Best Wedding You've Attended?

I’ll go first.

The best wedding I’ve ever attended was when my youngest uncle and aunt got married. Their wedding was just so chill. They got married in a church and then had school buses transport all the guests from the hotel to their house and back. They had a giant tent in the back pasture of their 10 acre hobby farm and had rented two golf carts to help elderly guests get back and forth from the house to the tent. They served catered BBQ, had a tiered cupcake display (that my uncle built), a fully stocked open bar with hired bartenders, and some of my aunt’s homemade beer was set out for the toast (a porter and IPA if I remember correctly).

It was just so much fun dancing out in the pasture (on a rented dance floor) until the wee hours of the morning. The buses and bartenders were booked until 1 AM! Everyone was able to have a great time without worrying about getting back to the hotel thanks to the buses. And the buses were making regular trips back and forth between the two locations so no one had to stay longer than the wanted. I actually left after dinner to change clothes and then came back to party more!

Considering out of all the weddings I’ve been to, I’ve only been to one bad one, I can’t really pick a “best”.

All the weddings I’ve been been to have been different but they’ve all been great in their own ways. Usually there’s lots of food, lots of food, fun people and a good DJ.

I have been to sooo many great weddings!

The best, if I have to pick, would be one for a high school friend. The wedding was the best. The ceremony was short and sweet, but had funny moments which really showed the B & G's personalities. The reception had an amazing cocktail hour and the bar was great. Bartenders were funny and FAST! Kept the line moving. The food was amazingggg. The DJ kept the party moving.

My cousin's wedding a few years ago! Most of my OOT family was there who I dont get to see too often, food was good, open bar, and everything was at a hotel so we were all able to have fun and not worry about calling for a cab.

Lol @Richard. If you're gonna say yours, you gotta give the deets! Or at least link your BAM?

Considering I've "been" to almost 1700 weddings at this point, it's hard to pick one that was the best; almost all of them have 'best' things. Common threads? Great food (even when it's not extravagant food), open bars (and a fast first drink) , appropriate timeline (as in no gaps and no lateness), comfortable atmosphere; not too hot, too cold, rainy. These are the underpinnings of any great party.

But there is something about a wedding that is not really big (as in stuffed with almost strangers the couple doesn't know and visa versa), where the couple is really enjoying themselves and their guests instead of 'making the rounds and spending two minutes with each person'.

One of my favorites recently was (and I know it sounds weird, but it worked) a beach themed, Friday night wedding at a 'Von Trapp Family" style lodge on a lake. It was about 90 guests with a very small, uneven, mixed up BP (grooms sister on his side, bride's brother on hers), and their 8 year old in the BP (not as a ring bearer). The girls carried lanterns, which I generally don't love, but they were white, decorated with shells, and they put them on the floor to help illuminate the room. It was really beautiful.

The ceremony was hilarious and the guests were more interactive than usual with some of their comments (it was a loud, fun group who obviously knew the couple well...). The tables had empty cigar boxes that were painted with seascapes inside, and the guests were asked to write a note and put it in the box, to be read on that anniversary (table 1 on the first, etc). Table scapes were linen and chiffon runners in water colors and baskets of white twigs and shells, and favors of salt water taffy.

The couple joined the cocktail hour immediately and greeted everyone, which gave them actual time to chat with people. They had done a first look, so photos were done and they were at ease through the ceremony Everyone was so relaxed and having such a ball; the music was great, and easy to talk over. And then there was the giant inflatable penquin; part of the love story, who made an unscheduled appearance behind the pasta station.

So how do you put your finger on it? My guess is that the invited ONLY the people who really care about them and their families (literally everyone I spoke to had known the couple or the family FOREVER). Most of the guests seemed genuinely happy to see each other and the couple, and the setting was warm and inviting and unique. They weren't so concerned with perfection, but every base was covered in the 'what makes a party great?" department.

I guess there really is no special sauce except to create an atmosphere that promotes your guests' happiness and let them run free!

Best wedding I've attended was my sister's. Great food, open bar, great DJ that had us dancing all night. Actually all the wedding I've been to that had that in common were a lot of fun and really great.

@Celia, That wedding sounds beautiful. I totally agree that who you invite can make or break the reception. That's probably why I love going to weddings in my extended family because we all love each other and love to party! Plus, the food & booze is always on point.

My cousin's wedding in 2013. It was in Ireland where most of my family lives, and part of the reason it was so great is it was one of the first times we were all together in almost a decade.

If you haven't been to an Irish wedding, they are a MARATHON. Full catholic ceremony in the morning (with a gap, sigh). Cocktail hour starts at 4 with passed hors d'oeuvres, dinner at 6, then the band goes until 10, then a DJ goes until 3-4AM. since open bars are not a thing, people tend to dance all night rather than hanging around at the bar.

Both families are filled with big personalities, but they get along very well so all the bride's brothers and cousins and all the groom's family were up dancing all night. It was just such a great night all around.

Best wedding I have been to was a wedding that didn't have the traditions.

It was at a golf course and both the ceremony and reception were at the same location. The dancing and happy hour area was in a tented indoor patio that was attached to the building (very informal).. there was a TON of dancing and the alcohol was readily available. When it was time for dinner it was inside the actual location with stations (no assigned seating).. There wasn't a bouquet or garter toss, no cake cutting, no favors, no photobooth etc. I honestly don't even remember the bride and groom being announced with the bridal party, after the ceremony everyone was lined up at the entrance of the cocktail hour entrance so we were able to say hi and congratulate them etc. There were the first dances and speeches but they were very well done.

I know the above are some areas where people caution against but I can honestly say that it was organized so well that none of the above mentioned areas caused chaos or caused the guest experience to be any less. It actually made the guest experience better because it wasn't overly formal and stuffy, and we weren't stuck sitting in our assigned seats waiting to get served dinner etc for a long period of time. It was a VERY FUN wedding where people mingled, had fun and celebrated the couple together. Even though it was "informal" it was still very high class.

Best wedding: one of my best friend's back in 2014. It was a pretty big wedding, but didn't seem that way. Food was great, alcohol was great, and they had an awesome DJ who played great music that kept everyone on the dance floor all night! Just a few key things that can make or break it.

Worst wedding: my dad's to my stepmom. Ceremony was way too long, the only alcohol they served was champagne for the toast, and they served hors d'ouvres (sp?) instead of actual dinner, which were home made and ran out after like 30 minutes and had an excessively long line the entire time. Their excuse for no dinner was that it was a "late" wedding so people should have already eaten, even though it started at 7. Most people who aren't over 65 aren't gonna eat much before 7. My sister and I brought a flask of whiskey and went to the parking lot quite a few times that night.

I think the best one that I have been to is my cousins wedding that was in May! The ceremony was beautiful and the reception was also beautiful! They had a live band that was awesome and kept everyone dancing all night! Then last but not least the best part of the whole night was I had just got an inflatable trex costume and she begged me to bring it out and wear it out on the dance floor! That was awesome! Everyone loved it and I defiantly got my money out of it!

@Engineer, Going to a wedding in Ireland sounds so cool. I don't think I'd even mind the gap if I can wait it out enjoying a pint of Guinness while admiring the Irish countryside.

@WeddingCruiser, I really like the idea of a receiving line at the cocktail hour. I was kind of toying with that idea and it sounds like it turned out pretty well.

@Sanok LOVE the T-Rex!

@Richard, I need to invent a time machine to go back in time and crash your wedding. Flaming doughnuts sound amazing!

The best wedding I've been to was one of my high school best friends. To be honest I think weddings can have some really awkward moments during the reception but this wedding was so fun. I cried during the ceremony it was absolutely touching and personal to them. The reception was fun, dinner went off without a hitch and the food was great! But everyone really was close friends and family and you could totally feel that in the room. Everyone cried during the first dance, everyone was on the dance floor when their college songs came on. It was just genuinely a good time where everyone was so happy to be there and they were truly celebrating the marriage of these two people. I can only hope my wedding feels that way.

A Mormon wedding for two friends of mine. It was a dry but splendidly hosted cake/punch/appetizer event in a church with a small group of family and friends. The selection of food and drinks was wonderful and I was stuffed, the music was on point, and the company was exceptional. A bunch of us stayed well after the reception was supposed to be over just chatting it up and snacking.