Wedding After-Party 101: Follow These Tips to Host an Epic Party Post-Wedding Ceremonies

Congratulations! Your time, effort and plans for your big day are done and you're finally married. You've wowed in your bridal lehenga, expertly done bridal makeup and on-point matching game with your beau's look. The guests are properly awed and satiated with your choice of wedding venue, decor, wedding menu and the way the ceremonies took place. Now, it's time to let your proverbial hair down and prepare yourself and your gang for the most happening wedding after-party of all times! Burning off some steam with your spouse and closest friends once the wedding festivities come to a halt is not a bad thing to considering. With so much stress that you must have undergone to prepare for your wedding and being on your toes to ensure that everything is on point - burning off some steam at your wedding after-party is the much-deserved break that you have earned. 

Here are the things you need to ensure that your wedding after-party (not the grand wedding reception) is a great experience for all of you. So, follow these tips on how to host an epic wedding after-party and bring out your A-game:

Plan the basics:

1. Decide on the basics

Do you want an intimate gathering of close friends and family at a planned party? A pre-decided venue with a fixed cost or an open tab? Or perhaps you want to head to someone’s place, make it a BYOB kind of party and stay together until the wee hours of the morning?

Whatever you decide, it’s a good idea to fix this up beforehand to avoid scrambling around in confusion wearing your wedding outfit and avoiding a place with too many strangers. Talk to your partner, friends and family and figure it out before the wedding day to be safe. Keep the venue such that it suits each and every friends and guest of yours so that you get a full house. The more the people the merrier your wedding after-party will be. 

2. Distance from the wedding venue:

You don’t want to choose a spot that’s too far away or inconvenient to get to. If it’s more logical, consider booking a private room at the same hotel you’ve zeroed down on for your reception, nothing better than a quick wedding after-party right before your wedding reception begins.

3. Paying for the party

You can split the costs with your partner and parents or even just go to a place that works for everyone and let people share costs if that’s something that will definitely work for everyone. Do choose a place that will offer plenty of refreshments and options for everyone to snack on and enjoy without having to stress over anything.

4. Consider transportation:

If there’s a great place you want your guests to check out, you can make transportation arrangements to ensure that everyone gets there safely and without any trouble. Comfort is important because everyone will be a little tired from a long day and will be looking for a place to relax and unwind and in such a scenario to unwind at your wedding after-party seems like the coolest idea ever.

5. Let them know, properly

It’s understandable if you don’t want this to be a large gathering. You don’t need to extend a formal invitation but you can if you think it’s easier. Just include a note at the end of your invite or put up the details on your wedding site. You can rely on word-of-mouth for something like this and make sure everyone knows about the plan in advance.

To ensure that everybody feels welcome to join especially the guests who turn up for the reception. A smart way to keep the party slightly small is by choosing a younger venue which will work for most people who really want to come and feel up to a party after the festivities. You want to make sure that no one feels like they’re being ignored so extend the invitation to everyone politely.

6. Go easy on the outfits

Wear what you want to wear. It’s time for you to have some fun and not worry about formalities.

Further, let your guests know that they can change too. In fact, put this tidbit in the invitation (if the party is for everyone). Or let your close friends and family know subtly that they should carry a set of spare clothes. Follow these easy to follow tips to organise an unforgettable wedding after-party to blow off the wedding haze. 

We hope that your wedding after-party is the best comfort zone for you, even if you choose to do it barefoot, on a beach. You know that you deserve it.

And after it's done, let us know how you did it, in the comments section below.