Rehearsal dinner for 3pm rehearsal?

People will expect a meal after attending your rehearsal. Is there any way you can push the rehearsal back? It’s not necessary to have it at the same time as the ceremony and that’s really inconvenient for your attendants if it’s on a week day.

As I said, the wedding is on the beach. The sun goes down early and there are no lights on the beach due to the turtle nests. Given how far we live from the beach, there’s no way my local wedding party members will be able to work a full day that day anyway. They knew where the wedding was (more or less) when they agreed to be in the wedding party. I have to assume that if getting time off was expected to be a problem they would have declined.

I would ask your BP I think a early dinner will be ok. It may be hard for them to get off of work if it is local.

If you are doing a rehearsal you should something for the group. Depending on your budget you can do a dinner at local restaurant or just get pizzas delivered to the venue. Anything can work

I think it's a good idea you are doing it at the same time. That's what I did so that I could expect how the weather would be and what not (not that it can't change though) but hmm maybe can you do some sorta little cocktail hour aha

I don’t think 4pm is too early for dinner (although I’m always hungry so I’d never say no to dinner lol). Or you can start out with drinks/apps before dinner. We’re doing a 3pm rehearsal also, and our dinner is at 6:30. We invited out of town guests to the dinner too so between about 4-6:30 that’ll give us time to set things up where the dinner will be, bridal party can check into their rooms, and then I’m hoping to be able to change/touch up my makeup real quick.

I think that's fine. So rehearsal should take maybe 30-45 minutes then you could have it at a restaurant or somewhere you rent out. By the time you travel to the location since you said the beach isn't close but I wouldn't pick something too far! You don't have to eat right away. You could have drinks/apps to start then have dinner at 5-5:30pm. That's fine.

View Quoted Comment I think it’s a good idea too. We’ll know how the light hits, where we can go that’s out of the line of people walking the beach, etc. as for a cocktail hour...we’re having a dry wedding. Wouldn’t it be weird to serve/pay for alcohol the night before (ok, for my Dad to pay as he’s covering the rehearsal dinner)? I’m not sure drinks & apps would actually be cheaper given a few heavy drinkers who will be there. Dad’s on a budget. A tight one. He has $X to spend on the RD and not a penny more.

View Quoted Comment All out OOTers are coming by Thursday at the latest for our Saturday wedding, so one will be checking in anywhere. A break like that would likely to either boredom or trouble given the tenuous peace between some of the guests (looking at you, mom & dad). So I think straight to dinner will serve us best.

View Quoted Comment We’re thinking restaurant right now. Will likely do something close to the beach as different people are staying different directions away from the beach. And like I said above, my Dad is insisting on paying but has pretty much a ‘dinner only’ budget.

Our rehearsal is at 9:30 AM on Friday morning, we are releasing everyone to do their own thing then having our rehearsal dinner at 5:00 PM!