Providing Wedding Transportation for Your Guests

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Today's Bride

Depending on the size of your wedding party, you might have blocked off a group of rooms at a hotel close to your ceremony for your out-of-town guests. The next question that comes to mind is:  Am I required to provide them all with transportation? While the answer to this is no, it might be a nice gesture if you can afford to do it, especially if they’re coming into town for just one day.

Check with your hotel service first. Chances are they have their own shuttle service available or an airport shuttle service that they might be able to let you use at a lower price. If the hotel doesn’t have one, ask them who they would recommend, especially if you’re getting married in a slightly unfamiliar area. Plus, it’ll save you the hassle of having to look up multiple shuttle services in the area.

If you’re having a smaller guest list, consider renting a bus. This could be a great way for your guests to mingle between the wedding events. However, the only drawbacks to this is that a bus usually only makes one trip to and from each place, so you’ll be depending on your guests to all be ready to go and ready to leave at the same time.

Don’t forget about other possible service options you may have, like a trolley or public transportation, like a train! While these may not have come to mind right away, they may turn out to be a great photo op and something fun that your guests remember from your big day! You may want to check into renting multiple taxis for the day, too!

Once you’ve found your transportation service, make sure to check a few things before signing a contract. You’ll want to ask about their driving qualifications and requirements (obviously all drivers should be licensed and insured). You will want to check what the minimum hour requirements are; if there are any extra charges for mileage; and if something happens to the car, is there a back-up. Make sure that your contract specifies pick-up and drop-off times and any additional details you may deem important; this may seem tedious but it will definitely help you out in the unfortunate event that something goes wrong.

If hiring wedding transportation is nowhere near feasible for your budget, consider asking some family members to carpool with out-of-town guests. Chances are they won’t mind; however, it wouldn’t hurt to get them a small thank-you gift for their kindness after the wedding.

 

 

After you have your out-of-town guests’ transportation figured out, you may decide that you want to make sure everyone else gets home safely as well (specifically if you’re having an open bar reception). You could call a taxi service to reserve a few cars for the end of the night, as it might be much easier to convince a tipsy guest to take a taxi that’s already there rather than take the risky drive home. Another nice gesture for your guests could be making out a list of all the taxi services in the area to keep by the exit of your reception area for those who would feel better taking a cab home instead of driving.

Just remember that no matter what you choose to do for transportation for your guests, it is all entirely optional. You are not required to hire a shuttle service, taxis or a bus, but it may give you peace of mind knowing that all your guests will make it home from your wedding safely.