Dawn wedding + evening reception... is this unusual? #37, #67 She went =)

[HorseFreak]

I get bored senseless with a two hour gap (though I did go to Lizzie Borden's house during the gap from the last wedding) and I can't imagine killing seven hours in some remote location after I had to drag my butt out of a dorm bed that I paid a fortune for at 4:30 am to be seated at the wedding at 5:45. No way in heck. I'm sure it sounds lovely and romantic to the couple, but I bet they get a lot of declines.

[oogyda]

I wouldn't mind too much if there are things to *do* in those 7 hours. 

[BusyBee]

I have to agree with "obnoxious" and "held hostage".  Is there no one close enough to tell them it's a bad idea?
I might attend one or the other, but certainly not both.  I understand how beautiful a sunrise wedding must seem... but then you can't have an evening party too.  I think the happy couple want to take an afternoon nap and expect everyone else to do the same.

Getting up early doesn't bother me so much as sleeping in the dorm to do so.  For this, I'd probably attend the evening and head home at a decent hour to work on Monday.

[NyaChan]

To me this sounds like the couple is unconcerned with the comfort of their guests.  They see themselves saying their vows in a gorgeous sunrise view and simply don't care that others had to go out of their way in order to be there.  Then they want to eat their cake too by having them come back at night for the fun traditional party.  I can't say it is rude since guests can turn down the invitation, but for some reason it kinda bugs me.

[Emmy]

I think your friend should attend the wedding just to have a really good story to submit to this website. j/k

I agree with everyone else.  It sounds like this bride and groom put no care into the comfort of their guests and this wedding is full of bad ideas.  I'm also a bit puzzled at having guests stay in a dorm and why it would be so expensive.  Also, would there be a check out time of 12 p.m. like in most hotels?  If that's the case, guests either have to get and pay for two nights at the expensive dorm or roam around for several hours before the evening reception.  Did the bride and groom give guests any guide on things to do in the area?

As for the dawn wedding, that alone would be enough for me to decline the whole thing.  I certainly wouldn't get up at 4:30 a.m. to get ready for such an event, (I'd barely make it coming in my pajamas).  What is the expected attire of the guests? 

I do agree that probably a lot of people will not stay for the evening reception or will skip the ceremony.  It would be much better to have a morning wedding (at a reasonable hour) followed by a nice brunch reception.

[Morty'sCleaningLady]

So sorry to send my regrets.

The worst I endured was a wedding in a remote-for-me city with Mass at 10 AM and the reception starting at 5.  My pals and I went to a Wegmans (never been), bought lunch and ate it in our hotel room in sweats while watching the Masters.  (2 of the 3 of us are golf fans.)  A fourth who was carpooling tried to talk us into a museum visit, but democracy ruled.  Way too long between the ceremony and the reception!!! 

[Luci45]

Aside from the almost obvious: what are the bride and groom doing to kill the time? They should have a brunch reception, as suggested above, and be done with it!

And I can't imagine being in a big white dress for that long. Groan! Or having to get all put together again for the reception.

Sunrise, Sunset - I may put on Fiddler on the Roof now.

[Outdoor Girl]

I went to an outdoor summer wedding one August.  The bride didn't want to be too hot so the ceremony was scheduled for 6:00 pm.  Which was fine.  What wasn't so fine is the 2 hour gap to the reception.  And then, instead of serving the meal and then doing the speeches and first dances and so on, they did all of that first!  Mainly to get the little ones in attendance home to bed, I think.  We didn't eat until 10:00 pm, which was just crazy.  I know some of the guests went for dinner during the gap then just nibbled on a few things at the reception.

I thought this was bad.  But a dawn ceremony with an evening reception?  That's worse.

[Sharnita]

Since this sounds like a destination thing, people willprobably want to nap between their early morning and their drive home after the evening reception.

[Texas Mom]

Yes, it is unusual.

I suspect many of the guests will leave after the morning festivities finish.

[Winterlight]

Also, would there be a check out time of 12 p.m. like in most hotels?  If that's the case, guests either have to get and pay for two nights at the expensive dorm or roam around for several hours before the evening reception. 

That's a really good point. You're going to have some tired guests after this, and no way for them to nap without burning another night's stay. En extended checkout usually runs to around 3 or so, but that leaves another 4 hours- so you'd have to get dressed around 2:30 and stay that way.

[WolfWay]

OP here.

As far as I know, friend is still going to the wedding , she was just filling me in on the horrors that await her. I'll check back in with her if there is any feedback on it (it's sometime in the next few weeks, I'm a little fuzzy on the dates, think it was weekend before christmas).

[nuit93]

I don't think I could do a wedding on that kind of schedule--I don't even get up before 7am during the work week!

Can't wait to hear about how it goes

[norrina]

DF and I have been deliberating on the appropriateness of a dawn wedding (6:45am here during the time of year we will be getting married), and we've rented a very nice beach house for the entirety of our guest list (parents, grandparents, siblings, sibling-in-laws, nieces, and nephews only) and will be having the ceremony on the beach outside our front door. There is no way we would even consider such an early affair if we were not hosting sleeping accommodations in close proximity to the ceremony site.

I've also never been a big fan of large gaps between the ceremony and reception. Even if the guests are financially in a position to avail themselves of the local attractions during the downtime, locating such pastimes can prove challenging when one isn't familiar with the area, and wedding finery is often not conducive to such activities in any event.

[greencat]

If it's the weekend before Christmas, since Christmas is on a Tuesday this year, I think it's possible that the couple expects that most of their guests will have Monday (Christmas Eve) off as well - making a late night out or a second overnight stay possible for those who happen to work in jobs that actually give them holidays off.

But dorm-style?  That could actually mean a lot of things in terms of sleeping arrangements and bathroom availability...most of them inappropriate for adults and families.

I don't even know what to think about the massive time gap other than it probably isn't good at all.