Wedding Blog
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When Mr. Hummingbird and I picked the date for the wedding, we discussed a couple of dates before we ended up on what I thought was the best choice - June 28th.
Not only would my workload by slow enough that I could actually take a honeymoon (wahoo!), but June 28th this year will be the four year anniversary of our very first date (meaning Mr. Hummingbird will only ever have to remember one date. 
)
However, what we kind of neglected to realize was that June 28th is very close to July 1st which is Canada Day, making for the first real long weekend of the summer. This is a huge deal in a country that spends almost half the year blanketed in snow.
Though there is a day’s gap in between the weekend we get married and the statutory holiday, Mr. Hummingbird was very concerned about interfering with our guests’ holiday schedules. Personally, I think it has worked out well as some of our out of town guests are taking an extra day off to hang out in Toronto, but in spite of this, I think we might have lost one or two of them to the cottage.
Since a lot of people are planning weddings around the summer, I’m curious - Would you or have you planned your wedding close to a holiday? Do you resent people taking up your holiday weekends with special events? Why or why not?
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Share this post: What’s in a Day?
I have a wedding to go to on Labor Day weekend. I don’t resent it, but I do worry a bit about the cost of travel on a busy holiday weekend. I’m lucky that my aunt works for an airline and so I get to fly at a discount as a standby passenger. That’s how I normally travel, but I think I’ll end up buying a “real” ticket for travel during a holiday.
june 28th, is a great day! i’m getting married that day too in the wine country in cali. i’m counting down to the days already!! =)
It doesn’t upset me when people plan things during holidays because that means I will luckily have a longer weekend. But, it can be frustrating if it is one of the more popular holiday weekends that many people usually make plans for.
We got married the day before mother’s day. I did not do this intentionally, I wasn’t think about it when we picked out the day, but we stuck with it. Yes, some people could not come… mainly bc there was a death in the groom’s father’s immediate family 3 days before the wedding, but we did stds and it worked well. Plus, we got married on his grandfather and grandmother’s anniversary, so that was pretty sweet!
I’m one of those having my wedding on the Labor Day weekend. I was completely against it (b/c I was trying to be uber-considerate of the cost of travel, and people’s holiday plans, etc) but this was the only day our favorite venue had available AND completely serendipitously, it was the exact anniversary of the date he proposed. So we did it anyway. So far, no complaints. We sent STD’s early. 
i wouldn’t mind at all - it means less days to have to take off from work if it’s an out-of-town wedding. however, the one thing that wouldn’t be fun is the hike in travel prices for holiday weekends.
Our wedding was on Victoria Day (just 2 short weeks ago!) and at first I was also worried about the long weekend status (though of course it’s not as big as Canada Day). It did mean higher rates for car rentals and hotels (but we counteracted that by locking in good guest rates and discounts). As for flights, not sure, but many of our guests were from the States and I think it was fine for them. The Canadians didn’t complain…
By the end of it, I was actually feeling bad that it wasn’t a long weekend for the Americans too - some of them remarked that they would have liked to stay longer!
Personally, I’m fine with it. I love going to weddings, and an extra day means more time with the couple (sometimes) and/or other friends at the wedding or just a slightly more relaxed schedule, even if the travel itself is more hectic.
I had major problems with having my bachelorette over Labor Day weekend, mainly because it was a destination for alot of people and it would cost a ton to fly. But really, I didn’t want to give up my holiday weekend and it was a party in my honor — I can imagine that a few people probably felt the same way! I just felt bad taking up someone’s holiday weekend. So I asked my MOH to move it.
It’s not a summer holiday, but my date is 2 weeks before Thanksgiving. We planned it that way to take advantage of the days off for our honeymoon. Most of our guests are local. Most of those that are traveling wouldn’t be traveling for Thanksgiving. There are only a couple people I’m concerned about that might have to choose between their usual travelling for Thanksgiving and travelling for the wedding. At least it’s not right on the holiday, so those who choose to travel for our wedding won’t be paying high holiday rates.
My wedding is over Columbus Day weekend in October. But it is on a warm beach in FLorida, so if people would have been mad about giving up a holiday weekend, they can now be satisfied with an amazing weekend on the Gulf of Mexico capped off by a fantastic party.
My feeling? If people complain and don’t show up because of when you’re having your wedding, and you’ve given them plenty of advance notice, it’s not that important to them to be there.
We thought about having our wedding over memorial day weekend because we would end up having quite of bit out of town guests. i think the extra day for them to travel and relax would be worth it. i also realized that there may be people who had plans or resented it, but the people who show up are the ones who we would really want there. right!?
My first date anniversary is also June 28th…but our “official” date is July 1st. Go Canada day!
P.S. We were planning for July 1st. but we decided against it because of holiday fees…that would have doubled our costs.
My wedding is over Columbus Day weekend, although I didn’t even realize it for quite some time… Columbus Day is a rather random holiday. However I will admit a few summers ago I had weddings to attend over Memorial Day & 4th of July and I was a little peeved that I was stuck staying in town to attend them. My FI is going to be in a wedding 2 days after Christmas this year (3 hours away, plus the rehearsal dinner is on his b-day) and I am really not cool with it… I feel like our first official Christmas married is going to be rushed.
We’re getting married in Vancouver, BC on July 6th, 2008. I’m Canadian, my fiance’s American, we live in the States. I picked that date because it’s a long weekend for the Americans who’re traveling for the wedding (July 4th - Independence day), and because I like to write the date as 06-07-08 (the Canadian way). It’s been very confusing for my fiance though, who remembers the date always as 6-7-8, and still tells people we’re getting married in five days (June 7th, 2008).
I actually have mixed feelings on this. I have found that guests are more than happy to celebrate if there are non-wedding related festivities throughout the weekend. It can be great fun to reunite with loved ones over a chartered fishing trip or an Oyster Roast….. but when brides are a bit more budget-conscious and not offering much outside of a wedding and reception- then it can be a bit inconsiderate. Sure, the extended weekend is nice for guests, but only if the couple is making their wedding an extended weekend as well. Remember to keep your guests in mind when opting for the holiday weekend. They will be shelling out extra bucks to make it there so it is nice for you to do the same to keep them happy.
In general I don’t mind an occasional wedding or other event that coincides with a holiday, although it kind of depends on the holiday! We have some annual plans for certain holidays, and of course some holidays are family events. My sister has a tendency to plan every event for a holiday weekend, her thought being that the time off makes the travel easier. She got married Thanksgiving weekend, which was just fine. Last year she had her baby baptised two days before Christmas - and I didn’t go. While I know she was disappointed, it seemed unreasonable to me. It would have been just fine if I was going to spend Christmas with her, but I had already planned to spend it with FI and his (soon to be our) kids. Her solution was for us all to go visit her for Christmas - for a total of about $3000 airfare, plus hotel (since her house is not big enough for everybody). And travel that time of year is too chancy for me to have counted on making it back with not even a day to spare.
I think that you’ll find that planning a holiday event means that being there is easier for some people and quite a bit more difficult for others, and that’s just something you have to accept - in that respect, a holiday wedding is a bit like a destination wedding. As long as you’re not going to get unreasonably upset when people have other holiday plans, there’s nothing wrong with scheduling a holiday wedding. And it makes your anniversary a lot easier to remember!
Our anniversary of our 1st date is December 4th, but I wanted a fall wedding. We tried for Labor Day, but it was too expensive for certain vendors. Next: September 13th. IT is perfect. I get to have my sunflowers, outdoor ceremony and 13 is lucky for the both of us: FI birthday and my b-day fall on are on the 13th of January and february. Now if he forgets the date, then he is SOL.
Holiday weekends are tricky for sure! It helps for some of the lesser holidays, such as Columbus day here in the US. Not everyone gets it off so not as many people plan for it I guess.
Suzanno is spot on - depending on the holiday, holiday weekend weddings have a lot in common with destination weddings. Expectations and plans should be adjusted accordingly.
We’re getting married on Memorial weekend next year. We’re getting married on Sunday, and most people will have Monday off, so we figure people can use Saturday as a travel day and Monday as a travel day — for those people, they won’t have to take any days off of work! It also works for us because the majority of our friends and families do not have “standing” Memorial weekend plans — no cottages they go to, and the ones that go to the beach actually live very close to the beach, so missing out on the beach on the “first weekend of summer” won’t be too horrible for them. We hope. We think our plan is a good one, anyway, and we haven’t heard any gripes about the date — more from people who think it will be a convenience to travel to the wedding, regardless of when it is held. So it will most likely work out!
Nick (FH) and I planned out wedding date on our 4th year anniversary too! Feb 21 09…
In terms of planning the day around the holiday, I personally don’t mind. I would welcome the time off if I had to fly out to attend a wedding. But I can sympathize with the high costs when it comes to hotels and what not. I guess I never really thought about that aspect because all of our guests would just stay with family or friends.
My thing is this, if a guest can’t make it because they have plans, then so be it…
We’re getting married July 3rd, 2009 (Friday). I thought it would be an issue, but our OOT guests are actually excited to be in Washington, D.C. the day before the fireworks. Most of them are staying the next night to watch the fireworks with us on the mall. I am excited to not leave for our honeymoon right away and to have an extra “event” with them (especially as it’s free).
Since Jewish weddings aren’t supposed to take place on Saturday (Shabbos), most are either late Saturday nights or Sundays, depending on the time of year/when sundown is. Three-day weekends are really popular because of this, since people have the Monday off to travel. But it’s also more expensive, so it’s a trade-off. I think a lot of our non-Jewish guests (and even some Jewish ones, which is a little odd to me) are cranky about being asked to miss a day of work. I’d rather have it on Saturday night, but we’d either have to start the ceremony at 8 PM or do it in the middle of winter!
We’re having our wedding on Memorial Day next year. My family always gets together then regardless, so it was mostly the out-of-towners I was concerned about. I asked most of them in advance, though, and they all said they preferred the long weekend to another day in May or June, so it ended up being an easy choice.
We are getting married on New Year’s Eve. So far it seems like most of our friends and family are just happy to have something fun to do and celebrate (but most of them are local anyhow).
My FI and I originally wanted Labor Day weekend in 2009 — which would make our date September 5 — but our priest wasn’t available for that date (can you believe, as of January 2008, he was already booked then for a wedding?!?) so we happily (well, me not-so-much at first — I’d grown “attached” to 9/5/09, close to my maternal g’rents anniversary) flexed one week back. No biggie, right? Plus, for us, the last “real” week of summer will likely mean Philly will be ghost-town-ish, as the locals squeeze out the final days of summer “down the shore” as we say. 
We are getting married next year on June 27th!
When planning we did keep in the mind that the following weekend is 4th of July on Saturday, so we did not want to be compete with that. However, I know several friends who have utilized a holiday weekend and it worked great for them.
We chose Labor Day weekend *because* we think (hope!) it will make it easier for our guests–most of whom are from out of town and don’t have lots of extra vacation floating around. But, like danielle suggested, we’re getting married on Sunday and having a barbeque on Saturday, so hopefully we’re making it worth it for our guests!
We are getting married on June 28 as well! The only trouble we had was trying to find a tent to rent, as nearby towns booked up all the tents for their Canada Day events!!!! We got a tent after a few calls and some worries. lol! We are utlizing the holiay weekend for a mini-honeymoon right after our wedding
We’re getting married the weekend before Christmas, and I know that some people won’t be able to make it. But it was the only time we could do it with my school/his work schedule, and really… all the important family and friends will be there, so it’s worked out so far. we’ll see if that’s still the case after the invites go out!
damn you for taking me away from naked men with tennis ball penises during pride/BME fest weekend!!!!
although for you guys, i’ll skip any major Canadian event it’s only fair since… you know… we’ll be taking EVERYONE’S halloween away next year…
I think a holiday weekend is the best time to get married! That way everyone is in the partying mood plus they still have two days of weekend once the wedding is over.
We are getting married July 3, 2009. We decided this after informally polling all my OOT family and our BP. As long as they said it was okay then it was a go. Thankfully they all loved doing it that weekend as most of them have either the Friday or Monday off or would have taken a day off anyway. I know for some it wouldn’t work out but for us it was the best choice.
My best friends wedding is causing me to miss 4th of July weekend with my guy, which also happens to be his only day off during the summer and his birthday. It’s bumming us both out. We can’t afford to fly him up for the wedding as well, so we will have to spend his birthday apart for the second year in a row. I wouldn’t miss the wedding for anything, but still….
I’m getting married June 28 too! So far, the proximity to the 4th of July has only impacted a few people — to the extend that they’re driving in for the event ON June 28, rather than June 27, to save a vacation day for use the following week.
Holiday weekend weddings are like destination weddings — you’re excited to attend them when you are very close to the couple and when it’s not a major holiday.
I’m usually not a fan of weddings on holidays due to the high costs of travel, and especially if the holiday is one that is typically family-oriented. That said, I’m going to a wedding over 4th of July and since I have my own wedding coming up, I’m happy not to have to take time off of work! My FI pitched a fit about having to travel to a wedding for the 4th, but then wanted to schedule ours for Labor Day…Honestly, I think as long as you plan enough to make your guests feel like they got a nice little holiday out of it, most people will be relieved not to have to use precious vacation days!
I’ve been struggling with this same question. I’m glad you put it out to the hive.
Personally I hate to travel on high-traffic holiday weekends, and don’t mind an excuse to create my own long weekend. However, most of my guests are not from out of town. Perhaps I should reconsider having our wedding on a holiday weekend.
I wouldn’t be mad at you, but I sure was pissed at the friend who put her wedding on Christmas Eve!
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Mrs. Hummingbird, Toronto
Age and Occupation: 25, Publishing Coordinator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Videogame Designer/Cartoonist
Engagement Date: May 4, 2007
Wedding Date: June 28, 2008
Blogging Since: September 18, 2007
Venue: A garden wedding followed by a tented reception on Mr. Hummingbird's father's property.
About Me: I’m a pop culture loving, vintage obsessed foodie living in Canada’s biggest city with my fantastic fiancé and our lovable fluffy cat Bettie. I’m stoked to marry my best friend and to throw what I hope will be
the most fun and colourful party of our lives.
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