How to Plan a Surprise Wedding by Wendy Dessler

How to Plan a Surprise Wedding

A surprise wedding – one where the guests don’t realize that they are attending such a special event - can be a romantic and exciting way to start married life. Celebrities, in particular, are well known for hosting surprise affairs to avoid public attention and preserve as much privacy as possible. Nearly all celebrities, however, hire expensive wedding planning firms that can help pull off extremely complex events. On a good day, planning your own traditional wedding is complicated and that’s when everyone involved is fully apprised of the plans! If you’re planning to take on a surprise wedding, prepare to creatively handle a lot of details and create even more intrigue.

Enlist Help

Throwing a surprise wedding involves all of the standard intricacies like finding a venue, renting necessary equipment, hiring vendors, choosing a theme and color palette, creating a meaningful ceremony and carefully sketching out an itinerary – and doing it all on the sly. For each of your major elements like date, place and time, you have to create an alternative reality that your guests believe is true. It’s a lot easier to maintain your ruse if you involve a small number of trustworthy co-conspirators.

In particular, it would be a great idea to include your wedding party in your grand plan. If you plan to have coordinating mint green bridesmaid dresses, for example, it’s necessary to let your bridesmaids in on the secret. Choose a small number of confidants who can help you with the details – those that are secret and those that aren’t – and you’ll find the entire task a lot easier.

Keep It Small and Simple

The best surprise weddings are intimate affairs. Think of any surprise party you’ve ever attended or planned – the fewer moving parts, the better. While it’s possible to pull off a surprise wedding with a guest count in the hundreds, it’s much easier to do with the help of a professional wedding planner. If you got it on your own, you’ll make things go more smoothly if you limit your guest list.

Choose Great Help

If ever there was a compelling reason to hire a full-service venue, a professional planner, or a highly comprehensive catering firm, throwing a surprise wedding is it. You want someone who can field guest inquiries properly before the wedding, make sure your delicate plans go smoothly on the day-of, and think ahead to eliminate any obstacles between you and surprise success.

A staff of folks in the know may be necessary to hide those girls in mint green bridesmaid dresses, for example, as guests arrive for whatever event they believe they are attending. You’ll need allies to help with your big reveal, and then to keep the event going once the secret is out. Run your plans past your prospective vendors during your interviews and get their take on how things might work. Choose the ones who seem the most experienced and most flexible, and of course, those who are enthusiastic about your surprise plans.

This is not where the surprise should end. You can even eliminate any obstacles when it comes to organizing your honeymoon. With the help of crowdfunding websites, you can quickly and effectively raise funds for visiting the destination of your dreams.

One of the best ways to ensure that your surprise wedding is a success is to keep a great sense of humor about the event. Know that even if something slips out, other elements will still be a surprise, and go with the flow. Your own expectations, enthusiasm and attitude will set the tone for your guests and ensure that you enjoy your surprise affair no matter what should transpire on the big day!

Author Bio

Wendy Dessler

Wendy is a super-connector with Outreachmama who helps businesses find their audience online through outreach, partnerships, and networking. She frequently writes about the latest advancements in digital marketing and focuses her efforts on developing customized blogger outreach plans depending on the industry and competition.