How To Handle Unwanted Guests At Your Wedding.

When it comes to planning your wedding, one of the biggest bone of contentions is around Wedding guests and who to invite. The good news is that typically this isn’t due to the couple. The bad news is it’s usually an outside influence (mother in law anyone?!). Now I can’t battle that fight for you, but even if you do manage to win, perhaps you’re still concerned that an uninvited wedding guest may show up.

Here are 6 ways in which you can help mitigate any unwanted guests

Clear communication from the outset:

Make it clear who is invited by specifying names on the invitations, and if you don’t know the names of all your guests (perhaps it’s a plus 1 or you really just don’t know your own family) simply list plus x amount of guests . Additionally, make sure you use RSVP cards to confirm the names of those who are attending.

Bonus tip: To help with this, you can simply put , we have reserved X amount of seats in your name

Assign a gatekeeper:

Designate, a trusted friend, a member of the bridal party or a family member as a gatekeeper to manage the guestlist. This person so responsibility would be to discreetly handle any uninvited guests. You should turn up on your wedding day a bonus if you have a wedding coordinator it is typically their job to handle this scenario

Security:

if this is a huge concern of you, and you don’t wish to put this responsibility onto a family member or a friend consider hiring security personnel de monitor the event naturally they are trained and can discreetly handle any gate, crashes or disruptive guests. Even their presence can provide peace of mind , and insures the safety of everyone in attendance

Watch your Socials:

Be very careful what you write and say on all of your social media platform. This includes such things as the date and the venue and potentially even your suppliers may give out to as much information as is required.

Know your numbers:

When it comes to your guest list, knowing your numbers is key. The exact numbers need to be known for various reasons but typically for catering. Using this number means that you can only layout the specific amount of chairs required for not only the ceremony if possible. Also the wedding breakfast, that way should an uninvited guest turn up during the day there will be no physical placement for them Rendering them to feel awkward and hopefully discreetly disappear

Opportunists:

This doesn’t directly relate to unrelated guests and dealing with them. This is just a general note. Most couples tend to place their card and present table near the entrance to the Welling venue. However, this is a prime spot for opportunists to come through the doors and take your wedding gifts to help mitigate this I would highly recommend that you have a family member, a member of the bridal party, a close friend or even the wedding coordinator regularly. Check the table and move any gifts or cards into a secure location