Hi ESB,
Big fan of your blog. I definitely knew I'd be writing in at some point so I'm not even going to try to play it cool.
I am recently engaged and running into a little logistical problem. I am from a beautiful lake area in Upstate NY and would really like to be married up there. Unfortunately, it is an HOUR away from the nearest church that we can use, for religious reasons. The church is non-negotiable.
My thought, and the expense doesn't seem to be an issue, is that we would provide guests with a party bus to take them to the church from a hotel in my town, and then back from the church to the reception area, where cocktail hour would immediately start when they arrived. The party bus would serve beer/wine and have music for the ride up. I think we'd wind up renting two large buses and just cart everyone around that way. I'm wondering if you think that would be a huge pain to our guests!!
We love the church, it's beautiful, and we love our venue.... I've looked so hard already to try to find a place in between the two as a venue but they are all either booked or prohibitively expensive --- plus, we'd still be providing the buses the ride would just be a bit shorter. I am hoping you'll agree with me on this one, that a party bus equipped with alcohol and our awesome friends and family for an hour long ride will not be a big damper on the day, but give it to me straight... I really want everyone to have a great time.
Thanks for any help!!
-The Traveling Bride
*****
Don't assume that all of your guests will be willing/able to drink beer and wine. You really ought to have some whiskey on hand.
Photo by Grant Harder via Katey Dutton via Unruly Things
Can't you just build a church on your property for your wedding like Russell Crowe did? Is that not an option?
ReplyDeleteKidding!
An hour is a really long time to spend on a bus, with or without alcohol. AND an hour on a bus after a wedding sounds like a horrible way to end the night.
ReplyDeleteI think you could plan for buses but I bet 50% of the folks will end up driving their cars.
esb's comment is killing me. and it's so true.
ReplyDeletealso, the party bus idea is fabulous and perfect. having been to 5 weddings this year, with one more to go, i consider myself a bit of an expert wedding guest. i wouldn't just be okay with a party bus, i would be totally psyched about it.
(@BR -- it sounds like it wouldn't end the night, it would get people to where they need to be in order to end the night someplace next to their hotels.)
We had a party bus (40 mins) for our guests from hotel to our joint ceremony/reception venue and back again.
ReplyDeleteI think they all appreciated it (ie no-one bitched about it to our faces) and we only heard tales of the sing song entertainment that was a combination of irish rebel songs and disney hits all the way back.
Having been to 6 weddings where we had to drive for between 20mins to 90mins from church to venue I would've loved a party bus especially an alcohol laden one.
i think a booze bus is a terrific idea as long as it 1) has a bathroom 2) has snacks (and not just goldfish crackers). if your friends are like me, they will have to pee after one beer and will be STARVING. some cheese cubes, apple slices, and pretzels ought to do the trick -- you don't want people getting sloppy before they get to the reception, right ?
ReplyDeleteincidentally, if i was one of your guests, i would be eternally grateful that you were taking care of the transportation for me.
hm. maybe the bathroom is OTT. its just that i have a granny bladder and the thought of booze and no bathroom makes me nervous.
ReplyDeletebest wishes !
Sounds like a bast. Can I come to your wedding?
ReplyDeleteI went to a wedding a few weeks ago with a shuttle to take us from the hotel to the reception and back. It was super convenient for those of us without cars in town, and everyone could take full advantage of the open bar.
ReplyDeleteHowever, we were not warned that it would be a 45 minute ride to the reception, something I would have liked to know as I would have grabbed a snack or stopped at the bathroom before leaving.
I think it sounds like an awesome idea. I would second the snacks, and then just start spreading the word that the trip is a little long, so people can do what Marie suggested: pee and prepare.
ReplyDeletei humbly submit that "pee and prepare" is the new "black tie optional."
ReplyDeleteWould the bus serve alcohol both ways? Or just on the way back to the reception? I have some crazy party friends, and I wouldn't want them to be too drunk for the church part of the wedding....
ReplyDeleteOther than that, I think its a great idea.
An hour-long bus ride sounds like it would be annoying or antsy for some folks. But almost every wedding I've been to has had some sort of annoying logistical plan. I think its okay and to be expected, unless you truly would rather put your guests small comforts above all else. I think you should provide snacks, book buses with bathrooms, and go for it. It could be tons of fun.
ReplyDeleteif it's an hour and there's alcohol: no pain. plus: you can decorate the bus ;)
ReplyDeletei went along the whole croatian coast with a yellow vw bus like the one in the picture. greatest vacation ever. will definitely do that again for honeymoon.
My sister did this for her wedding for the exact same reason and it was a hit. Everyone was happy as clams in saltwater.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget about having some food on there. Shoot, screw the booze (not really), I'd want bacon wrapped, cream cheese stuffed dates to be drowned down by some gin.
ReplyDeleteParty buses are amazing and way more fun the average passenger van. Ours took us to a bar that happened to be hosting a Spanish drag show and when "Selena" serenaded us, I knew it would be my favorite moment of the night.
ReplyDeletewe got married and had our reception at the same location, but hired a party bus because the drive to the place was terrifying (lots of cliffs and sharp turns). my friends and family tend to be heavy drinkers and i wasn't comfortable with them driving on that road at night, especially without street lights. anyway, the bus picked up guests from a local hotel and it was about a 40 minute drive. about half of our guests used the service and LOVED it. just think of it as a great way for them to all meet each other before the wedding. by the time they get there, everyone will be ready to PARTY.
ReplyDeleteWhiskey. Pee and prepare.
ReplyDeleteDo it.
"pee and prepare" I LOVE IT ! for me that would involve a snicker's bar and some of those toast-chee crackers stuffed into my purse.
ReplyDeleteone party bus horror story -- Was just at a wedding that involved a change of location. We all took a party bus from venue A to venue B ... a trip that should have taken 40 minutes. Due to an accident on the road, the ride was 3 hours ! And one of the buses had no AC (on one of those unseasonable sweltering days)!!!!! AAAAAAH ! NIGHTMARE.
I still vote that you get the party bus, though.
i think it is a good idea. we got married in a church that was no where near our venue... granted, our ceremony was TINY. but we rented a trolly to take folks from the hotel to the church and from the church to the reception. it worked out great, and everyone really loved it.
ReplyDeleteon a side note, i rebuilt a VW engine on a bus that is eerily similar to that one with my HS boyfriend. then we drove it to colorado.
@Naurnie EXCUSE ME?
ReplyDeleteYup. It's true. I'll try to find pics.
ReplyDeleteI went to a wedding once where there was a long ride from the hotels to the wedding/reception on a rented bus (with no booze that I remember). There were some folks who drove (I assumed they lived in the area - I was an out-of-state guest).
ReplyDeleteAll the waiting, parked outside the hotel while people showed up to the bus was a bit annoying - booze may have helped. I think on the way there I noted how long the ride felt.
But, actually, on the way back to the hotel it was pretty pleasant. Everyone was a bit drunk and chilled out. It didn't seem nearly as long of a ride back.
Can a person cleverer with fonts 'n' shit than me make a Pee and Prepare sign to once and for all replace Keep Calm and Carry On posters?
ReplyDeleteI went to an Austin wedding with about a 45 min ride to/from the location on a party bus w/o any alcohol served onboard and it was nice to 1. not have to drive ourselves and 2. get to hang with mutual friends prior to the wedding. The ride back was filled with singing and general intoxicated greatness. I would do it for my wedding in a heartbeat.
ReplyDelete@amy I guess my point is more about the reception being an hour from the church. I presume that this means either the church and/or the venue are not near where people could be staying. Therefore that's a lot of travelling.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jessica that every wedding has some kind of annoying lag or logistical pain in the ass but I think that if you want to be a cool bride think of your guests and plan something without these!
No doubt a party bus is a fun idea, it's the travel that bugs me.
I've been to two weddings with shuttles, neither with alcohol, and I didn't mind the shuttling around as a guest. One ride was far from the church, but I'm inclined to agree with BR.
ReplyDeleteYou should really consider how you can simplify this plan for your sake. This sounds like a production, and one thing I've learned from planning a wedding is that you never *have* to have the production. You just convince yourself or allow others to convince you that you *have* to do X or ELSE! What's truly important to you and your fiance about getting married (note: not the wedding)? If what's vitally important to you involves an hour commute then so be it, but usually the logistics are just details that could be changed and you'd still have gotten married and been utterly happy to be married.
Gee, I hope the hour long bus ride my guests have to the CEREMONY (nearest town with Hotels is 30 minutes by car, without factoring in bus and slow guests) isn't too bad.
ReplyDeleteOn the up side, we've hired school buses. Who doesn't love schoool buses.
Hello -- It is me, the Traveling Bride...
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for posting this and everyone for making me feel 100x better about the party bus. I guess for everyone who said it's not 'necessary' that's probably true-- but I don't mind planning it and the boozehounds will hopefully enjoy the hour-long head start on the way to the reception?? That's the general vibe I'm getting, which makes me so happy!! We actually did a little run through and it's just under 40 minutes so it isn't as long of a drive as I was thinking anyway... But I didn't think about the whole waiting-for-the-bus-to-leave or parking-and-getting-off part so there are a few extra minutes there.
Everyone will be staying suuuper close to the reception so no worries once we get 'em there. And yes, yes we're talking an enormously long bus with a bathroom so we'll have to decorate and FOOD, we'll have to get food... And I guess a full bar will have to fit. That knot in my stomach has officially disappeared.
Whiskey, Pee, Prepare... XO!
Party bus is a great idea! Especially if it's a classy bus. Is that possible? I went to a lavish dinner party for work last year that was held at a restaurant maybe thirty minutes away, and we were all picked up by a vintagey very cute trolley car. It was loaded with champagne and beer and we had a blast! The dinner was amazing but the trolley ride really sticks out in my mind as probably the most fun part of the night. No one should have a problem with a booze loaded free ride.
ReplyDeletegreat idea! sounds like fun! i would suggest at least bottled water for people on the way down to the church. i hate being in a vehicle with no option to stop for a drink! best of luck :)
ReplyDeleteAmazing how simple it can be to communicate with people and have them understand a certain topic, you made my day.
ReplyDelete