Wedding day schedules can be one of the most stressful things to put together, especially if you have never really done it before. When you attend weddings, the last thing on your mind is the timeline and you don’t really pay much attention to it. However, when it comes to your own wedding, it is a whole different ball game and one of the most important aspects of the day. A well put together wedding schedule will make sure that everything runs smoothly on your special day. It will also make sure that everyone (guests and service providers) will know what is expected of them and where they must be at what time, etc.
Keep in mind that a wedding timeline is only a basic guideline and we rarely find that a wedding runs on time. At times we have had to shorten the cocktail hour because of the extreme heat conditions. Usually a timeline is set up by the wedding coordinator or the photographer, but it is always great if you know how to put one together yourself. So below we have an example of a timeline and the time allocations for each activity on your wedding day.
Please note that this wedding starts at 16H00 for a Summer wedding, this timeline is also for wedding ceremonies and reception taking place at the same venue, but timestamps given can be adjusted to suit any timeline.
Photos courtesy of Kobus Tollig.
| Wedding Day Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| Time: | Program: | Notes: |
| 10:00-14:00 | Bride & Bridesmaids start getting ready | Hair & Makeup | Depending on how complex you want the hair and makeup to be, it could take up to one hour per person. Keep in mind though that hairstylists & makeup artists will work together; so while the curls are setting - makeup artists will start on makeup. It might be wise to let the bridesmaids' hair & makeup get done before yours. Also, remember to leave time for touch ups before you leave for the wedding ceremony. Grooms don't take as long as brides to get ready so depending on how long they need, they will only start getting ready later. |
| 12:00-14:00 | Most vendors arrive for setup | Depending on the packages you chose, most wedding photographers and wedding videographers will only stay for 8-10 hours. Keep in mind that even though photographers only need a few minutes to capture the make believe shots of you getting ready, videographers need more time - so they will be there earlier than the photographers in order to get what they need. (At 25 Weddings, we usually start at 12:00 and stay until 22:00). When the photographers and videographers aren't with you at 12:00 on the dot, chances are that they went to get decor shots first before coming over to you. |
| 14:00-15:00 (Bride) | Wedding party and family photos start | Individual bride portraits; Bride with her parents; Bride with her bridesmaids; etc. This part can last up to an hour. |
| 14:00-14:30 (Groom) | Wedding party and family photos start | The second photographer & videographer (second shooters) will be over with the groom capturing a few shots with them as well. The groom's photograph session only takes about 15-30min. Photos/video of the guys usually include the following: The guys having a social session before starting to get ready; suits & other details; groom doing the top 2 buttons of his shirt; putting on shoes; putting on the tie; putting on the jacket (best man usually helps here); any other detailed shots and lastly some individual & group shots of the guys. |
| 15:00-15:30 | Pre-wedding music starts to play and the guests starts arriving. (Invite time) | Make sure that there are some pre-wedding drinks available (bottled water or champaigne works well). The groom and his groomsmen (or the groom's parents) will be ready to greet the wedding guests. Guests can socialize now, or if you have a difficult crowd, I suggest you have them seated now. You don't want guests looking for seats at the last minute. Any form of wedding leaflets or program will be handed out at this point (This usually gets done by the groomsmen, coordinator or MC). Guests have to be seated at least 10 minutes before the ceremony starts. If you have a seating plan, it might be a good idea to have the groomsmen escort guests to their seats. This will prevent blocking in the aisle when uncle Frik can't decide whether he want to sit in the shade or in the sun. Keep in mind that with not having a seating plan, you might need a notice stating so, as older generations might get confused. |
| 16:00-16:40 | Ceremony | Usually ceremonies last anything from 30min-40min depending on you and the wedding officiant. Make sure that he/she knows if you are going to be late beforehand. Bare in mind that your wedding officiant might have another wedding to get to. It might be a good idea to note song requests for bridesmaids and bride walking down the aisle. |
| 16:40-16:55 | Register & Confetti (and greetings) | It is important to keep this time short as you do not want to run out of daylight time for photos.(Roughly 15min) This time will also depend on whether the register was done during the ceremony. At times couples only do the signing on the day,but have already legally gotten married so this will also affect this timestamp. Note song to play during this time. |
| 16:55-17:35 | Group photo of all guests and bridal couple(10min). Family photos(15-30min) | It is important that this happens as soon as possible after the confetti, as guests will start wandering off and you will have a problem finding them for group photos. It will be best if you pick a family member or friend that everyone tends to listen to in order to keep everyone together. Remember - the photographers don't know your entire family so they won't know if someone is missing or what kind of shots you have in mind. Making a list of the required groups are great and helps to keep things moving swifly. During this time the wedding DJ should already have music playing at the cocktail area. |
| 17:35-18:35 | Cocktail hour & Couple photoshoot | Guests enjoy snacks and drinks while the couple goes for photos. Depending on the packages you chose, most wedding photographers and wedding videographers will split their teams. The second shooters will capture the pre-drinks area and the main shooters will go on the photoshoot. Please keep in mind that videographers need more natural movement in their shots so they might ask for a few seconds to get some shots as well. The Videographer will also probably leave 5 minutes before you and the photographer to set up the sound recording for the speeches. |
| 18:35-18:45 | Guests make their way to the reception area. | This part can take a lot more time with larger groups. |
| 18:45-18:55 | The bridal couple makes their way back with the photographer (5min). Mc to start with the welcoming & house rules (Toilets, bar & wine services, smoking restrictions, etc.) | We usually recommend that the bridal couple take 5min for themselves away from the camera and guests as the day can get quite hectic and you will not be left alone for even a minute. So take a few minutes for a breather. During the last few house rules, the newlyweds must be ready to enter the reception venue. MC : (MC Name Here) |
| 18:55-19:00 | Newlyweds to be announced by the MC. Couple enters the reception area. | Song to play during entrance listed here. |
| 19:00-19:05 | MC to announce starters. Grace | Traditionally it would also be the time for the oldest person in the room to say grace. Grace to be said by : Name Here |
| 19:05-19:25 | Starters to be served | If starters is plated. Any dietary requirements should also be listed. DJ to play soft background music during this time (Music should be relaxing yet upbeat enough to create a party atmosphere, E.g. Jack Johnson -"Better together"). More often then not, photographers will get the food shots(Only when plated), but videographers do not film during his time. |
| Plates to be cleared (Not to be announced) | ||
| 19:25-19:30 | 5 minute bathroom/smoke break before speeches start. | Guests walk around a lot more than you think during speeches and this can become very distracting, so to prevent this, maybe work in a few mintes for a short break before the speeches start. |
| 19:30-19:40 | Serving of champagne for speeches | |
| 19:40-20:10 | Speeches to commence (+-5min per speech). Any games (E.g The shoe game) would usually be played after speeches or straight after mains. | MC to introduce speakers (And maybe tell a joke here and there). This timestamp could also change, as some speeches can last up to 3hours and others wil only be 5minutes. If your wedding has an open mic, the time frame on this formality does not apply to you. A lot of couples give the speakers a 2-5min timeframe,which works quite well,so maybe this could be something to consider if you want to keep speeches as short as possible. List speakers here (For example purposes, we will have only 5 speeches). We recommend that speeches take place either in intervalls (2 after starters & 3 after mains) or at least after meals so that photographers and videographers can get beautiful reaction shots from the bridal couple and their guests and not of people eating. Please also keep in mind that the main mic will pick up the background noise during recording). Speeches hardly ever run on time. MC to announce mains. |
| 20:10-20:55 | Mains are served (Buffet style) | Something to think about when supplying food for your suppliers (especially photographers and videographers who can't miss anything), they usually have to wait until last to receive their meals, which means that by the time they receive their meals, the next set of speeches or formalities have started.Which leaves them no time to eat. And by the time they get back to the table,the waiters have cleared the table. |
| Plates to be cleared (Not to be announced) | ||
| 20:55-21:00 | Cutting of the wedding cake | DJ to play: (enter song name here). After the cake is cut and you have tasted it,fed each other some cake or even smashed each other in the face with it, smile for a photo,share a kiss. The waiters to take the cake to the kitchen for the rest of cutting.Wedding cake to be set out at the tea & coffee station along with other buffet style desserts. MC to announce. |
| 21:00-21:05 | MC announces the couple's first dance as husband and wife and the couple takes to the dancefloor. | DJ to play first dance song. Some couples want to share this moment alone on the dancefloor, but others prefer when the Bridesmaids,groomsmen and the bridal couple's parents join them on the dancefloor. |
| 21:05-21:10 | MC announces the Father/Daughter dance & the Bride and her father take to the dancefloor. | DJ to play Father/Daughter dance song. During the father/daughter dance, the groom may want to share a dance with his mother as well. |
| 21:10-21:30 | General dancing music starts. | MC to announce Photobooth, videobooth or any other fun activities and that dancefloor is now officially open. DJ to kick off with a party starter. |
| 21:30-21:35 | Bouquet toss | MC to ask all the single/unmarried ladies to the floor. DJ to play chosen song (E.g: Beyonce -"Single Ladies") |
| 21:35-21:40 | Garter toss | MC to ask all the single/unmarried men to the floor. DJ to play chosen song (E.g: Baha Men - "Who let the dogs out"). It might be a good idea to have a chair ready for this one. |
| 21:40 | The couple who caught the garter & bouquet can share a dance (Optional) or the dancing can continue. | If the couple don't want to dance, they can pose for a picture together. |
| 22:00 | Photographer and Videographer leaves | Unless booked for overtime |
| 23:00 | Last rounds before the bar closes. | |
| 23:55 | DJ to play last song for the evening. | The last song would usually be the bridal couple's choice. |
| 00:00 | End of the day. All remaining guests to depart. | Aside: DJ and venue overtime decided beforehand or on the night. |
| ********************** | Remember, this is just a sample schedule. Your own might be completely different. | |
