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Dedicated August 2019

Late wedding reception timeline advice!

Am, on February 28, 2019 at 8:34 PM Posted in Etiquette and Advice 0 8

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Hi everyone! I am having a late wedding and would love some advice on the timeline. Ideally, I would like to mix dancing in between the "wedding" events (speeches, cake cutting, etc.) but am worried I'm not allotting enough time for those things. How much time did you guys allot for (1) entrances, (2) first course, (3) main course/dinner, (4) cake cutting, (5) speeches, (6) first dance/parent dances, and (7) dessert?

This is what I have in mind (i know dinner is very late, but there will be lots of food provided before then):

7:30 guests arrive, appetizers & drinks provided

8:00 ceremony

8:30 cocktail hour

9:30 reception starts

9:40 entrances (one song for entire bridal party, 7 to 9 couples entering)

9:45 first dance

9:50 general dancing

10:15 first course (15 min for first course)

10:30 mother-son & father-daughter dances

10:35 general dancing

11:00 dinner (45 min for dinner)

11:15 speeches

11:30 cake cutting

11:45 dancing

12:15 serve dessert (15 min for dessert)

12:30 dancing

1:30 reception ends

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8 Comments

Latest activity by MrsD, on March 1, 2019 at 12:47 PM

Super October 2017
Emily · on February 28, 2019 at 8:52 PM
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My friend actually did something like this. There was a HUGE cocktail hour and a multi course dinner. There was dancing and speeches throughout the night even between courses. We loved it. It allowed you to eat and enjoy all of the crazy food without feeling too full. It was a really different and fun experience.
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Super October 2017
Emily · on February 28, 2019 at 8:53 PM
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I do think though, that 11 pm is WAY too late for dinner. Even started at 8 pm, can you move the meal up at all? Or spread it out over the course of the reception? I wouldn't make it that long.
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Super May 2019
Megan · on February 28, 2019 at 8:53 PM
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Are you planning to be taking pictures during cocktail hour? Otherwise you could could forego and go straight to the redeption.
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Super May 2019
Megan · on February 28, 2019 at 8:56 PM
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If you can forego the cocktail hour I would go straight into your entrance and then dinner. Have your speeches when dinner is almost over, cut your cake and do your first dance and then have dancing the rest of the evening.

I feel like putting events in between dancing is sort of “killing the vibe”...dance...ok go sit down...dance...ok go sit down...I dunno just my 2 cents
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Master September 2019
Sarah · on February 28, 2019 at 8:58 PM
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Why does it say 15 minutes for the first course, but there’s 45 minutes between courses? IMO, that’s too much time between the first course and the entree and I also think there’s too much time between the end of cocktail hour and the first course. We’ve never attended a wedding where the first course didn’t come out for almost an hour.
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Dedicated August 2019
Am · on February 28, 2019 at 9:17 PM
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Oh surprising! At all the weddings I’ve been at there has been a block of dancing right after the entrances/first dance and as a result the food always starts at the time/interval I have above
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Devoted March 2019
Sashy · on March 1, 2019 at 1:50 AM
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I think you should leave all the dancing for after the events. Too many intervals which makes everything weird and confusing for the guests and the night wouldn't flow properly if they keep being interrupted after each thing. Plus, 45 minutes is a huge gap between the first and second courses.
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Legend July 2019
MrsD · on March 1, 2019 at 12:47 PM
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We went to a wedding in NY in December, and we ate dinner about this time. They had an hour long cocktail hour with 10 stations and 5 passed appetizers. If they hadn't done that, we would have been starving by dinner. We were pretty hungry by dinner anyway, I would have been happier if food was done first and dancing was after.
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