Wedding welcome party invitations and wording
Written by the Wedvite founders
A welcome party invitation can go two ways: as an event on your main wedding invitation's schedule, so every guest sees it, or as its own link sent only to the people invited. Either way, give the time, the place, the dress code and whether food is served. Five wordings to copy are below.
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How the welcome party fits in
A row on the wedding schedule
Add the welcome party above the ceremony with its own time and a line about food or dress, and every guest sees the whole weekend.
See it →Its own map
Add the bar, terrace or beach as a separate location with a Google Maps button, apart from the wedding venue.
See it →A separate link when the list differs
Replies on one invitation come back on one form. If the party needs its own headcount, send it as its own invitation with its own RSVP.
A design for warm evenings
Palma's palms and sunset colours suit a beach or garden welcome; open the live example to see how a schedule reads.
See it →Should the welcome party be on the wedding invitation or separate?
Put it on the main invitation when everyone is invited. It then sits on the schedule as the first event of the weekend, with its own time and place, and guests find it on the same link as the ceremony. Nobody keeps track of two invitations, and if the time changes you edit one page. This suits destination weddings, where most guests arrive the day before.
Send it separately when the list is different: only out-of-town guests, only family, or a party hosted by someone else. A separate invitation has its own RSVP, so you get a clean headcount for the restaurant, and guests who are not invited never see it. It is a second purchase: a free link lets up to 10 people open it, but you read their replies only after you publish.
What should a welcome party invitation say?
Say what kind of evening it is. Guests want to know whether to eat beforehand, what to wear and how late it runs, and those three answers matter more than the welcome line. Keep the tone lighter than the wedding wording: this is the night people arrive, catch up with old friends and meet each other's families. Any of the five wordings below works as a schedule row or as the opening of its own invitation.
Add the dress code on its own line even when it is casual, because guests travelling light need to know whether their wedding outfit is the only smart thing to pack. If children are welcome at the party but not at the wedding, or the reverse, say so here instead of leaving it for guests to discover in the RSVP.
- ✦“Before the big day, come and say hello. Welcome drinks on [day] from [time] at [place]. Casual dress, light bites.”
- ✦“You've travelled a long way, so the first round is on us. Join us at [place] on [day], from [time].”
- ✦“[Names] invite you to a welcome dinner on the eve of their wedding. [Day], [time], [place]. Dinner served; dress relaxed.”
- ✦“Arriving on [day]? Meet everyone at our welcome party on the terrace at [place] from [time] until late.”
- ✦“Start the weekend with us: sunset drinks at [place], [day] from [time]. Bring your sandals.”
Who hosts a welcome party, and who is invited?
There is no fixed rule. The couple or one of the families usually hosts, but friends, grandparents or the wedding party sometimes do. Name the hosts on the invitation if they are not the couple, so guests know whom to thank. If guests are expected to buy their own drinks, say “cash bar” plainly; that is kinder than a surprise at the end of the night.
A welcome party is not the same as a rehearsal dinner. The rehearsal dinner is usually for the wedding party and close family after the rehearsal, while a welcome party is for every guest who has arrived. Many destination weekends have both: a small dinner first, then everyone gathers for the larger welcome drinks later in the evening. If you hold both, list them as two rows so guests can see which one is theirs.
The questions everyone asks.
Is a welcome party the same as a rehearsal dinner?+
When should welcome party invitations go out?+
Can we add the welcome party after the wedding invitation has gone out?+
How much does a separate welcome party invitation cost?+
What should guests wear to a welcome party?+
One link. Every guest.
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