How much time do we need?

Question

We are having the reception at Sheraton hotel in Stamford, CT at 11:30am. How soon should we plan to leave the reception to catch the flight at LGA at 5:45pm in the same day? How long should the "normal" reception last? Thank you! Tina

Answer 1

I would leave my reception no later than three. I just checked mapquest and it says it takes about 40 minutes to get from Stamford to La Guardia. If the car is loaded before the reception starts and you factor in all the hugging and good-bye time that would give you about 2 and half hours to get to NY, get checked in and potentially get upgraded since you are newlyweds. Depending on the time of the year you are leaving or day of the week I might bump it up to 2:30 to account for traffic or a backlog at the airport.

Answer 2

Flight leaves at 5:45... be there 2 hours before flight at such a busy airport.... so arrive at airport by 3:45. How long does it take to drive to the airport from the hotel? Let's guess an hour ... so leave the reception at 2:45. Also figure in time to change your clothes out of your wedding dress. So exit the reception to change at 2:15. But then you'll need to make your grand exit and people will want to wish you well on your way out. So give yourself another 15-30 minutes for the hoopla. That puts you leave your reception no later than 1:45.

Will your reception start exactly on time? This means that your photographer can't dilly dally over photos after the ceremony at all... make sure everyone stays on a strict schedule. Usually when people start a reception at a specific time, it doesn't start at that exact time. So figure you'll get things underway by noon. That gives you LESS than 2 hours at your own reception. Is that enough time to eat, dance, cut the cake, throw the bouquet AND greet all your guests and thank them for attending (you should visit every single table and say hello to your guests).

Honestly, I think you need to look into pushing your flight back a couple hours. Is there at flight around 8pm?

Normally a reception runs 4 to 6 hours. I'm afraid if you're only at your reception for 1 hour 45 minutes your guests will feel like they aren't important enough for you to bother sticking around for. Besides, you've planned this huge party with all your loved ones -- why skip out early?

Good luck,
Pam

Answer 3

Any and all airlines reccomend you arrive at the airport 1 hour and 30 minutes before your flight is scheduled to depart to give you pleny of time to make it through security screenings.

How long the reception lasts differs in various countries. I'm from TX and our receptions are normally about 4 hours. If there are many out of town guests there is a brunch the next day. HTB is German and they usually have a 6 hour reception followed by an afterpart until the wee hours of the morning. There is no brunch but the rehersal dinner is usually an activity like going to an amusement park that takes most of the day, then the rehersal and dinner.

Answer 4

Figure out how long it will take you to get to the airport, and make sure you are at the airport an 1 1/2 hours before, so you want to be at the airpost about 4ish.

Normal receptions last 4-5 hours, so you should have time.