Practice and Perfect, the Rehearsal Dinner

Your wedding day will have many opportunities for making memories and having fun, and the rehearsal dinner is definitely one of them. Here are some tips to keep in mind.

Planning

The first thing you will want to do is decide who is hosting the dinner and where and when it should be. Traditionally the dinner takes place after the rehearsal the night before the wedding. If you have several attendants traveling in on the day of, you might want to consider having a mid-morning rehearsal with a lunch afterward. Either way you will want to leave you and your attendees plenty of time to relax and prepare for the wedding afterwards.

The grooms’ parents are usually the ones responsible for hosting or paying for the meal, but you can choose to co-host, or see if other relatives want to participate. You should choose a location that you know will have good food, and offer variations for those with food allergy concerns.

Practice

The rehearsal dinner is the first coming together of the families. Think of this as your best of the best group. The wedding day will be filled with many other loved ones to share in your joy, but keep the rehearsal dinner to the wedding party, immediate family, child participants and their parents, and the officiant and their family. This allows the party to stay more intimate, relaxed, and casual.  

Having a theme for the party can be a great way to encourage group bonding and go against the theme of the wedding for a fun variety. For example, if you are having a formal wedding, you could keep the rehearsal dinner casual by hosting it at a neighborhood bar in Pointe Orlando, FL, or having a barbecue in a family member’s backyard. Likewise, if the wedding is more relaxed and low-key, this could be a fun time to have everyone dress up and go to a fancy restaurant.

Personal

Lastly, remember to keep this event personal. This is a great time to give gifts to the wedding party, thank the officiant, toast your betrothed, and hug your parents. While the wedding will be the day to celebrate the love between you and your future spouse, the rehearsal dinner is the time to celebrate the love of family and friends.

So whether you go to a neighborhood bar in Pointe Orlando, FL, attend a five-star restaurant with all the trimmings, or play sports in a friend’s yard, there are many ways you can make memories and have fun at your rehearsal dinner.