Big Reception: How to Prep for Lots of Guests at Your Wedding

Weddings have a way of attracting many different members of your family, circle of friends, and work acquaintances. Whether it’s the beautiful decorations, free food, or free alcohol, everyone loves to attend a wedding. If you’ve taken a look at your guest list and realize that it’s reaching into the triple digits, here are some tips on how to prepare for lots of guests at your wedding.

Proper Amount of Seating

If you’re expecting your wedding to be one of the largest affairs of the year, ensure that all of your guests have a safe and comfortable place to sit. This is especially true for those who are elderly or poor in health. Just in case someone brings an extra person, keep a dozen extra chairs on site and a few extra folding tables to accommodate your surprise guests.

Restroom Accommodations

It is a fact of life that when you combine a large number of people in a party environment, frequent bathroom trips will become necessary. While a handful of guests can easily make do with a normal 3-stall bathroom, such a small number of toilets will quickly prove to be inadequate. For your large wedding reception, consider renting portable toilets to suit your guests’ comfort needs so that there aren’t traffic jams or drunken brawls over a toilet.

Notification of Dietary Restrictions

One of the highlights of a wedding is customizing the wedding invitations. While you’re arranging the finer details of your wedding invitations, you should also include an option for your guests to mail in an RSVP and notify you of any food allergies or dietary restrictions they may have. With such a large number of wedding guests, it will be difficult for your caterer to personally handcraft several meals to meet specific dietary guidelines at a moment’s notice. If your guests inform you ahead of time of these special dietary restrictions, your caterer can plan ahead and create an agreeable side menu of items.

Create a Plan to Mingle

It can be challenging to give each guest at your wedding the proper amount of attention but doing so can help to create a lasting bond with each of your guests that will last longer than just your wedding reception. Before your wedding day, make a mental plan to visit each table of guests before the reception ends. This will give your friends and family members fond memories and prevent any hard feelings from emerging later in your life.

As an afterthought, consider customizing enough wedding gift bags to hand out to your guests at the reception. Your guests will appreciate the thought and sentiment, and stuffing the gift bags can be considered a way for you to bond with your bridesmaids.