The bachelor party is a fantastic way to celebrate your forthcoming wedding with your closest friend, but there’s no doubt that – thanks to several thousand movies and pop culture “classic moments” – it’s also an event that is shrouded in myth and more than a few cliches. In order to ensure you, as a groom-to-be, can genuinely enjoy your bachelor party, here’s what you need to keep in mind…
Plan the party as a group, rather than the best man alone
Some may argue that it’s a tradition that the best man plan the bachelor party, but there’s absolutely no reason this has to be the case – especially when there are so many benefits to a communal effort. Working with your best man to create a party – that you’re confident every invitee will enjoy – is a lot of fun, and you’ll also be able to have more control over the planning so you can ensure you’re completely happy with every decision that’s made. What’s more, planning a bachelor party alone is fairly stressful for any best man, so planning as a team tends to work best for everyone involved.
Choose your timing carefully
While, conventionally, bachelor parties were held the night before the big day itself, times have (thankfully) changed. Generally, bachelor parties work best when they are held two-to-three months before the wedding; this gives a good separation between the party and the wedding, and also helps guests who are going to attend both events manage their budget and schedules accordingly.
Do something different
Sometimes, bachelor parties can feel a little… unremarkable. If you meet up with a group of friends and head out to a bar for the evening, there’s relatively little to distinguish the experience from any other meetup – there are a few more people, but nothing that truly stands out. To ensure your party feels special, go beyond the standard evening out at a bar; perhaps you’d like to to charter a boat with your friends, or maybe visiting Dueling Axes for your bachelor party is more your scene; choose whatever works to help the party stand out from any other standard get together.
Skip invitations
Wedding invitations are no longer strictly necessary in an age when it’s possible to invite all guests digitally, but remain popular as a memento of the day – many couples, for example, will frame one of their invitations, or include them in a college. Bachelor party invitations, however, are less romanticized, so if you’d rather have extra funds for the party itself rather than paper invites, opt for digital invitations.
Talk through the plans with your fiancée
We’ve all heard stories about raucous bachelor parties, and they seem like lighthearted tales that we can all laugh with and enjoy. However, for your fiancée, these tall tales can contribute to excess worry about what your bachelor party and what is planned. This is true even if you are in a totally trusting, committed relationship, thanks to pop culture’s obsession with “man makes terrible mistake at bachelor party” plotlines. Talking through your plans with your fiancée can help to reassure them that all will be well.
Hopefully the tips above will help you to arrange a great bachelor party – enjoy!