Guests standing for ceremony?

We're having our ceremony in a circle (something my fiancee wants) as to say that we are getting married surrounded by those who mean the most to us. She wants to have seats for the older people (my parents, and their friends who are like family to me) and those who can't stand for the 30 minutes our wedding will be. Everyone else will be standing. I don't think that our guests are going to have an issue with standing.

Some other solutions can be made besides chairs if your guests need to sit for the ceremony. I would recommend for the elderly and kids who do need it than to feel for the time of standing. Benches can work to seat more guests seated for the same amount of chairs needed.

SO I might be the odd man here, but I have been to a wedding where I had to stand the whole time and I personally had no issues, and from what I could tell no one else really had any issues. And mind you, this was February, in the mountains and it was snowing. We were well informed of having to stand, and they had it at a resort, so those who weren't comfortable were able to stay back at the lodge. But to be fair, they had MAYBE 6-10 chairs for some of the older folk that came. NO ideas how they went about it tho.

Ultimately, you know your guest and what can they can manage.

Thanks everyone! It makes sense. I'll continue to look around, but I will have seating in some capacity. My fiancé and I were also concerned about sightlines.

Congrats to all of you and thanks again!

I'm with the group, I would not cut the seating, you do not know who can stand and who can't. Maybe shop around or check your local weeding groups, maybe there's cheaper options out there?

I recommend against cutting seating, no matter how short you think the ceremony is. 20 minutes of ceremony time can translate to an hour of actual event time for people who arrive early and you start late (most ceremonies start late). Not only does it pose accessibility problems for some guests, having everyone stand will surely disrupt sightlines for many people. Your photographer may also have trouble getting shots he needs if everyone is standing around in an unorderly fashion.

I agree with Brittany - al though pricey I do not think this is an area you should cut costs. It could be problematic for those that cannot stand for that long and I would also find it a little awkward as a guest to just be standing during a ceremony for that amount of time.

Not sure of your theme or vibe of your wedding but maybe these could be some other affordable options?

This definitely goes with a boho vibe but at the same time be mindful of any older guests - this could be a problem for them sitting down so low - also gives a very very casual vibe BUT would be super affordable! lol

Maybe some benches could be more affordable?

I think this idea is so beautiful but not sure how many guests you are having - probably best for a more intimate guestlist

I don't think chairs is one of the things you should cut out of your budget. We don't know if our guests are struggling with something that would cause them stress to stand that long.

For instance I know my grandparents, mom and FH grandma can not stand for 20 minutes. Heck I am 27 and I can barely stand for 20 minutes due to a surgery I had on my knee years ago.

If you were going to do a quick 5 minute ceremony then I say go for it but if you are leaning towards a longer ceremony like over 15 minutes, I would stick with keeping chairs.

I am spending about the same in chair rentals in Banff for only 34 chairs. I get it sucks to spend so much on chairs for 15 minutes but I would rather have comfy guests than people complaining about standing too long.