What's your Reception and Ceremony Timeline?

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What's your Reception and Ceremony Timeline?

posted 3 years ago in Reception

14,581 posts

Honey
Beekeeper

ejs4y8 June 20, 2009

We're getting married and having our reception at the same place. They let us arrive at 4pm and the ceremony starts at 6. This is what we were thinking (slash I was thinking) and I'm anxious to see everyone's schedules and their opinions on it. Too long, too short? Time needed for pictures? etc.

4pm Arrive at Location
Pictures until 545 (not with the bride and groom together, just group shots)
Ceremony 6-630
Pictures that include bride and groom together, simultaneous cocktail hour, mingling, etc
Guests take seats, arrival of BP at 715
Dinner served at 730
Cake cut at 815
830 first dances
dancing til 11
11:00 reception place makes us leave!

3 years ago

Hostess

2,606 posts

Sugar bee

rosychicklet September 27, 2008 Boston, MA

My venue wanted a schedule like yours. I was not willing to rush through dinner to cut the cake. Also- you don't mention when they plan on serving the cake. If they want to serve it at 8:30, that means your guests have to eat their entire meal, salad to cake in only 1 hour. That was unacceptably fast to me. I didn't want guests to have to snarf down their food.

So what we did was as follows (we had our ceremony at a church, so it obviously a little different):

12pm- Photos with Bride, Family, Bridesmaid

12:30/12:45- Depart for church

1:15/1:30- photograph Groom, Family, Groomsmen (at Church or adjoining rectory property)

2-2:30 Ceremony

2:30-3pm Receiving line

3-3:15- photos with bridal party in the church

3:15- Bride and groom depart to venue

3:45-4:15/4:30- bride and groom portraits

4:30- Photos of assembled bridal party, parents, bride/groom at venue

4:45- group photo on the lawn

5-5:15 Guests seated

5:15-5:25 Introductions then right into 1st dance and then all are invited to dance.

6:00 Food is served and Toasts begin immediately after food is served. Toasting while people are eating.

6:30-7:15 Dancing Music

7:15-7:30 Cake cutting followed by parent dances

Dancing the rest of the night.

There are loads of examples here:

http://wiki.weddingbee.com/Wedding_day_timeline

http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/reception-format

http://www.weddingbee.com/2008/07/15/our-ceremony-reception-timeline/

http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/reception-timeline

http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/what-should-go-in-the-wedding-day-timeline

3 years ago

14,581 posts

Honey
Beekeeper

ejs4y8 June 20, 2009

Wonderful, thanks! We have to cram the wedding ceremony and reception in a 4pm til 11pm timeline and it feels a little scrunched unfortunately, but that's what we get for being convenient and saving money by having it all at the same place. I'll definitely check out those posts!

3 years ago

Member

2,655 posts

Sugar bee

Tanya123

I t does seem scrunched to me too. But if you have to make it work, I would make certain you have some details ironed out with your photographer ahead of time. Is there anyway to have pictures taken before the ceremony? (I can't blame you if you don't think it's ideal) but I think it is common in situations like this.

3 years ago

Hostess

5,480 posts

Bee Keeper

Jessie516 May 16, 2009 Ann Arbor, MI

I don't think your timeline is too short. We're doing something similar, with a 6:00 ceremony start. We're getting dressed at the location (after doing hair and makeup at my MOH's house), so we'll be heading over there around 2ish. We're starting photos a little earlier, meeting our photographer at 3:30. We're also not doing a cocktail hour, so our ceremony will go from 6-6:30 and then we'll open the reception/bar (which is just upstairs from the ceremony) and do our intros/toasts at 7, with dinner starting right after.

3 years ago