Hosting the Ceremony and Reception at Same Venue

We received an email yesterday from a Bride who wanted to have her ceremony at the reception venue and wanted to know if would look proper. Hosting the wedding ceremony at the reception venue is a great way to lower costs and make things easier on everyone. We have seen quite a few such ceremonies and it does not look out of place. Here are some ideas on going ahead with this plan.

1. Set the tables for a reception on two sides of the hall/yard leaving space for an aisle for the bride to walk on.

2. Set the tables starting from the middle of the room so that guests can simply stand around the altar as the ceremony takes place. This of course, works only when the ceremony is for a short duration.

3. Arrange chairs in the traditional seating manner for the ceremony and line up tables at the back. Then have some close friends or family members or the staff at the venue arrange them around tables for the reception as you are having photos taken.

4. If you have a built-in stage, make sure it can accommodate the ceremony. If not, get a floral arch built for the ceremony to take place.

5. If you have guests that you do not wish to invite to the ceremony but only to the reception, make sure you carry out the entire ceremony, cocktail/hors d'oeuvres, photo session etc. on perfect time and make the venue ready for the reception before the guests start arriving.