How JLE Creates a Memorable Wedding Guest Experience

With flowers, décor rentals, attire, and more to consider, many couples unintentionally overlook the wedding guest experience. But wowing your guests and thoughtfully considering their comfort is a surefire way to plan a memorable wedding day!

Think about it: after you’ve eaten the last slice of cake and the flowers have wilted, the memories and photographs from your special day are your most precious keepsakes. Wouldn’t it be amazing to still hear from your guests in five or ten years how much fun they had celebrating your marriage? Or to look back at photos and notice how everyone was smiling, laughing, and dancing?

At Julian Leaver Events, we believe in the power of the wedding guest experience. And the only way to ensure a seamless day of celebrating? Intentional wedding planning. Join us as we dive into how JLE cultivates memorable experiences at destination weddings near and far.

Creating a Memorable Wedding Guest Experience

When we talk about the guest experience, we’re talking about those aspects of the wedding day that most couples don’t think about. But as professional planners with 30+ years of combined events experience, we ARE thinking about them! 

For example, many guests experience friction during transitions, such as transportation from the ceremony venue to the reception venue. So, we want to carefully consider what it looks like for guests to get from one space to another, whether your events are at separate venues or the same venue (which poses different challenges, especially if you’re reusing a space). 

Or, if your guests are traveling from out of town, what does their arrival at their hotel look like? We want to ensure they feel welcomed from the get-go and that this portion of their experience is just as prioritized as the wedding day. This behind-the-scenes work is a considerable part of the value JLE brings to our weddings and something our clients have come to appreciate.

Re-Thinking Trends and Transitions

Intentional layout design is crucial to ensuring a seamless guest experience. For example, it’s become popular to place an escort card wall right at the entry to the reception. However, this ultimately creates a bottleneck, resulting in a long line waiting to enter the event. So, while the wall might be gorgeous, only a few guests even notice it—the rest are too annoyed when they finally reach the entrance to pay it any attention!

For a more efficient (and much more enjoyable) transition, we love to have the guests led by the DJ or band into the space. We’ll pass out fun beverages or an interactive prop like light-up tambourines. And if your ceremony and reception are in different venues, we’ll have transportation coordinators ready to ensure your guests’ travel from point A to point B is smooth and seamless. If it’s a long ride, we’ll have water and champagne available. 

Coordinating a Mexico City Wedding

Recently, we coordinated transportation for a destination wedding in Mexico City. This wedding was massive, so we needed three hotels and over 30 shuttles. That meant stationing a bilingual coordinator at each hotel who could coordinate with the shuttle drivers to get everyone where they needed to go.

The best compliment we received that day was from the bride’s parents, remarking that the day had gone so smoothly. It was clear they expected the transportation aspect to be a mess! But we coordinated every detail and were able to reduce everyone’s stress. 

Leveraging Our Catering Background

Besides transitions, the food and beverages are another critical aspect of the wedding guest experience. At JLE, our lead planners both have a catering background, and we bring this experience into our current work. We understand what our clients expect and what their guests will expect.

For staffing, it’s best to plan for one bartender per 50 people and one server per 10 people. Our catering background helps us communicate clearly with everyone preparing and serving the food. We prep everyone well so that the experience exceeds our client’s expectations! 

Additionally, we do a lot on the backend with diagramming to ensure dietary information for each guest is clearly outlined, in addition to seating. Again, layouts are crucial! Our highest compliment comes when a venue manager says we’re the most organized planning team they’ve ever worked with—we know what it’s like to be in their shoes.

Ultimately, creating a memorable wedding guest experience comes down to foreseeing needs and finding creative solutions. By teaming up with an intentional wedding planning team (like JLE!), you can celebrate your love and treat your guests to an incredible experience. If you’re interested in working with us, reach out. We’d love to hear all about the day you envision!