i think 11pm is too early to end the reception :(

I think it depends on when you get started and who has the stamina to keep up. Our ceremony starts at 2pm so I doubt many people will be excited to party till 1 or 2am. But since we have our venue for the whole weekend we are preparing for an after party with close friends and siblings if they choose to stay. Our parents will be beyond done at that point. An after party sounds like the way to go if you still want to party. And if it's about spending time with friends and family, plan an extra get together, even if it's just a small brunch the next day.

Wow such a good idea!

Ah I totally agree! One of our must haves when picking a venue was to party until midnight! I think it also totally depends on how early your event starts but I went to a wedding that ended when the sun was still out.. Everyone has a different view of what a wedding is, to me it's a party!

I plan on being thoroughly exhausted by 8pm 😂.
I think this all depends on the individuals.
My fiance and I are not partiers so 9pm works for us.
We are however renting a presidential suite at the hotel for an after party for those not ready to end the night!

View Quoted Comment Mine is ending at 1am too. Our wedding is on a Friday so we’re starting a little later. (7pm to be exact) Our venue doesn’t have any restrictions and both of our families LOVE to party!

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Hey Desiree. that's awesome!! Yeah starting later on a Friday is a fantastic idea, gives your guests the time to come to your wedding nice and refreshed!! So good, happy for you

Due to noise regulations, ours is ending at 9:30. We are getting a limo and partying afterwards with those that want to.
From what I’ve heard, you will be ready for it to end because it’s a LONG day! And most older people will leave earlier anyway.

View Quoted Comment Yes, I definitely know what you mean when it comes to spoons! It sounds like you have a well thought out plan and I think it's so sweet that your FH is enlisting the help of your maids to make sure you can enjoy your day to the fullest. I'm doing a very low key wedding. I just broke it to my mom that we aren't decorating the ceremony space or doing favors, programs, a unity ceremony or bouquet/garter tosses because it's those little add ons that healthy brides may not think twice about, but for someone in my shoes it's just too much. I get stressed just thinking about it.

Ours will end at 11:30, and then we will bus the majority of our guests back to the hotel and continue the party. The latest our venue is allowed to serve liquor is midnight, so keep that in mind that liquor laws will vary depending on the town. And we are paying for a high end open bar for 5 hours and adding an additional hour, there is no reason for us to stay there any later and pay for open bar for 100+ guests when a large chunk has probably left. It you are paying for an open bar expect a lot of guests to stay to the end and the continue the party at the hotel!!!
Are you having an open bar? Do you have a hotel to go back to? Plan accordingly and the party can go as late as you want!

I would be spending a extra few thousand if I made it later. My wedding vendors are being hired fo 5 hours. If I wanted it longer the 11 it would be a extra 3000. We are going out after but I don’t think I will want more then a drink out. We will be starting day early. With hair and make up.

View Quoted Comment Yeah we are trying to keep it a minimum too because even emotional stress can use spoons!

Ours is from 5-10, it’s short but would be more expensive to make it end later!

I thought the same for a bit, we’re a big Latin family and we like to party, lol. We’re doing a 5pm ceremony and starting cocktail hour at 5:30pm
with reception/dinner 6:30 - 10:30pm. I’d love to have more time with every guest but I know I just want everyone to have a great time and don’t want people driving long distances too late. We’ll have some family driving in from all over, some will have kids. If the adults want to party after 10:30pm, depending on how my hubby and I feel, I’d be fine with taking things to a lounge 10 minutes away, but I’m sure we’ll be done by then, lol.

My reception ended at 2 am.. But my mom and grandmother gave us an after party at their house.so Alot of people went there til about 6am..we stop over for an hour..we had to a flight to catch a few hours later..

I agree! I’m actually considering extending it an hour.

Mine is ending at 7:30, (ceremony at 1, cocktail hour following, reception around 3). Our venue is a public state park and closes at 9, so we don’t have any other option unfortunately! I think ultimately it depends on your start time for all the festivities (we chose an early ceremony so we still had time to have a full reception), and your after party plans (we are going down to a stop of restaurants and bars in the city where we are staying afterwards and will be continuing the party then)! It’s definitely a personal preference!

It might be different where you're from but 11 is pretty standard (UK)

The normal time frame is till 11pm... mine was from 4-11pm and we were so ready to go... it was a very long day..

Our wedding is 6pm-Midnight and I'm thinking of finding a place to have an after party because me and my FH like to party and midnight is too early for us.

Mine’s ending at 8pm because it’s a weekday and there will be young children present, not going for a big party atmosphere though.