Every couple wants to pull off a wedding that has all their guests talking about and reflecting on with great happiness. As a wedding venue Melbourne couples have loved for more than a century, Ascot House has seen a fair few surprises on wedding days. We think planning a few surprises is a great way to keep the day joyful, happy and interesting for guests. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Give Them a Vote

Include your wedding guests in the process by getting them to vote on a few key elements of the day. Either include a small card within your invite or set up an online RSVP/voting microsite and ask your guests to vote on anything from their preferred cake flavour, to the honeymoon destination or song you should celebrate your first dance to. Then, on the day there will be more anticipation, involvement and a nice surprise when guests find out which selection won out in the end.

Plan a Treasure Hunt

There are lots of wedding venues to choose from but of all the wedding receptions Melbourne has to offer, venues with a garden and outdoor area are perfect for weddings that include children. Kids can sometimes get bored at weddings, so perhaps pre-plan a fun treasure hunt for the children by hiding surprises (small toys, lolly bags etc.) in the garden? Just give the children a piece of paper with a few clues on it or a map, and they will be amused for hours.

Make it Personal

Instead of sending out generic thankyou cards after the event, perhaps enclose a photo of yourself and your guests with your thankyou note? This will involve ensuring you have a photo of yourself and every single guest at your wedding, so you’ll need to plan ahead with your photographer and dedicate the time to making sure this happens on the day, but will be worth it to have a special, personalised photographic memory of the day with all your guests. If you’re short on time, group families and friends together for a great result.

Entertain them With a Choreographed Dance

Gone are the days when newlyweds simply shuffled awkwardly around the dancefloor for their first dance. YouTube is full of viral videos of couples who have wowed their guests with a special choreographed dance. Whether you like hip-hop, a classical waltz or something straight from a romantic movie – it’s worth putting in the effort to perform an entertaining dance no one will ever forget. You can even get the whole bridal party involved if they’re keen.

Make them Laugh

Hiring a professional stand-up comedian as your MC is a great way to keep people laughing and inject some serious fun into your wedding reception.

Break with Tradition

It’s your big day, so you shouldn’t be afraid to play around with key elements of the day. There are no rules that you need to abide by, so mix things up by trying a morning ceremony with a lunch instead of dinner. If you want to make a weekend of it, try hiring a venue for the whole weekend and including a decadent recovery breakfast or brunch the day after the wedding ceremony, perfect for people to attend after the wedding (or for friends who couldn’t make the actual wedding due to conflicting schedules). These days, there’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to celebrate your union. Make it as big or small, long or short, formal or informal as you like. It’s your day, do it your way!

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Talk to the friendly, helpful team at Ascot House about your upcoming wedding.

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