What's up with Friday weddings?

[JewelFreak]

This is the same concept as the destination wedding. Get married when & where you want but don't be upset, if you do it at a place or time that requires sacrifice from your invited friends, if many send regrets. Life for grownups requires choices, gotta face reality. Wedding guests, much as they might want to be there, don't owe their presence to the couple under any & all circumstances.

 

[ame]

I have worked on many Friday weddings but every one was 6pm or later. Frankly, having it at 3pm on any day other than like around a Holiday weekend or something (say day after Thanskgiving) is IMO rude as hell, especially if you do expect a lot of people to make it. If it's just you and immediate family and then an evening celebration with more, great. But to expect hundreds to be able to and willing to take off work to travel or come to your afternoon wedding is VERY presumptuous.

 

[chemgirl]

We are going to have a Friday 1500 wedding, and we decided on that for many reasons.

We were stymied by the restricted dates available at the venue plus very close friends' availabilities (if we didn't have a Friday we couldn't have got married until August, and we wanted March). We're only 32 for the actual ceremony, and have already checked that they are all happy and able to attend/take time off if it's relevant. Many of our friends (including all but one of the friends attending the actual ceremony) are freelance and work more at the weekend than in the week, so it's actually more convenient for them, as they don't get paid holiday pay for taking a day off work as salaried people do. The venue is the same price whether we booked for the Friday or Saturday. The reception starts at 1900 in a place maximum 1 1/2 hours away from everyone invited, so that should be fine for attendance too.

I feel almost anything goes as long as it's thoroughly thought-through; we thought everything through to the point of over-agonising. The blanket opinions here about it always being rude, inconsiderate and a PITA rub me up the wrong way.

I think a Friday wedding makes perfect sense for you. Its certainly not rude to have a Friday wedding if you've discussed it with your guests and they can come. It sounds like you're being very considerate of your guests.

I was taking issue with the brides who have Friday afternoon weddings assuming everyone can come, and then get angry when they receive too many regrets cards (or people who can't make the ceremony, but can be there for the dinner/dancing). If the majority of guests have 9:00-5:00 type jobs, she can't get too mad when we can't come. The maid of honor in this particular wedding is a teacher so she's going to be taking a sick day. Really not ideal.

 

[Rhea]

I don't think a couple should expect guests to bend over backwards to accommodate their schedule if they choose to get married during the week.

On the other hand, I don't think loved ones should expect couples to bend over backwards to accommodate their schedules, either.

You can never please everyone. If you love someone enough, you'll be at their wedding regardless of when and where it happens. If you don't, you'll find fault with any number of little details you choose to spend your time scrutinizing.

In the end, the couple marries surrounded by the people who care for them enough to make the time to attend their celebration. Win win, I say.

P.S. We had a Friday morning wedding, but it was a holiday, the 4th of July. I know some people hate holiday weddings, but I dislike Sunday weddings and wanted to get married in the morning, and as Jews, we would have had to start a Saturday wedding after sundown. A Friday holiday worked best for us, and everyone we loved was there. It was wonderful.

This! You said it so much better than any of my attempts at it.

There were several things about our wedding that meant people couldn't attend. We knew it'd be a small wedding. We compromised on what we could - including having a wedding for each side of the family, but were unwilling to compromise on the date. We understood some people declined due to the date. That was their choice. We didn't expect people to do something they couldn't or didn't want to, and our guests seem to have afforded us the same courtesy - that they didn't expect us to compromise our date for them or get in a huff about our Wednesday wedding.

 

[stephbolt]

We got married on a Friday because of availability. In my hometown there are a limited number of wedding venues, among them there were only one or two Saturdays to choose from in the window of several months we wanted to get married, and those Saturdays didn't work because of other conflicts. So we got married at 6 pm on a Friday. I only had two guests who said they couldn't come because they couldn't get off work, and one of them works weekends and wouldn't have been able to take off for a Saturday or Sunday wedding either. A majority of our guests were local, and went to work that day, probably only leaving an hour or two early at most.

I do think a couple should be aware that a Friday wedding may have lower turnout than a Saturday wedding, but those that are closest to them will make the necessary arrangements. I have a Friday wedding scheduled for next year, and I would happily take a vacation day if I needed to.

 

[bee*]

I'm fine with weekday weddings, happy to take a day or so off work to celebrate with people I'm fond of. That said, I live in Scotland, where we seem to have a lot more annual leave. I get 35 days, plus 11 'floating' days in lieu of public holidays. If I only had a few days a year, I'd maybe be less thrilled.

I'm the same (only in Ireland with about 24 days annual leave plus holidays)-I love a weekday wedding and it's quite common over here. Our wedding was a Thursday (only date we could get at our venue and that was booking 2 years in advance. It would have been 4 years if we wanted a Saturday). Everyone we wanted came and we had a three day party. I've been to Thursday weddings myself and my sister is getting married on a Thursday and the numbers were high at all the weddings. If it's a friend, I'll gladly go whenever they want to have it. If it's an associate or someone I'm not that friendly with, then I'll see how I feel.

 

[stepcutnut]

A Friday wedding at 3:00 makes it difficult for many to attend-they should realize that and not be upset when they receive regrets from their invitees. We actually attended one of these earlier this summer-the only good thing was that we were home by Sat. evening and had Sunday to relax

I also feel your frustration, as we were just invited to a Monday wedding!!!

 

[Rhea]

I'm fine with weekday weddings, happy to take a day or so off work to celebrate with people I'm fond of. That said, I live in Scotland, where we seem to have a lot more annual leave. I get 35 days, plus 11 'floating' days in lieu of public holidays. If I only had a few days a year, I'd maybe be less thrilled.

I'm the same (only in Ireland with about 24 days annual leave plus holidays)-I love a weekday wedding and it's quite common over here. Our wedding was a Thursday (only date we could get at our venue and that was booking 2 years in advance. It would have been 4 years if we wanted a Saturday). Everyone we wanted came and we had a three day party. I've been to Thursday weddings myself and my sister is getting married on a Thursday and the numbers were high at all the weddings. If it's a friend, I'll gladly go whenever they want to have it. If it's an associate or someone I'm not that friendly with, then I'll see how I feel.

Thursdays seem a popular day in England as well! 4 of the last 5 weddings we've attended have all been Thursdays and Fridays. Bookings must be very far out in some places!

 

[chemgirl]

We got married on a Friday because of availability. In my hometown there are a limited number of wedding venues, among them there were only one or two Saturdays to choose from in the window of several months we wanted to get married, and those Saturdays didn't work because of other conflicts. So we got married at 6 pm on a Friday. I only had two guests who said they couldn't come because they couldn't get off work, and one of them works weekends and wouldn't have been able to take off for a Saturday or Sunday wedding either. A majority of our guests were local, and went to work that day, probably only leaving an hour or two early at most.

I do think a couple should be aware that a Friday wedding may have lower turnout than a Saturday wedding, but those that are closest to them will make the necessary arrangements. I have a Friday wedding scheduled for next year, and I would happily take a vacation day if I needed to.

I would take vacation for this particular wedding if I could because the bride is a family member and close friend of DH. Unfortunately, I get 10 days vacation per year and I just started a new job so I haven't accrued any days yet. They sent out the save the dates in late August so almost everyone had already used or booked all of their annual allotment of vacation before they knew about this wedding. Close uncles and aunts can't go. Its not a matter of not taking vacation because we don't want to.

This is turning in to such a touchy subject for me because the bride called DH last night crying that their parents, siblings, grandmothers, and a handful of close friends are the only people coming. Over 75% of the guest list declined. She is taking the attitude that people don't love her enough to attend, if we really loved her, we would make time. That's not really the case so its frustrating to deal with.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

We had a Friday wedding, but only because we felt it was most convenient for guests.

Our wedding was tiny (30 people) and my family had to fly in from the midwest. I didn't want to have a wedding on a Saturday night, then have everybody wake up early Sunday to catch their flights home. I wanted my family to have a day to sight see or lounge around on the beach if they wanted.

D's family was local, but nobody in his family has an office job and the majority work on Saturdays, so getting Friday off was easier for them than taking a Saturday off.

I wish it had been cheaper, but because we were renting an estate for a week, it really didn't matter what day we had the wedding.

 

[stephbolt]

We got married on a Friday because of availability. In my hometown there are a limited number of wedding venues, among them there were only one or two Saturdays to choose from in the window of several months we wanted to get married, and those Saturdays didn't work because of other conflicts. So we got married at 6 pm on a Friday. I only had two guests who said they couldn't come because they couldn't get off work, and one of them works weekends and wouldn't have been able to take off for a Saturday or Sunday wedding either. A majority of our guests were local, and went to work that day, probably only leaving an hour or two early at most.

I do think a couple should be aware that a Friday wedding may have lower turnout than a Saturday wedding, but those that are closest to them will make the necessary arrangements. I have a Friday wedding scheduled for next year, and I would happily take a vacation day if I needed to.

I would take vacation for this particular wedding if I could because the bride is a family member and close friend of DH. Unfortunately, I get 10 days vacation per year and I just started a new job so I haven't accrued any days yet. They sent out the save the dates in late August so almost everyone had already used or booked all of their annual allotment of vacation before they knew about this wedding. Close uncles and aunts can't go. Its not a matter of not taking vacation because we don't want to.

This is turning in to such a touchy subject for me because the bride called DH last night crying that their parents, siblings, grandmothers, and a handful of close friends are the only people coming. Over 75% of the guest list declined. She is taking the attitude that people don't love her enough to attend, if we really loved her, we would make time. That's not really the case so its frustrating to deal with.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to try and make you feel bad, I should have chosen how I said things more carefully. I do understand that there are situations in which people legitimately don't have PTO or enough advance notice to try and make arrangements to take time off. Each wedding is unique, and the couple needs to take into account where people are traveling to and how hard it will be for them to get there and temper their expectations as to who will attend accordingly. I do think the 3 pm start is ridiculous, because it guarantees everyone will have to take at least a half day at work.

 

[rubybeth]

Am I being a brat? What are your thoughts about Friday afternoon weddings in general?

I don't think you're being a brat at all, and I had a Friday wedding. We intentionally had a very small wedding though (50 guests) and confirmed with those we most wanted to be there that a Friday was okay (parents, grandparents, godparents). It was also at 6:00pm and reception started at about 7:30pm, and our furthest 'out of town' guests were an hour away. I definitely didn't expect anyone to fly in or drive for a long period of time in order to be there.

 

[chemgirl]

We got married on a Friday because of availability. In my hometown there are a limited number of wedding venues, among them there were only one or two Saturdays to choose from in the window of several months we wanted to get married, and those Saturdays didn't work because of other conflicts. So we got married at 6 pm on a Friday. I only had two guests who said they couldn't come because they couldn't get off work, and one of them works weekends and wouldn't have been able to take off for a Saturday or Sunday wedding either. A majority of our guests were local, and went to work that day, probably only leaving an hour or two early at most.

I do think a couple should be aware that a Friday wedding may have lower turnout than a Saturday wedding, but those that are closest to them will make the necessary arrangements. I have a Friday wedding scheduled for next year, and I would happily take a vacation day if I needed to.

I would take vacation for this particular wedding if I could because the bride is a family member and close friend of DH. Unfortunately, I get 10 days vacation per year and I just started a new job so I haven't accrued any days yet. They sent out the save the dates in late August so almost everyone had already used or booked all of their annual allotment of vacation before they knew about this wedding. Close uncles and aunts can't go. Its not a matter of not taking vacation because we don't want to.

This is turning in to such a touchy subject for me because the bride called DH last night crying that their parents, siblings, grandmothers, and a handful of close friends are the only people coming. Over 75% of the guest list declined. She is taking the attitude that people don't love her enough to attend, if we really loved her, we would make time. That's not really the case so its frustrating to deal with.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to try and make you feel bad, I should have chosen how I said things more carefully. I do understand that there are situations in which people legitimately don't have PTO or enough advance notice to try and make arrangements to take time off. Each wedding is unique, and the couple needs to take into account where people are traveling to and how hard it will be for them to get there and temper their expectations as to who will attend accordingly. I do think the 3 pm start is ridiculous, because it guarantees everyone will have to take at least a half day at work.

Sorry about my over reaction! I totally agree that the couple needs to choose what they think is best and adjust their expectations accordingly.

 

[TooPatient]

ChemGirl -- I'm sorry you're having to deal with this.

I think that a couple can choose any date they want, but they need to understand that their friends and family (no matter how much they love them!) have other commitments (like work) that they just can't drop -- no matter how much they'd like to.

Especially with the economy like it is -- people can't just call in "sick" or ask for extra days off. For that matter, some people may not be able to take the vacation days they are given for fear of losing their job!

 

[jstarfireb]

Holiday weddings are tough too ("real" holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.). My wedding happened to be on Mother's Day, which I didn't actually realize when I scheduled it, but I don't think that counts enough as a holiday...it's more of a "send cards and flowers" holiday, which just made finding a florist difficult. Only one of my guests wasn't able to come because it was Mother's Day.

But anyway, here's a tough one: my husband's best friend is an American citizen born in China, and he and his (also Chinese-American) fiancee live in NYC and have family in the US. They are having 2 weddings in China and nothing in the US. A single wedding in China wouldn't get us too upset, but the fact that they're going through the trouble to have 2 weddings and BOTH of them are in China really bothers us (my husband and me). And the one in which my husband is a groomsman happens to be the day after Christmas. I'm on a rotation that doesn't allow vacation time that month, so I can't go. But my long-distance husband gets time off for the holidays and might have been able to visit me around that time (we only get to see each other 4-6 times a year).

 

[TravelingGal]

If I want to go to your wedding, I don't care what day it is. If I can't make it, I can't make it. C'est la vie.

We did have a Friday MORNING wedding (crazy! ) followed by a lunchtime reception. It would have been silly not to take advantage of the cost savings. We had 50 people, many were from Oz. My family is retired or in the case of my brother, a police officer with flex hours. I invited 4 friends - 3 were stay at home moms with hubs that worked from home and my other friend was a WAHM. It was cleared with everyone beforehand and worked out great.

That being said, if you have a huge guest list, it would be hard to do a weekday wedding and expect everyone to show.

 

[iheartscience]

We got married on a Friday because of availability. In my hometown there are a limited number of wedding venues, among them there were only one or two Saturdays to choose from in the window of several months we wanted to get married, and those Saturdays didn't work because of other conflicts. So we got married at 6 pm on a Friday. I only had two guests who said they couldn't come because they couldn't get off work, and one of them works weekends and wouldn't have been able to take off for a Saturday or Sunday wedding either. A majority of our guests were local, and went to work that day, probably only leaving an hour or two early at most.

I do think a couple should be aware that a Friday wedding may have lower turnout than a Saturday wedding, but those that are closest to them will make the necessary arrangements. I have a Friday wedding scheduled for next year, and I would happily take a vacation day if I needed to.

I would take vacation for this particular wedding if I could because the bride is a family member and close friend of DH. Unfortunately, I get 10 days vacation per year and I just started a new job so I haven't accrued any days yet. They sent out the save the dates in late August so almost everyone had already used or booked all of their annual allotment of vacation before they knew about this wedding. Close uncles and aunts can't go. Its not a matter of not taking vacation because we don't want to.

This is turning in to such a touchy subject for me because the bride called DH last night crying that their parents, siblings, grandmothers, and a handful of close friends are the only people coming. Over 75% of the guest list declined. She is taking the attitude that people don't love her enough to attend, if we really loved her, we would make time. That's not really the case so its frustrating to deal with.

Has anyone informed the bride that her choice in day and time makes it impossible for most people to come without taking time off work? If it was important to her that everyone come, she should have picked a Saturday or even a Sunday!

I don't think there's anything wrong with choosing a day besides Saturday as long as you either clear it with your guests first or just understand that it will make it more difficult for many people to attend.

And I would have been in your shoes just a month ago, because my current employer has a 4 month probationary period where you're not supposed to take time off. My department will allow you to take a day off if you're ill or an emergency comes up, but I wouldn't have been able to request off for a wedding.

 

[vintagelover229]

We are having a Sunday afternoon wedding (4pm) with the dinner reception to follow. I realize that Sunday weddings aren't the "norm" but we liked the vibe of a Sunday winter wedding. We are getting married in front of a fire place in front of a 19 guests with the reception in the same room (separated a bit) on the other side. I'm thrilled with a Sunday wedding and how small and close knit it will be. Our head table will be just us and then we will have 3 round tables with our guests directly in front/sides of us. Because we are an international some couples we have guests will be traveling for the wedding. Most of the guests are local (within 1.5 hrs of the venue) and I gave options for rooms if they choose to stay (although most will be traveling home). Out of all the guests we only have 2 couples traveling and one single person traveling. One couple is my parents and they will be driving 7.5 hrs and coming Sat. and leaving Monday afternoon-so they only had to take the Monday off. The single person is taking our photos and is another close relative of mine-he is taking off from the Thurs-Tues. and never takes vacation and considers this a great excuse to get away and can afford the travel time. The final couple is a couple friend of mine who haven't ever been to Toronto. They will be making a trip out of it and will be coming up the 1st (wedding is the 4th) and will be doing their own thing and attending the wedding and are very excited to see the city.

I never once thought if someone couldn't make it or get the time off work that they didn't care enough to come. Times are hard for a lot of people and many can't afford to take the time off work-even if they have that option. We talked to everyone about the date prior to signing any contracts or sending out invitations and I knew who I could/couldn't invite based on that information. That being said we didn't invite very many people and everyone we have invited is attending.

I'm very happy with my Sunday late afternoon wedding and I hope people don't feel like they have been inconvenienced to attend our special day. Had we gotten that vibe from any of our guests we would have taken the money that we are spending that day and eloped for 10 days some place warm instead of investing all the time/effort/money into sharing the day with them. We haven't gotten that from anyone though and everyone seems very excited to attend. We picked a beautiful venue and are having a very nice dinner/drinks/cake that hopefully will create a special memory for all of our guests to enjoy and share with us. Most didn't have to take time off work because they were local and the ones who did take time off work are treating as a vacation as well as a wedding.

I had no idea that there was this much thought in regards to the date each couple has chosen for their wedding day. It should be if they can/can't come it's great either way. The day shouldn't be any more/less special based on who showed up from your guest list. Would it be nice to have family/friends there? YES, but the day isn't about them-or even about them sharing in your day with you-it's about committing your life to your partner and best friend.

 

[les12]

I haven't read through all of the replies so I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but our wedding was on Friday evening due to restrictions in our church diocese. We had a Catholic wedding and mass, and were unable to have it on Saturday because of the mass schedule. It's not the case everywhere but in our particular diocese those were the rules.

 

[Lottie]

We have been to three weddings this year and they were all Fridays. I love them - an invitation to make an ordinary weekend a long weekend with lots of friends/family or both and the feelgood factor that usually comes with a wedding and I am on board! Wedding invitatons tend to come a long time before the big day which helps with planning time off of work etc.

We got married on a Friday ourselves (3pm ceremony!) and everyone made it, we did however check the date with the important people before we booked it. I think if people hadn't been able to attend I would have been understanding but it was an intimate wedding with just twenty four including ourselves.

Edited to correct my horrendous spelling this evening!

 

[Amys Bling]

MissStepcut--I agree with you, but as you say, there are shades of grey. I have friends for whom I would happily take an afternoon off to attend their Friday afternoon wedding, but for whom I would NOT take a week to head out to Italy to attend their wedding.
On the other hand, I would go anywhere my sister wanted me to go to attend her wedding, no matter the day or location.
I don't feel guilty about that, and I don't think you should, either.

I really don't see how an invitation to a wedding, ANY wedding, can be construed as an inconvenience, or worse, as rude. You are not required to attend. You are not required to send a gift if you don't feel compelled to do so. A note is always nice, but certainly a gift isn't necessary if it's for a couple you truly aren't close enough to want to send a gift. I know people have a lot of misconceptions about etiquette and what's proper, but certainly the proper thing to do is to respond as you wish! Attend, or don't. Send an elaborate gift, or don't. These are all choices, and ones that any guest is free to make. (This last part was a general response to the thread, not just to you, MissS.)

This reminds me of the threads that pop up about obligations people feel to allow distant relatives to come into their homes and stay for weeks at a time and eat everything in existence, or how people hate the holidays because they are forced to host everyone in the family who is fussy and rude and ruins their good dishes. These are choices! Bow out, if you'd like. Choice, it's what's for dinner. And it's delicious.

I love weddings and holidays and any excuse to celebrate in this life. I savor them all, and I attend the events that make me happy. I've replied with regrets to many an inconvenient wedding invitation, and sent gifts that I felt were appropriate. Never felt bad about missing a one.

So agree. If you cannot or dont want to take a day off work to make a Friday ceremony- don't. Honestly, the people who could be there for our Friday night wedding were. I totally understood others couldn't make it until the cocktail hour or reception. I do agree the bride and groom shouldn't be personally offended though...

 

[Amys Bling]

ok, i read the update about her crying to your DH that so many people declined. Sorry but she should have thought about that and expected it. I had a Friday wedding and knew that people would have work to contend with.

 

[KaeKae]

It's most important that the bride and groom think carefully about their guests and what will work best for those closest to them, and then, the majority of the rest of their guest list. DH's cousin had a Sunday evening wedding, in a remote location, with a mostly out of state guest list, and didn't send STD cards. Then, when they didn't come close to the minumum number of guests they had to cover for the catering company, they were just so surprised and frustrated. They, or rather their parents, also didn't like it when we left shortly after the cake was cut. We had a two hour drive, and we all had school/work the next day. It was a lovely wedding, the B&G had exactly what they wanted, minus a certain number of guests, we just couldn't stay to the very end.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I just remembered while reading this thread that our friends in Europe have a LOT more vacation days than most people do in the US! 24 to 35 days is about 5 to 7 weeks off! Most people in the US do not have that much vacation until they have worked 20 years or more! Most people in early years of working get maybe 2-3 weeks off besides holidays. So it can really cut into other vacation plans to have to use a day to go to a wedding.

 

[MissStepcut]

I just remembered while reading this thread that our friends in Europe have a LOT more vacation days than most people do in the US! 24 to 35 days is about 5 to 7 weeks off! Most people in the US do not have that much vacation until they have worked 20 years or more! Most people in early years of working get maybe 2-3 weeks off besides holidays. So it can really cut into other vacation plans to have to use a day to go to a wedding.

2-3 weeks? I wish! the most I've ever had was 10 days a year (which could roll over). But as others have said in this thread, just because I technically have them doesn't mean I would feel okay about using them. I would not use any in the first six months of a new job, for example.

 

[jennypink76]

I find Sunday weddings enough of a PITA let alone a Friday.

 

[alli_esq]

I don't think a couple should expect guests to bend over backwards to accommodate their schedule if they choose to get married during the week.

On the other hand, I don't think loved ones should expect couples to bend over backwards to accommodate their schedules, either.

You can never please everyone. If you love someone enough, you'll be at their wedding regardless of when and where it happens. If you don't, you'll find fault with any number of little details you choose to spend your time scrutinizing.

In the end, the couple marries surrounded by the people who care for them enough to make the time to attend their celebration. Win win, I say.

P.S. We had a Friday morning wedding, but it was a holiday, the 4th of July. I know some people hate holiday weddings, but I dislike Sunday weddings and wanted to get married in the morning, and as Jews, we would have had to start a Saturday wedding after sundown. A Friday holiday worked best for us, and everyone we loved was there. It was wonderful.

As usual, I agree with everything you've said, Haven...

We had a Friday evening wedding (ceremony was at 6:30) because we simply couldn't afford a Saturday evening wedding (literally it was almost 2x the price for every location, vendor, etc.) and we really wanted a nighttime wedding so everyone could boogie down. I understood completely that some people wouldn't be able to attend because it was on a Friday, but we were lucky that nearly everyone who was important to us did. DH's family all lives within 20-30 minutes of the venue, and most of my friends and family had to travel so I arranged for discounted hotel accommodations and transportation to and from the hotel. Mostly everyone left on Saturday morning after breakfast (which we provided) and then had their whole weekend to themselves.

I understand why some people find it inconvenient, but again, so long as you don't assume everyone can come, I don't see a problem with it. I had one complaint from a rude family member (I'd expect nothing less from her), but all my other guests were lovely and gracious and just seemed happy to be there. I don't regret having my wedding on a Friday--it ended up being a great late night party (including the after party at the hotel) and it wouldn't have been that way if it had been on a Sunday afternoon (which was my only other option based on my budget).

 

[blacksand]

We just ALMOST booked our wedding for a Friday night, and I'm kind of glad I didn't see this thread first! The prices were lower for Friday, but our main issue was that we had to give a minimum guarantee of 175 guests to reserve a Saturday night, and there was no way we could do that. So the only way we could book the location we wanted was if we did a Friday or Sunday. FSIL's wedding was on a Sunday night, and to be honest, it was really sad. Over half of the guests left about halfway through the reception. Hardly anyone drank alcohol, and the dance floor was pretty much dead. At one point the bride was doing the Electric Slide by herself, poor thing (I got up and joined her)! I think the bride and groom still had a good time overall, but they definitely advised us against choosing a Sunday, so Friday was our only option. We checked with our families and wedding party to clear the date, then went in to make the reservation for Friday. But when we explained why we were looking at Friday, our venue offered us the Friday minimum AND the Friday, off-season rate for Saturday night. So...win-win! Now we have a Saturday night wedding booked. Granted, it is around the holidays, so I know some people will have trouble making it anyway, but the truth is your wedding is always going to be inconvenient for some people. A lot of people work on Saturdays, anyway!

 

[rosetta]

2-3 weeks is very little holiday. No wonder people get annoyed using them up for weddings.

I get 7 weeks per year.

 

[Mrsacornblue]

I think that it's all about what is important to you and what you can make work for your life. For me, being a nurse, ANY day for a wedding could be a problem. I work every 3rd weekend and two Fridays a month. If I am scheduled to work, I have to find someone to switch with me and probably work another Friday/weekend day in return for them. If it is important to me, I make it work. I don't think anyone should take it personally if someone can't attend their wedding, regardless of the day it is on.