Hi! My fiancé and I are getting married this fall and I would love advice on a wedding day timeline that works well with the constraints we have.
Some background: We're planning a fairly traditional Christian wedding, with no first look, no cocktail hour/appetizers, and no dancing. I think all of those things are great at weddings, but they're just not for us. The ceremony and reception are at the same location, but in different buildings, so travel and setup time between don't have to be factored in. The general vibe of our wedding is family reunion/social hour. The majority of our guests will be family members, with a few friends and church members. The total guest list is around 130.
Here's a very general timeline of events that I have laid out so far:
5:30 pm - Ceremony start
6:00 pm - Ceremony ends and immediate family, wedding party, and Bride and Groom stay for photos while guests go to reception space
6:10 pm - Dinner is served in reception space, buffet-style
6:40 pm - Wedding party and immediate family go to reception space to eat dinner after photos, Bride and Groom continue photos
6:50 pm - Bride and Groom sunset photos, then go to private space and eat dinner in to-go boxes prepared by caterer
7:20 pm - Bride and Groom announced into the reception
7:20 pm - Bride and Groom cut cake and dessert is served by caterer
7:30 pm - 8:50 pm - Bride and Groom candid photos with guests around the reception, social hour, lawn games
9:00 pm - Grand exit, reception ends
My main concern: Keeping guests entertained from the time dinner ends to the time the grand exit happens. An hour and a half is a long time to keep guests of all ages entertained without drinking and dancing. There is a lawn area right beside the reception space where we could set up multiple lawn games (think giant jenga, giant connect four, etc.) I have also thought about a DIY favor/snack table. This would be a table of small mementos and snack items with empty goodie bags and guest could fill their own bag with what they wanted. I would probably want to keep this table covered/hidden from guests and then announce it at some point after dinner, that way it would be more of a focal point.
My other concern: Not having enough time for photos, especially for just my fiancé and I. This is obviously something I can talk to my photographer about, but I know not having a first look really cuts down on the time you have to take photos.
What I'm asking for: I would love input on whether or not this general timeline makes sense, and would love suggestions on how to flesh it out and keep the guests' attention for the whole evening. I'm open to moving the grand exit up just a little, but really wouldn't want to do it earlier than 8:30 or so.
Thanks!
