Head vs sweetheart vs hybrid table?

Hmmmmm...I would say the big table with everyone. That way their spouses are included.

I really recommend the sweetheart table. You have very little alone time on your wedding day. Having a spot to run away to for a few seconds and taking a few bites of food before going back to mingling/dancing is a lifesaver. Plus, people almost always prefer sitting with their significant others and having everyone at 1 table can be very overwhelming. No one would really be able to talk anyway.

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This.

Trust me, having just the two of us was a blessing. EVERYONE came up to us, anyway! Do you know how many pictures we have of a friend of an aunt being like, "gotta take a picture with the couple!"??

But it was a small place of calm in a busy day, and we could take a few seconds to just... be.

We had 9 people in our BP, and many of them had SOs. It was easier to scatter them around with our other friends and family, than have to deal with one big table.

This is exactly why we did a sweetheart table! We felt it wouldn’t have been fair to separate the wedding party from their spouses and significant others and one giant table wasn’t possible with our venue. We ended up loving the sweetheart table!

Our whole wedding party have spouses and kids, so we didn't want to separate families for the reception. We appreciate their contribution to our day so much, and want them to be able to celebrate with their families. Plus we also want a little table of our own, to have dinner together.

Two tables side by side, not pushed together, with Wedding Party and SO if fine. If po

Sorry. If possible, seat fewer than the maximum number at each table. At the end of the meal, have at least 2, or 2 per table, extra chairs pulled up. That way people can come to see you two, settle a few minutes, then go dance, without repeatedly taking the places where WP are while they are dancing, or standing half behind you to chat. It gives you one of the advantages of the sweetheart table, the ability to chat with those stopping by, without disrupting WP.
A very classy Maitre D taught me that conversation chairs within reach of every table were the gold standard in banquet dinners. Better to have an extra table, so you have extra space, and 10 or more available empty chairs nearby, as part of your basis set up. It not only makes it more comfortable than having people come back from the dance floor to find their seat taken. But also makes it easier for waitstaff to see people signalling for a drink or whatever, and for people carrying trays, if fewer people are standing near tables. Pull up a chair, and talk. And extra chairs, against pillars or the wall or service islands, minimize people dragging chairs around. With all WP and SO at one big or 2 smaller tables, it makes it less of a clique, more approachable for others to stop and chat.

Everything I've read, past brides have said a sweetheart table is the only way to go. It ensures that your attendants are seated with their dates and people they know and not on display..plus making sure the couple gets to eat and soak in the moment.

When we first started planning, I wanted to do a king's table with us + wedding party + their spouses.

But the more I thought about it, the more appealing a sweetheart table seemed (and it ended up working out particularly well with COVID). After experiencing it, I wholeheartedly recommend sweetheart tables now.

They can be decorated beautifully and give you and your spouse a space to catch your breath and talk to each other. You will still be mingling with people and having guests coming up to you - so you won't miss out on any fun!

View Quoted Comment The more I think about it I think I’m leaning more towards the sweetheart table now as well and I’m hoping over the next year I can convince my FH to “come up with the idea” himself so he will be for it hahaha

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Haha! My husband assumed we were going to do a traditional head or king's table because he had never even heard of a sweetheart setup. The more we talked about it, the more it became a no-brainer.

Hopefully he'll have a lightbulb moment!

View Quoted Comment Haha that’s exactly how I got him on board with spending more on floral haha! His thinking is that’s the way to really elevate the space but little does he know it’s also the decor and other things we’ll have to rent hehe

We had 10 total wedding party members and of those members, 6 of them had significant others. so we ended up just splitting them into two tables so they can sit with their significant others. we sat with them. we didn't want a sweetheart table.