Timeline for a Buffet-Style Reception?

Here is my timeline. We are having a cocktail hour and doing a served salad course. You can adjust accordingly if you don't have those. Also ceremony and reception are in same place.

5:00pm- Ceremony Starts

5:20pm- Ceremony Ends

5:20-6:30 Cocktail Hour

6:45 Guest Invited to Take seats

6:49 Sunset

6:50 Formal Intros and First Dance (announce that toasts will occur during dinner hour so grab a drink you'd like to toast with)

7:00 First Course is Served

7:15 Buffet Opens

8:00 Toasts, Cake Cutting, formal Dances, Wine Box Closure with guest notes?? (toasts can be moved up about 15-30 minutes for when bride, groom, and wedding party finish eating)

8:15 Cake, Coffee Buffet open for guest to enjoy at leisure

9:45pm Videographer Departs on Ferry (?) any guests wishing to depart early and utilize bus take this ferry

10:25 Last Call

10:00pm Bus bring an guests taking earlier ferry back to hotel (may eliminate this run if there isn't interest)

10:55pm Guest Depart on Ferry

We have timing based on the ferry schedule also as we are on an island. hopefully that gives you a basic picture though.

It does a little bit. i plan on having my ceremony at an earlier time around 10isham. and having the reception sometime til 8.

Here is my timeline. And my ceremony and reception are in same place as well.

5:00 pm - 5:20 pm - Ceremony

5:20 pm - 6:20 pm - Cocktail Hour

6:20 pm - 6:30 pm - Bridal Party Entrance and First Dance

6:30 pm - 7:30 pm - Buffet Dinner

7:30 pm -Toasts, Formal dances

7:45 pm - Cake Cutting

8:00 pm - 10:00 pm - Bouquet and Garter Toss and Dancing

10:00 pm - Sparkler Send Off

10 hours is an awful long time to demand from your guests. I would encourage you to revise this idea. Also, your guests are expecting to be fed toward the beginning of the reception. So, for a 10:00 AM ceremony...

10:00 Ceremony

11:00 Cocktails

12:00 Grand Entrance/Lunch

12:45 Toasts, Formal Dances

1:00 Dancing

1:45 Cake Cutting, Garter/Bouquet

2:00 More Dancing

4:00 End of Reception

I am not a fan of long receptions because they tend to get costly as your vendors start to go into overtime. I'm also not a fan of "split" weddings (early ceremony with a 2-3 hour break before reception), as they tend to kill the flow and the mood of the event.

good luck with your decision!

I know a few people who have done the ceremony early about 1 then went and had pictures so everyone went back to someones house for a couple hours then to the reception at 5 until 12. It worked out nice, but it all depends if you plan to dinner or how you want to plan it out.

Yes the cost goes up of vendors, some of the ones I looked into charged $250 for each extra hour. That adds up quick when you have several vendors.