Illinois

Gap between wedding ceremony and cocktail hour

Hi all,

This is just my tentative (flexible) schedule so far. I just want to make sure this is a good path to start with. I am curious if a 1 hour gap between the ceremony ending and cocktail hour beginning is too long? I never like a gap, but we would like to take family photos and what not after the ceremony. We were also planning on mingling with people before we were to get on the bus to take pictures at the spot where we met that is 5 minutes away.

This is what the day looks like so far
3:00-4:00 ceremony
15 minute driving time to reception venue
5:00-6:00 cocktail hour


Re: Gap between wedding ceremony and cocktail hour

  • Hi all,

    This is just my tentative (flexible) schedule so far. I just want to make sure this is a good path to start with. I am curious if a 1 hour gap between the ceremony ending and cocktail hour beginning is too long? I never like a gap, but we would like to take family photos and what not after the ceremony. We were also planning on mingling with people before we were to get on the bus to take pictures at the spot where we met that is 5 minutes away.

    This is what the day looks like so far
    3:00-4:00 ceremony
    15 minute driving time to reception venue
    5:00-6:00 cocktail hour


    I would encourage you to begin your cocktail hour at 4:30 if possible.  Guests should never have to "kill time" between the ceremony and reception.  I would encourage you to take as many family photos before the ceremony as possible.  If you want to take additional pictures, then the appropriate action is for you and your husband to miss a few minutes or the cocktail hour rather than force your guests to wait for you.

    My daughter's timeline was very similar to yours.  The reception was at a country club.  While we were not able to open the reception prior to 5 PM, we were able to make arrangements for any guest that arrived prior to 5 PM to have a drink at the clubhouse bar on us.  Does your reception venue have something similar you could offer?

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