Who to invite to the rehearsal dinner?

Recently I was asked by a client if 100 people was too many to invite to the rehearsal dinner. If you have the space to host 100 guests, then go for it. But there is certainly no need to invite that many. The people that should be invited to the rehearsal dinner are the people invited to the rehearsal. That includes the following:

• Bride

• Groom

• Parents of bride

• Parents of groom

• Step parents (if applicable)

• Best Man

• Maid/Matron of Honor

• Groomsmen

• Bridesmaids

• Flower girl(s)

• Ring bearer(s)

• Readers

• Ushers

• Guest book attendant

• Officiant

Spouses of the above should also be invited as well as parents of the flower girl and ring bearer. Also any siblings of the bride and groom should be invited.

Optional invitees are dates of the above, grandparents, and out of town guests.

If you're worried about what your out of town guests will do then provide them with gift bags in their guest rooms. I'll be discussing ideas for the gift bags in a future blog post, but one thing to include would be a list of local restaurants and things to do. This will keep them occupied while you are having the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.

Happy planning!