15 Ways to Help Out-of-Town Wedding Guests Feel Welcome

by Sandra Aaron, WPICC, DWC, of Mindless Sophistication

I truly believe that when you invite a guest to a wedding you should be treating them with the same hospitality that you would give them if you had invited them into your own home. With out-of-town guests, this concept becomes even more important as your couple has not only invited them to their wedding; but the guests were kind enough to travel to a far off location to attend.

I have compiled a list of 15 nice gestures you can help your clients plan to help their out-of-town guests enjoy their visit:

1. Get a group rate at a nice hotel. This way they can all be together, mingle, and the couple can visit them in one location. 
2. Host a special out-of-town guests dinner to welcome them to the city/town.
3. Book a hospitality suite in the hotel the majority of guests are staying at. Fill it with snacks, drinks, magazines, newspapers, games for the kids, etc.
4. Hire a shuttle bus to take wedding guests to and from the wedding. 
5. Offer guests the opportunity to take a tour of the place they are visiting.
6. Create a welcome package that includes maps, information on local attractions, restaurant recommendations, and anything else you think they might find useful.  Arrange with the hotel to have this package waiting for the wedding guests in their room when they arrive.
7. Arrange for a gift basket or gift bag to be waiting in their hotel room.
8. Have the couple write each guest a hand-written card before they come to tell them how excited they are that the guests will be traveling to attend their wedding.
9. If possible pay for all airline or hotel bills. Nobody expects this; but it is a very polite thing to do if you can afford it.
10. Have the couple purchase carbon credits in the guests name as a thank you for flying in to attend their wedding.  This helps the environment and shows the guest how truly welcome they are.  Have a card waiting for them in the hotel room saying “In honor of your joining us for our wedding we have off-set your travel by purchasing carbon credits in your name”.
11. Host a little mix and mingle cocktail party in the hotel on the night the guests are arriving.
12. Get a hold of some discount coupon books for local attractions, shopping, and restaurants that the guests can use during their stay.
13. If you live in a city that is involved in the CityPass program then purchase one for the guests. This will get them into various museums and attractions free. http://www.citypass.com/
14. Let the concierge at their hotel know the details of your couple’s wedding; such as where they are registered, the time-line, and where it is being held. This way if guests have questions the hotel staff is prepared with the answers. 
15. If you live in the Greater Toronto Area, your clients can hire a Wedding Concierge® by Mindless Sophistication to oversee many of the above mentioned tasks and to field other requests the guests might have during their stay. A Concierge will personally be on call for the weding guests during their stay. Wedding Concierge® will be expanding to other cities so please be sure to ask if it’s arrived in your city yet.

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