Bachelors and Bachelorette Parties: Making them Memorable

By Pat Esden

Bachelor and bachelorette parties have one goal—fun.

The keys to planning and organizing your party for success

Making an occasion to remember

Whether the party is a bachelor, bachelorette or a Jack and Jill, it’s easy to make it an occasion to be remembered. The key is to plan the party far enough ahead of time, personalize it and take safety into account.

Usually the maid of honor or the best man plan and host the party, however sometimes parents or even the bride or groom organize it themselves. Unlike the bridal shower, the bride and groom often know when the bachelor party will take place and should be asked if they prefer separate parties or wish to have a combined one.

No matter who is hosting the party it should be planned several months ahead of time and guests should be notified of the date well in advance.

The actual date it occurs is most often within a couple of weeks of the wedding or even the night before the ceremony.

Why to NOT hold it the night before

The problem with having the party the night before is that it can lead to the bride or groom being hungover or exhausted on the wedding day.

Once a date is chosen, some thought should be put into how the party can be personalized. Instead of having a lackluster bachelor party in someone’s basement with stag movies and beer or sitting in a living room playing the same old bachelorette games, focus the party on something that the bride and groom especially enjoy. What is the bride’s favorite sport? The groom’s favorite food? An afternoon playing golf followed by drinks and dinner at the clubhouse is easy to organize. A girls’ only weekend of skiing and partying in a resort pub wouldn’t be expensive if a friend or family member has a ski area condo they’d lend for the weekend. A champagne breakfast at a favorite restaurant, overnight shopping trips, white water rafting, a day at the spa, paintball, fly fishing lessons, a concert or dinner theater—what would be fun for the bride and/or groom and the rest of the guests?

Who to invite

There is no tradition about who should be invited to the party. Sometimes parents are included, but more often only the attendants and closest friends. Keeping the guest list small—most likely under a couple dozen people—will help maintain a personal feeling. However, more people may be invited to a Jack and Jill party, which are as common as the traditional bachelor and bachelorette parties.

If there is going to be drinking at the party and the guests aren’t staying overnight, then it is a good idea to rent a limo or designate a driver ahead of time. The designated driver can be a spouse or friend who is willing to be “on call,” or a local taxi could be hired instead.

With just a little preplanning and thought as to the bride and/or groom’s taste, the bachelor party will be safe, fun and something everyone will remember and talk about for years to come.

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