A few things to know: what might annoy your guests

The best party is the one where everyone has fun, that’s well-known. And although it is far from being an easy goal to achieve–can we ever make everybody happy?–here are a few things you might want to keep in mind for the experience to be enjoyed by both the newlyweds and their guests, without any bitter memory lingering on afterwards:

• Long pauses, especially between the ceremony and the reception. It seems that many guests don’t like having to wait at the door, so it may be a good idea to book that reception hall for 5:30 instead of 6 p.m if your ceremony ends at 5, since everyone will want to go there quickly enough.
• Preparations that still last until the last moment, such as decorations being held up where the guests already are. It kind of kills the mood.
• Not having any place to sit at the reception. Make sure that there will be enough seats, or have them even reserved with every guest’s name, just in case of.
• Making your guests pay for their drinks and food during the reception.
• Speeches can be a tricky part sometimes, so better have them out of the way before people begin to be tired or, worse, drunk and not really knowing what they’re saying to the crowd anymore.
• Separating couples. If a guest doesn’t know anyone at the party save for his/her significant other, putting them at two different tables isn’t a very good idea.
• Photographers who take ages to perform their ‘duty’. Again, nobody really likes waiting.
• Similarly, having your photographs shot in inconvenient places. (I remember a wedding where half the guests spilled on the road near the church, with a long line of cars honking for a good 15 minutes for them to go away. I bet you don’t want your wedding ceremony to end up in such a cacophony!)

Those are only but a few ideas about little logistic elements to keep in mind. There is really so much to do when preparing a wedding, so I know it isn’t easy, but I hope that having compiled this little list may help all the same.