Open Bar Concerns

We are having an open bar as well! Our venue is not a hotel, but close to one. The hotel we are room blocking at has a free shuttle we can use, so we’re doing that. We’re also considering getting an Uber Events code so our guests can rideshare for free (or at a discount if they’re going really far). Safety first!

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Oh I did not know that an Uber Events code was a thing, I will definitely have to look into that! Thank you!

I think we’re going to hire a shuttle to take guests back. The ppl I think will drink the most are the groomsmen and we’re renting a house on site for them

My venue doesn’t have a hotel attached, but it’s located within blocks of several hotels. Our venue includes valet parking, so the guests are responsible to get their keys before the event is over. But we have Uber and Lyft, people can also walk to a hotel- or an after hours spot they can sober up before driving. Most people who know they have to drive will sober up before they have to leave.

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I am hoping that is the case, I was definitely just looking for ways to make it easier on everyone and give me peace of mind!

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I have also been considering a shuttle service!

View Quoted Comment You’re welcome! You basically pay for your guests’ rides: you set how much you want to pay per ride and how many rides you are willing to pay for. You can also set a geographic area (i.e. they have to be going to or from your venue). Then they get a code to use on the app. You pay for what is used plus a small fee. I think Lyft has something similar, except you pay upfront and get reimbursed for what isn’t used.

Depending on how many people you need transported and how far, it could work! For us, it would be waaaay less than hiring even a school bus.

We're having open bar also. There's a hotel right across the street and we have room blocks there. We're also going to have a sign at the bar with a list of taxi options in case any of our guests feel like they can't drive home. Thankfully, mostly all of our guests are family so we'll help out one another if need be.

I'm having an open bar also, but it will be closing/last call 30 minutes before the end of the reception. There are hotels nearby, but our venue isn't a hotel. I'm trusting our bartenders to cut people off when they seem too intoxicated, and I'm trusting our guests since they are all adults that they can limit themselves and make their own decisions. That said, you can't always control what people do but a shuttle is out of our budget, a lot of guests are local/not staying in hotels anyhow, so we really don't have a solution for this.

1. When the bar closes, people will leave. So I would not do it an an hour before, however it usually closes 30 minutes before for most weddings.

2. Is your venue somewhere that is accessible by Uber & Lyft? That is the biggest thing that will keep people from drinking & driving, or at least in my friend group it is. If your venue is out in the country - with no ride share service available, I would get a bus or shuttle to take guests back into the city, so that they can then get their own Uber or Lyft home.

View Quoted Comment Okay half an hour makes sense! And the venue we are looking at should have ride share services available in the area! Definitely going to look into it! Thank you!

It used to be that one person of a couple was the DD and the other drank. Nowadays, of the over a dozen weddings I've been to in the past few years, every single one has provided transportation from the venue to the hotel if the hotel wasn't at the venue. Technically, it isn't your job to provide it, but I would be a bit put off if I wasn't given transportation as an OOT guest at this point because it is so commonplace in my group.

We're doing an open bar as well and I had the concerns at one point but at the end of the day everybody is an adult and should know their limits and if they don't, they need to ride with someone else or get an Uber or Lyft. We're not babysitters!

Our venue requires we close the bar 30 minutes before the wedding ends.

At some point your guests are adults and need to be able to control themselves and not drink and drive but this is why its important to have the bar provided through a licensed bartender. It’s the bartenders job to cut that guests off if they are getting too drunk. By having licensed bartenders they are now liable for guests and responsible for ensuring that they aren’t too drunk/don’t drink and drive.

I would get 1 or 2 complimentary hotel blocks regardless, just so out of town guests have an option to stay within 30 minutes (if there is a hotel that close). Our venue does a last call 45 minutes before the wedding ends and serves the last drink 30 minutes before the wedding ends. We are paying for guest transportation to the venue from the hotel and back. If there is uber in the area, I wouldn't worry because people will use it.

We had a full open bar for our reception. It opened around 5 to 5:30 and then had last call be by 10 or 10:30 and then everyone (guest wise) had to be out by around 11 ish so we could have time to clean up. By around 10 there wasn't that many guests still around so they didn't do that and just shut it down. My venue was about 15 to 20 minutes away from our closest hotel spots that guests had rooms for.

I think this is a know your crowd and know your bartenders kind of thing. We had a much older crowd. More people in there 30's and up than in that 21 to 29 range. They are all adults and should know how to handle their selves with alcohol. Also our bartenders were told they can cut people off.

One of our hotels had a bus shuttle that came free if we booked so many rooms but they only had 3 scheduled times for pick up/drop off which didn't really work for us.

School buses are a lot cheaper than renting a shuttle usually too. You can rent one to go back and forth from the reception to the hotel.

We personally aren't having any alcohol at our wedding (but they can bring their own if they so choose) because I worried about people drinking/driving. I have been to several open bars though. They did close about an hour before everything ended. They let people know the bar would be closing soon so those could get their drinks. I've also been to one where everyone who wanted to drink received two tickets to cash in for the bar. The issue with that one (to me) is that I may take two tickets and give them to someone else. In theory, it's a good way to limit those who will be drinking. Also, let your bartender(s) know they have the right to refuse anyone a drink.

Trust your guests to be adults capable of handling themselves. If you have someone specific who drinks and drives let the bartender and venue coordinator and/or day of planner know to keep an eye on them.