Anyone else traveling "back home" for their wedding? Need Bridal Shower advice.

I got married in the city where I currently live, but my MOH hosted a bridal shower for me in the city where I grew up (2.5 hour flight). I flew Southwest so I could check an extra bag for free to transport gifts and it all worked out. Guests knew that I was flying in and anyone who bought super heavy gifts mailed them to me prior to the shower. When I opened gifts at the shower, I acknowledged the couple that were mailed to me.

I believe there were 15 guests at my shower, and it was a lovely number of people to have. It may be a personal preference, but I would have been completely overwhelmed with a shower with 50 guests! By 'worth the cost,' are you referring to travel? Usually the host finances the shower. In my case, this shower was held at the home of a family friend.

I think 50 people is way too many for a shower, personally. I would just decline since it seems to be a hassle for travel and physical gifts are the whole point of a shower.

"I'm not really sure what to do. Are bridal showers really even worth the cost, if you have less than 50 people attending?"

I'm confused by this question. Are you asking if will you get enough $$ worth of gifts to cover the travel costs? Traveling to where your wedding and any extra parties are should be a part of your overall wedding budget. If you can't afford it, then you will need to adjust your plans and/or your budget.

Lots of people have moved far from their childhood home but choose to have their weddings "back home", so concerns about getting gifts home is a common. It's fairly reasonable to ship things UPS or FedEx Ground, so that's what I would do. Also, bring an extra suitcase or two and just be prepared to pay the fee to check extra luggage. You'll be able to bring a lot home with you that way.

It's also fine to not have a shower, if you don't want one or feel like it will be too much hassle.

Can you have a virtual shower? That may be the best way to go about it and not have to worry about lugging the gifts back and forth. Either way, I’d try to do it. If you have it in-person, maybe people could print a photo of the gift and mail it to your place? You could do it the same weekend as your friends wedding to save a trip - obviously some people couldn’t join but if you did it on Sunday could work out perfectly? I agree traveling on a plane with gifts is not the move.

Showers don't cost you anything financially, besides the trip there. I think if someone is willing to take their time and finances to plan a shower for you, then it is definitely worth it. As far as getting the gifts home, I am assuming you will be driving from TN to MA? If so, just wait and bring the gift home with you when you return home. You could also have them shipped UPS or FedEx.

Thank you all for your comments... I appreciate it! I clearly have a lot to think about haha