Maid of Honor’s Guide\nto Planning the Bachelorette Party

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You are excited! Your best friend has found the love of her\nlife and ready to get married. Now it is the time to bring the FUN! As her maid\nof honor (MOH), you cannot wait to start planning the big bash and the second\nmost important part of planning any wedding. Not sure about the details of this\nevent? Well, don’t worry! We have put together a quick guide to make planning this\nparty without any hiccups!

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As you go along with the Bachelorette party plans always\nremember rule number 1: Listen to the bride! Ask her how she wants her\nbachelorette party to be like. She may want to paint the town red with a\nweekend in Las Vegas. She may want a quiet and relaxing weekend at a spa\nresort. Remember, it’s what the bride-to-be wants! Not what YOU think she\nwants. Keep this rule in mind and everything (or almost everything) will be smooth\nsailing.

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Who Hosts The\nBachelorette Party?

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As MOH, you usually get dibs on planning this exciting\nevent. But anyone can plan this, there are no concrete rules. You can enlist fellow\nbridal party bridesmaids, close friends, family (a cousin or sister) or even fellow\nco-workers to help plan the bachelorette party. Unlike the bridal\nshower where the hostess pays for festivities for the bachelorette party\nthe rules are low key. It is complete acceptable to ask everyone attending to\nchip in. If you would like everyone to help pay for the Bachelorette Party be\nsure to notify everyone who is invited the plan, budget, and who to pay before\nthe festivities begin.

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Determining The\nBachelorette Party’s Guest List

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You may want to ask the bride to be for a list of names of\nwho the bride would like to invite. The obvious ones on the list would be you\nthe Maid of Honor, bridesmaids, family (cousins or sisters) and close friends.\nMost guests invited to the bachelorette party are also invited to the wedding.\nFor any reason, if there are guests invited to the bachelorette party and not\ninvited to the wedding (maybe the wedding is very small or if it’s a\ndestination wedding), let the guests know ahead of time so they don’t end up\nexpecting a wedding invite. Try to keep the bachelorette entourage under 20.\nEven better, under 10. Keeping it small makes planning easier and less\nstressful.

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How to Send Out\nBachelorette Party Invites

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Formal invitations and save the dates are for wedding\ninvitations . Depending on the formality of the event, just digital save-the-dates\nor an email for the Bachelorette party can be sent out. Events that require\nflights, hotels or shows will need you to spend out official RSVP’s ahead of\ntime. Give guests enough time to reply before putting in the reservations. You\ncan get away with phone calls or emails for casual bachelorette parties.

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Plan Ahead For the\nBachelorette Party (Decide on Date)

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The key to a successful bachelorette party is to plan ahead.\nDecide on a date and send out invitations. The bachelorette party is usually\nset for a month or two before the wedding. Avoid the night before the wedding\nor a couple weeks leading up to the wedding. This time can be very hectic,\nstressful and nerve-racking for the bride to be. Plus, you don’t want her to be\nexhausted or even hungover on her big day! Set a budget. Party hosts can ask\nguests to contribute to the event cost. This can range anywhere from $50 to\n$200, depending on the destination, how extravagant and how many activities you\nhave planned. You can reach out to the guests to ask how much they are\ncomfortable with spending. It should not be a financially-burdened event. Just\nremember, the bride does not contribute to this. Usually, the host(s) will\ncover the bride’s portion or it can be split among all guests attending the\nbachelorette party.

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Make sure you make reservations where reservations are\nrequired. Plan transportations ahead of time. Whether it’s a wild weekend in\nVegas or a calming spa and wine tasting weekend having preplanned\ntransportations is the best and safest way to get around. You don’t want to be\ndealing with trying to figure out how to call a cabs or limos after having a\nfew drinks.

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Some brides-to-be love themed parties, so their bachelorette\nparty is no different. Plan outfits ahead of time. Some may want their\nbachelorette entourage in one color while she wears a different color, to have\nthe whole group stand out. Whether it’s a themed event, or just color\ncoordination, give guests plenty of time to plan for it.

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Many will want to share this fun and exciting event on\nsocial media, letting all their followers to get a glimpse into all the fun\nthey’re having. Check with the bride-to-be to see if sharing any parts of this\nspecial bash is okay. Set social media guidelines regarding what is okay and\nwhat is not okay to share. Some couples may have unique hashtags or phrases\nlinked to their big day that can be shared with everyone. Share the excitement\nand festivities! Just be considerate of what you and guests of bachelorette\nparty are sharing. You don’t want family or co-workers seeing things they\nshouldn’t be seeing.

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All this planning may be executed perfectly. But things may\nand most likely come up that derails your plans. Best way to handle this is by\nhaving a back-up plan set up for an unexpected occurrences. The bachelorette bash\nis supposed to be a bonding experience with you, the bride and the rest of her\nentourage. So don’t stress out when things don’t go to plan. If all else fails,\njust go with the flow and have fun! That’s the most important part!

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Party Time! What\nHappens During a Bachelorette Party?

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Bachelorette parties are less structured than bridal\nshowers. This is a time to have fun and bond with the bride-to-be. This may\ninclude putting her in the spotlight for a bit in a fun and carefree way. Bachelorette\nparties do not have to be wild, crazy and alcohol-filled. It can be calm and\nsober. It just depends on what the bride wants. Icebreaker games and activities\ncan be played to put everyone at ease and bond. DIY photo booths can set up so\nthat everyone can capture memories. Just remind everyone about the social media\nguidelines that the bride-to-be has enforce. Most importantly, have fun!!

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Are Bachelorette\nParty Gifts Required?

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Unlike other wedding related events, gifts are optional at\nbachelorette parties. Friends close to the bride-to-be like to bring silly\ngifts for the bride-to-be to open, usually consists of sexy lingerie or gag\ngifts. Some hosts will have fun party favors for attendees as a token of\nappreciation for being part of the bride-to-be’s entourage. The whole point of\nthis bash is to be bond with the guest of honor and have a fun time.

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There you have it! All you need to know to throw the best,\nmost memorable bachelorette party for your best friend! Check out the rest of a\n Maid\nOf Honor responsibilities to see what you need to do after the bachelorette\nparty is over.