Help! To have a gap between the ceremony and reception or not? Postponed our wedding due to Covid-19.

I would start your reception at 3:00. Starting it at 7:30 is way too long of a gap.

Agreed! That is just too long

I would probably prefer to move the reception to 3pm to avoid a large gap. As a guest I’m really not sure what I would do during such a long period. If your reception starts at 3pm how late will it run? You might have to adjust the timeline of the reception to have a longer cocktail hour to push dinner out a bit. I think that sounds more reasonable from a guest perspective than having to leave and come back 6 hours later.

Ugh that's terrible. I'm so sorry you're being put in this situation. I hope this doesn't ruin your wedding vision too bad. I would say to most certainly move it to 3. Maybe consider throwing an after party at a hotel or bar.

1:30-7 is entirely too long of a gap.

We went to a wedding recently and the ceremony was 1-1:30 and reception started at 5 or so. We just went to a nearby bar with friends/other wedding guests and had a couple drinks/appetizers. Is it an option to move your reception time back a couple hours? 1:30-7 is quite a long time

View Quoted Comment

Thank you so much for the thoughtful reply. It is changing our vision, but it is really out of our control. We were trying to have a great party for everyone to celebrate right in the heart of downtown Denver. We are actually getting married at Home Plate at Coors Field. I do love your idea of hosting the after party. Thanks again!

View Quoted Comment

Yes, we are extremely flexible in the timing of our reception, we have the venue for the full day. That is what I was thinking, since we are having everything downtown, there are numerous bars and restaurants for people to go to kill a few hours. We did the same thing at a catholic wedding last summer for the gap.

View Quoted Comment That’s what I would do then! I don’t understand why people get upset when there’s a couple hours of a gap. I kind of liked it! It helps that there’s plenty to do to pass the time. Now if you were in the middle of nowhere that would be different

No gap. How long is your ceremony? Wouldn’t the reception start at 1:30 or 2:00? Then you wouldn’t need a cocktail hour and can go right into lunch (I’d be starving by then).

We have a gap. Our ceremony wraps up at 3pm and our reception is at 5. We put a few suggestions of where people could go to hang out for those two hours on our website, and we’ll be off taking photos since we don’t want to do a first look. I think a gap is okay, I’ve never really minded as a guest and appreciate the time to freshen up, catch up with people, grab a drink, etc. If I were you, I’d try and start your reception somewhere between 3 and 5pm, just so it isn’t too long!

I am always team no gap, if possible. because some people won't have the ability to just go home during the gap OR that means that there won't be a lot of people at ceremonies

I've been to a couple weddings that had a super long gap between the ceremony and the party, but this only works if all of your guests are super local or staying in the area/on-site. If you have folks who cannot return to a place to chill on their own for that prolonged gap then it just doesn't work. When I was single, I'd go to weddings 1-4 hours away and drive home the same night (now that I have a partner we are more apt to just get a room if the wedding venue is more than an hour from our home). So I would definitely consider where your guests are coming from and where they will be staying when deciding whether to have the party earlier or later.

I think that's too long of a gap. I would say maybe do a cocktail hour in between with the reception at 3 , and maybe an after party at a bar following that.

View Quoted Comment

Ok, let me just say that I ADORE your ceremony location, as DH and I are massive baseball fans.

Honestly can't wait for your pictures.

That said, if you have your venue for the whole day, move your reception up. I'm sorry this is forcing your vision to change.

Can you do a civil service at the reception venue?

I agree with PPs that it’s too long, especially for any guests that may be out of town. I’ve had similar gaps (but still smaller than yours) and it was strange.

First, love the theme! Second, definitely move the timeline to your new start time!! I was at a wedding where there was a gap like you are suggesting and UGHHHH it was awful!!!! They estimated WAY too much time for people to travel between venues and so many people got drunk before the reception even started lol and we were starving by time dinner happened!! Never mind just entirely bored of the thing and had lost all excitement. Please do not do that to your guests lol

View Quoted Comment

I'm sure we could, but we have planned everything around getting married at home plate at a MLB stadium, Coors Field. It's where we had our first date and we have season tickets to the baseball team. So that is pretty much off the table. I appreciate your input though.