Elopement and Party

I think it would depend on the style of party on if it would be more cost effective. Usually the bulk of the wedding cost is the reception.


We're also eloping October of '23! We're going to have a dinner party after we get back but it's just going to be a low-key dinner party. Not a big reception!

We were going to do this after COVID made us change our original plans. However, we decided to cancel the reception because we’d rather pay off the rest of our debts instead of adding more. Remember, the party is typically the most expensive part of a wedding. If you want to do it to have more time to save, go for it, but I don’t think it will end up saving you more money if that’s why you’re thinking of doing it.

Very recently we canceled everything and decided to elope in Hawaii on Halloween, since our honeymoon is already booked there. We plan to have a 1st anniversary celebration next year with family and friends (given our elopement location and date, I’m thinking of having a Hawaiian Luau themed celebration 🤔) But anyway…. Lol


As for costs, it depends on what type of “party“ you plan to have afterward. If you were going to make it an exact replica of a wedding reception, then it’s going to cost more. In our case, we used to host multiple parties per year before Covid. We have a very large backyard and usually hire a professional company to put up a large tent and flooring. Depending on the party, we either hire a DJ or simply play music through speakers. We always serve food, drinks/alcohol and desserts and rent decor items. That costs much less than a typical wedding reception (because we don’t have major catering, venue fees, wedding cake, plated meals, wedding planner, printed/mailed invitations, etc.). So it really depends on how far you want to go with your party and what you want to spend.