Seating plan or not?

We are making a seating chart. I haven't been to a wedding that hasn't had a seating chart, so I don't really know the pros and cons. But I think a pro for not having a seating chart is different families sitting together.

We made a table chart but not assigned seating. It seemed like an added unnecessary expense to us.

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I've read a few articles/surveys on this and apparently in each of these, overwhelmingly the guests preferred having seating assigned (or at min a table). Who knew >

Seating plan was for me and if i hadn't gone through the process, i would be end up with no family in the first row seeing us.

Honestly, I've been to weddings without seating charts and it's utter chaos. There's feelings being hurt, too many people being squished around a single table, and empty tables left and right. I think it's worth taking the time to make a seating chart just for piece of mind of you and your guests.

Oh gosh. I’m too much of a planner to not do a seating plan. See if anyone you know has the ability to design one for you, or just have place cards on a table as people enter with a table number and then put table numbers in the centre pieces or on the tables and people can figure out where at THAT table they want to sit.
we got cute gold script ones from amazon to go in the centrepieces.

I panic when there's no seating chart! Inevitably groups of people will all want to sit together and won't make perfect tables on their own. I think assigning tables isn't too hard and makes it much easier on your guests!

Are you assigning tables or seats?

View quoted message Oh I feel you on that! My parents are divorced and so are my mom's parents lol, so we're seating 3 "sides" just for my family, and another one for my FH's family.

You're ahead of the game for sure!

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Technically we are seating 3 "sides" of families, as my parents have been divorced for 20 years, and then my groom's family... So I was not leaving it up to chance that his aunts and uncles don't know where to sit when every single member of my family avoids sitting with each other...

I've got my mock-up done already (10 months early)... but I will also adjust and edit as RSVPs come back. I even kind of put a table together of the elderly/sick guests who we are pretty sure won't come, but will be getting a courtesy invite regardless.

View quoted message Very well put! I agree wholeheartedly. I've got a super complex family dynamic, plus a large family and it took me a few hours to seat everyone, but once done it feels so good. And when people start RSVPing, I can just update. Our venue also needs a seating plan and name tags for dietary restrictions and meal preference.

We are having a pizza party after our wedding in our garden. So I got a bunch of the $20 Adirondack chairs for the yard, and a couple picnic tables, and it will just be a backyard wander and what not arrangement!

I will definitely do one for a few reasons, my FH has divorced parents and it would be easier to seat them. I also will be having a very tight guest list for dinner and want to make sure I don't have any guests who did not RSVP. I might just be paranoid but I don't want to risk it.

I wasn't going to spa seating plan until I realized it would cause some issues. We attend a breakfast every other week with about 150 people who randomly show up and there is always one or two seats available at different tables and that makes it hard for couples, families and friends to sit together. Therefore, I'm doing a seating plan where the guests are assigned to tables but not actual seats at the table.

Funny but before I read all the comments here I wasn’t going to do a seating arrangement. Now I think it’s a good idea. Thanks ladies. This also helped me to decide

My opinion is... if your seating chart takes less than 30 minutes, because lots of people get along, and it doesn't matter who sits with who, then you may not have needed one, but congrats, easy-peasy, it's done!

If your seating chart takes you, the bride/groom, who know everyone, their families, their relationships, how they get along, etc, a long time to do? Imagine how much confusion and chaos there will be at your wedding when your guests are trying to figure that out on the spot.

You have months to arrange and re-arrange (the seating chart function on WeddingWire is awesome btw, drag and drop, so simple)... so if you ever get too stressed one day, just walk away and come back fresh later. But I've been to weddings that have both, and it makes everything go much quicker/smoothly to know what table you are sitting your butt at.

You don't have to go overboard and place people in seats.... just table numbers. Trust me, some people don't mind/don't care, but a LOT of people want/need that guidance. Let's put it this way, not many people would be upset there is a seating chart, but more people could be upset if there isn't one, if they get "stuck" at the back table, with strangers... or that aunt they can't stand...

I am on the fence about a seating plan as we are going to probably have 250+ guests. Just feel like that is a lot of people to figure out :s

I did a seating plan. It didn't take long (especially using the tool on weddingwire), and that way I made sure everyone had a spot to sit, including those who didn't know anyone else at the wedding, and wouldn't know where to sit otherwise.

I have never been to a wedding where there wasn't assigned seating, so if you decide not to do seating charts, make sure there are extra spaces, as Chloe mentioned.

Even having a rough seating plan is probably a good idea. People won't end up being broken up/split over several tables as there isn't enough room left.

I'm assigning tables to people. I feel it will be more organized that way. Also, families and couples wont have to end up sitting at different tables.

I wasn't going to do a seating plan because we have only 35 guests. Then my fiancee mentioned that guests have needs,some people don't get along and some will take offense being seated far away. We only did a draft for the seating chart and it took 2 hours. And it's already changed once since then. It also depends on who rsvps.

Just take the time with your fiancee and do it. Hopefully you have all your rsvps

I was at one and found people would just start a new table rather than sit with someone they don’t know. So, there were lots of random tables and my friends and I had to sit at different tables because there were no full tables left.

I’ve never been to a wedding without a seating plan! I guess one of the nice things about no seating plan is your guests can sit with whoever they want. I’ve been at weddings where I wish I had have been seated at another table. I think you’d need to make sure you have more seats than guests though because otherwise people who come later might have to sit with people they don’t know because there aren’t enough spaces next to each other for them to sit with friends.