Welcome Party vs Rehearsal Dinner
Are you considering having a welcome party or a rehearsal dinner? Maybe you're going to have both. Maybe you're going to have to decide between the two. In this episode, we'll discuss all that will help you lean this way or another or do both.
While your wedding day is ultimately the highlight of your wedding weekend, a rehearsal dinner or welcome party can be a great start to your celebration. In this episode, Curtis and I discuss what the differences are between a rehearsal dinner or welcome party (or welcome reception or dinner), what happens at each (and what should not happen), how to come up with the best guest list for each and the price differences you can expect. We also talk about the benefits of hosting these events, including guest experience.
Curtis Kennedy prides himself on creating heirloom wedding films that are visually stunning and emotionally captivating. His timeless approach to wedding filmmaking has been sought after by his clients around the country. Curtis has been filming weddings since 2013. He currently resides outside of Minneapolis, MN with his wife (and business partner) and their 7 year old son. While they are based in MN, they never turn down the opportunity to escape the cold winter to film weddings in sunny Southwest FL, their second home. According to Curtis, most of his weddings are two day events. He's seen his fair share of weddings.
One of the reasons rehearsal dinners are good is because it's more low key, it's more intimate and it's good for toasts. There's more personal connection at a rehearsal dinner as the number of guests are less. The main difference between a rehearsal dinner and a welcome party is basically who you're inviting. A rehearsal dinner is a narrowed down list whereas the welcome party is open invitation. Rehearsal dinner may be 2 hours and a welcome party can be around 1 to 3 hours depending upon how the party goes.
According to Curtis, if you're having a large wedding and a number of people are coming in from different places, a welcome party is justified. There'll be live music in a welcome party, which is not the case with rehearsal dinner. You also don't want your welcome party or rehearsal dinner to be more amazing than the actual wedding day. If you have people traveling, welcome parties are great as you're mixing the crowd with each other and letting them loosen up. That makes it easier for everyone to have fun together on the actual day.
People also seem to enjoy welcome parties more than the rehearsal dinners. It's more of a festive party atmosphere and more flexibility at a welcome party as it hasn't been around for very long. It's a good way to take pictures, meet new people, have cocktails before the formal day arrives, where there is anxiety attached to sticking with the time schedule.
When given the choice of choosing between a welcome party and rehearsal dinner, Curtis said he would like to have a welcome party. Looking at it from the guests' perspective as well, people seem to have more fun at a welcome party. Also, there is a choice of going with a theme at a welcome party where you can bring design, decor, music and food from a particular theme. At a welcome party, you can also get away with tacos and cocktails and not necessarily go the lunch/dinner route. As a videographer, Curtis says there is more to cover at a welcome party as compared to a rehearsal dinner where nothing much is going on.
A rehearsal dinner is basically a practice, whereas the welcome party can be anything you want it to be. It’s up to you to decide what fits best for you.
You can listen to the full podcast here.