Tag: older guests

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Cherishing the Elders: Tips to Ensure Your Older Guests Feel Valued and Comfortable at Your Wedding!

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When planning your wedding, you should ensure all your guests have fun and enjoy every moment. There may not be too many old people attending your wedding, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to set some time aside and make a few special arrangements for them. Here are the small things you can do to ensure they are comfortable.

Look at their stay and transportation.

When an older guest or couple confirms that they will be attending, you should check their accommodation and transportation plans with them. Give clear directions and share the schedule so they can plan their day properly.

You could lend a helping hand with transporting them to and from the venue, so they do not face any hassles getting there. Coordinate with other guests or put a bridal party member in charge of ensuring they are taken to and from the function. If the wedding and reception are at different locations and they have their vehicle, you could ask them to park at the reception venue and take them from there to the wedding venue and back.

Check for disabled access at the venue.

It is a good idea to check ahead for wheelchair access at the venues. Similarly, if there is a staircase or narrow steps to climb, it is sensible to assign someone to assist your older guests to make it inside comfortably. If it is a church wedding, ask that they be seated at the ends of rows so it’s easier for them to settle in and step out. After the ceremony, make sure someone walks them out.

If your guests have to wait outside before they can enter the venue, make sure there are seating arrangements. Otherwise, ask them to arrive at the venue on time so they do not have to be kept standing.

Assign a bridesmaid or groomsman the duty of taking care of them.

Put someone in charge of your elderly guests while they are at your wedding. Ensure that this is someone considerate and sensible and can help them appropriately. Please place them in charge of checking their charges regularly and ensuring everything they want is handled. When a particular person has to handle this responsibility, you know who to turn to should these guests need assistance.

Seat them with company.

Planing the seating arrangements so the older guests keep each other company is a good idea. At the reception, arrange comfortable couches in a warm area where they can relax and chat with each other if they do not want to dance. Have coffee and tea nearby so they can help themselves. Please encourage them to join you on the dance floor by including tunes in your playlist that they are likely to enjoy.

Be punctual and stick to your shared schedule so they do not have to wait around and become uncomfortable. Make sure they go home safely with fond memories of your big day.

You can find more wedding-related tips and advice at Best for Bride.

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Wedding venue checklist: Tips to help you recognize if the site is right for you

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When you look for your wedding venue, it is often difficult to ascertain whether a site is right without seeing it all decked up. To make the right choice, you should have a fair idea of what you want it to do, and how it can be transformed to suit your wedding plan. For many couples, this may be the first time they are hosting any event on this scale, and so it can be very confusing.

To help you do it right, here is a checklist of the various factors the site must have.

Fits your budget

Set aside a realistic amount for the venue charges. If you are getting married in a church or house of worship, you will also have to factor in the donation for using the space.

Look at places where the rent is within your budget. Ask about any other charges or overheads in addition to the rent, so you know whether you can afford it. Also ask if the package includes services like an on-site co-ordinator or staff for serving cake and wine, or whether you will have to pay separately for these services.

Practicality of the venue

The location should be easy to access and your guests shouldn’t have trouble getting there. It would be best if both the ceremony and the reception venues were nearby or in the same location. This will be most comfortable, but if it is not possible, consider arranging transportation between the venues. See if you can have parking at the first venue and make transport arrangements to the reception.

The size is right

Look at the maximum number of people the site can hold. Don’t forget to accommodate for your band, musicians, buffet table and aisle when determining the maximum capacity. Only then will you get a clear picture of whether all your guests will fit comfortably in the space. If it is a small wedding, avoid a big venue. Being mostly empty will reduce the overall impact.

The rates for using it overtime

Venues are either charged by the hour, or for a certain slot of time. Ask about the extra charges you will have to pay if you wish to access the venue for a few extra hours, before or after the ceremony. Also ask for their rates if your wedding party extends late into the night.

Provision for disabled access

Check whether the venue allows for disabled access. It is likely that there will be older guests in your wedding party. The availability of washrooms on the ground floor would be convenient for them. Also, are there any outdoor seating arrangements that your wedding guests can use, if they have to wait before entering the venue?

Don’t forget to consider the practicality of the venue for the wedding look you have in mind. It wouldn’t be fun negotiating your way up and down a staircase, if you have chosen a mermaid-style wedding dress or a heavily layered one. So choose accordingly.

The more boxes you tick off this checklist, the better suited a venue will be for your wedding. For more wedding tips and ideas, keep visiting us at Best for Bride.