Acceptable time gap between ceremony and reception

There is no exact science on this I have went to an 11am wedding with a 5pm reception. If you are going to space it out maybe just give guests some ideas for entertainment in between.

Is there an option to have a cocktail hour prior to dinner so kind of let guests in a bit before dinner so if Dinner is at 5pm, Cocktail Hour could be at 4pm. Explain to your reception venue the dilemma, they might have solutions for you too. Give your guests ideas of what to do nearby while they wait, especially ones from out of town, I agree with the others on this. But I always expect a little waiting between ceremony and reception especially with photos and when there’s two locations. I wouldn’t make dinner too late but I wouldn’t worry about a few hours especially when guests are local too.

View quoted message

Oh no! Lol funny, but also not funny I’m sure!

That sucks, I plan on doing all the same venue, but it’s in the winter so it’s indoors. There’s a cocktail hour while we take photos throughout the hotel. And the other venue option we would take photos before so it would be ceremony, dinner, party. I hope that helps me out in that department lol

Our church ceremony is about 30mins away from the reception. Ceremony starts at 1PM. Based on weddings I have attended it should take about 1hr 1.5hrs max including photos at the church for the whole ceremony. Cocktails will start at 4. This will give them an hour and a half to make their way to the Reception. They change their attire if they wanted to... plenty of time I think.

Definitely not rude! At least you've got 2 locations. I once attended a wedding where there was a 3.5 hour gap and we were stuck at the venue... in June... in 30+ weather... and there weren't many shady/indoor places to hang out. Needless to say, people got wasted and a certain FH (mine) fell asleep drunk in the bushes.

Our ceremony will be at 2, and afterward the guests will have a 45 minute drive to the reception hall. we’re thinking we’ll start cocktail hour around 4:30-5. Our guests will have some time to kill, but we figure they can do whatever they want with that extra time

Dont worry too much! What ever works best for you guys your guests will accommodate! Ours will be a 2.5 hour gap while we go do photos! I've been to weddings with 5+ hour gaps and it was nice to go home, have a little lunch, change and freshen up before heading back out! So long or short people will make it work!

Time frame for each couple is different based on pictures being taken after at the same venue or different location. That also looks at the wedding party being included or just you as a couple.

Work out the daytime schedule to look what fits best for you both.

People are more used to the idea of a long gap time nowadays. I have been to a few weddings with 3 hour gap times. I would not start your cocktail hour until at least 4:30. Just let guests know that they will have to figure out something to do in that time. Some of your guests may skip the ceremony in that case as well, so expect that.

I agree with Tori! I would give them some site seeing places in town or things they could do to pass time. If its outdoors you could provide lawn games too

I've been to a wedding where the ceremony was at 1:30 and it was a half hour long Catholic Church ceremony - they didn't have mass though so it ended at 2pm. Reception didn't start until 6:30 but there was a cocktail hour at 5:30 - there was a decent 3 1/2 hour break. This was the wedding where my FH mowed the lawn between ceremony and reception and showered lol.

If the majority of your guests are local, they will be able to find something to do before the reception. You could also find nearby attractions for them to enjoy (especially out-of-towners). I think you could get away with a 4:30 cocktail hour start and then start dinner around 5:30. That gives you a 4 hour break.

Also if the reception and ceremony are in different spots, your guests will need time to travel between venues.

Because it is happening so early in the day - as long as it's not a destination wedding - I would just give them ideas of what they can do to pass the time on your wedding website and keep the reception later in the evening. It can give everybody an excuse to catch up without you footing the bill for like a 3-4 hour cocktail "hour".

The earliest I would put supper is 4:30 but that's even a bit too early IMO especially if you have the reception going til 12 or 1AM.