Wedding Ceremony Seating
Seating charts aren’t just for middle school! With the number of family and friends witnessing your big moment, you’ll need a plan to decide who sits where for both the reception and the ceremony.
A lot of millennials feel awkward and uncomfortable walking into a place they’ve never been before alone. The anticipation of quickly scanning the crowd to see who you know and finding somewhere to sit is easily remedied by enlisting a few of your groomsmen, relatives, or friends as ushers. They can direct guests to their seats and ensure that any reserved seats are occupied by the correct guests.
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cute signage
On the other hand, there’s a new trend out there that some couples are choosing to do when it comes to seating. You may decide that you don’t need ushers at all because you’d rather people sat wherever they want. Some brides who do this post signs in front of their ceremony saying, “As two families become one, we ask that you pick a seat, not a side.” Another seating concept that has become popular for larger weddings with more space – like outdoor weddings is to arrange the seating in a circular fashion so that guests surround you while you and your fiancé. This gives each guest a great view while you say your “I Dos.”
processional
After the parents are escorted to their seats, the groom, best man, and officiant take their places at the altar. The groomsmen can then escort the bridesmaids down the aisle, or just wait for them at the altar.
The Maid-or-Matron-of-Honor, ring bearer, and flower girl(s) will precede the bride.
Bride’s Entrance
At this point, the guests should all rise in anticipation of the bride’s entrance. She is usually escorted down the aisle by her father, who stands at her right when presenting the bride’s hand to the groom. In a traditional church-style seating arrangement, this may be the only time some guests will have a good view of the bride before the reception, and many will take photos to capture the occasion. If you’d instead not proceed down the aisle to flashes and camera lenses and would prefer to look at the beaming faces of your guests, have your officiant announce your procession advising your guests to keep their phones, tablets, and cameras stowed away.
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If your ceremony site doesn’t provide seating, there are a lot of fun options! Consult with a rental company to see what options there are other than folding chairs.
Whether you have guests sit on either side of an aisle, in a spiral around the spot where you’ll say I Do, choose their seats or have a reserved place, as long as they have a view of you and your fiance, they won’t care where they sit.
