idea what she will actually bring.
- Thank you notes - I was planning on skipping this entirely as our 25 guests are all close family and friends who we talk to regularly. Can't we just thank them over the phone or in person? Or is this a faux pas
Thank you for reading!!