The Wedding Dates Online Editor decided to ask a wedding coordinator a few honest questions. The answers provide you with some insightful answers as to what happens behind the scenes on your big day. Anne Starling from Bridge House Hotel decided to give us an ear. Read carefully, take note and please don’t ask for those outlandish things!
What things do couples do that really frustrate wedding planners and coordinators?
If the bride and groom request anything special that is outlandish or really difficult to achieve. I do my very best to accommodate them but couples also need to be reasonable. We work within time and budget constraints that are not always obvious to them.
What questions should couples be asking their venue?
- Standard of food
- Cleanliness of the hotel
- Attitude towards children
- How flexible the wedding venue is to the bride and groom’s requirements
- What exactly do all packages include and exclude
What happens behind the scenes that couples seldom hear or know of ?
- Table planning
- Menu planning
- Room set up
- Orders of: Chair Covers, Balloons, Piper etc
- Waiter and other staff planning
What does it take to make a wedding happen i.e. walk through the actual wedding day, assuming that the wedding reception will start at 5pm?
- Set up starts at 11am depending on the number attending the wedding. The full set up of the room can take up to 5 hours including table set up.
- The red carpet and champagne serving area are set up.
- Tea and coffee stations are set up in lobby areas.
- The bride and groom arrive at approximately 5pm.
- The co-ordinator meets the bridal party on their arrival with champagne and the piper is also there to welcome them.
- A champagne reception is enjoyed before couple is introduced to the guests.
- The bridal party is then piped from the door to the main staircase where they may take photographs.
- The bride and groom are taken to the function room.
- A photograph of the cake is taken at this stage.
- Canapés are served on the stairs with sparklers while the bride and groom pose for photos.
- The bride and groom arrive back in the lobby area to meet guests for approx 30 minutes.
- The bell is rung and guests make their way to the function room and take their seats at their tables, while the bride and groom are taken to the bridal suite.
- All orders are taken before the bride and groom enter the room.
- The wedding co-ordinator then goes up to bridal suite and brings the couple down, making sure everything is in order.
- The bride and groom are welcomed with a piper and champagne.
- The speeches happen before or after the meal.
- Dinner is served at approximately 6pm (it is important that a Manager should be present in the room throughout the night).
- Meal is finished at approximately 9pm including clean up.
- Guests mingle while the band sets up for the night.
What are the things that stress wedding planners out the most?
People who are out smoking when you are trying to get the food out as well as the noise level of bands at times.
These are honest answers. Naturally your wedding day will run according to the way you plan it but keeping this outline as well as the necessary work being done behind the scenes in mind, you ensure that you have a stress free wedding day ahead of you!
{This article is written by Anne Starling, the wedding co-ordinator for Bridge House Hotel. Image by David Joyce.}
