How to plan your wedding day timeline

Planning Your Wedding Day Timings

When you’re planning your wedding timeline – ceremony, food, first dance – it can all feel a bit overwhelming. After all, this is probably your first rodeo!

The truth is, everything flows from your ceremony time. Once that’s set, the rest of the day naturally falls into place. But should you go for 12pm, 1pm, or 2pm? Let’s break it down.

12pm Ceremony

Pros

• Plenty of time in the day to chat and mingle with guests 🥂

• Works really well for larger weddings (100+ guests), spreading the day out nicely

• Creates a relaxed pace with no rush through photos or key moments

Cons

• Food often lands around 2–3pm, which can leave a big gap until the evening

• For midweek weddings, it’s tricky to bring the first dance forward as evening guests are often arriving later after work

• Can leave “dead space” for guests – you’ll likely need entertainment to fill the lulls

2pm Ceremony

Pros

• A relaxed morning – more time to get ready (and maybe even a lie-in!)

• Cuts out lulls in the day and keeps the schedule moving smoothly

• Great for smaller weddings (<50 guests) where flow matters more than downtime

Cons

• The day can feel compressed and over before you know it

• Timings are tight – photos and transitions can feel rushed

• Less time to enjoy extras like singing waiters or magicians 🎶✨

• Every hour counts on your wedding day, and with a later start you may find yourself wishing it lasted longer

The Sweet Spot – 1pm

For many couples, 1pm is the perfect middle ground. You avoid the long gaps of a 12pm start but still leave yourself plenty of time to enjoy the afternoon and evening without feeling rushed.

How Long Should the Drinks Reception Be?

Your drinks reception is the part of the day where you’ll greet guests, grab some portraits, and finally relax after the “I dos.” But how long should it last?

• 1h 30m → The bare minimum. Remember, if the venue says “speeches at 3pm,” guests will start being seated at 2:45pm – so you instantly lose 15 minutes here.

• 2h → The sweet spot for larger weddings. Enough time to chat to everyone and get through photos without feeling rushed.

• 2h–3h → Works if you have entertainment and plenty of canapés, but be mindful guests may get peckish. If you go this long, consider doing speeches after food so they’re not waiting too long to eat.

💡 Photographer’s perspective: As much as I work fast, a short drinks reception can make things tricky. If the ceremony runs late or the registrar talks a lot, the drinks reception is the first thing that gets cut (since you can’t push food back). Aiming for around 2 hours usually keeps everything balanced and reduces that long lull between dinner and evening celebrations.

Speeches Before or After Food?

There’s no right or wrong here – it’s about what works for you, your guests, and your speakers.

Speeches Before Food

Pros

• Nervous speakers get it done and can actually enjoy their meal

• Everything flows more smoothly for the venue – toast drinks are already poured and you go straight into it

Cons

• Can delay food a little – so if you skipped canapés, expect some hungry guests

• If speeches run longer than planned, the kitchen is left juggling hot food while everyone waits (top tip: if you’ve told the venue 20 minutes, stick to it – and maybe remind Dad not to go for the hour-long special!)

Speeches After Food

Pros

• Guests are relaxed and happy with full stomachs – always a better atmosphere!

• The meal is served on time, hot and stress-free for the catering team

• Less pressure on speakers to “hold back the food” – they can take their time without everyone clock-watching

Cons

• Herding guests back to their seats after food can take longer than you think (everyone drifts off for chats, drinks, and loo breaks)

• Staff need to clear dessert plates and refill glasses, adding 15–20 minutes of waiting time

• Nervous speakers may spend the whole meal stressing instead of enjoying it

  

First Dance Timings 💃🕺

The timing of your first dance often depends on a few key factors – mainly whether your venue needs time to turn the room around, or if you can roll straight into it.

That golden gap between the wedding breakfast and your first dance is honestly one of the most enjoyable parts of the day. The photos are done, guests are tipsy, and the pressure is off. It’s the moment when:

• Guests head back to their rooms for touch-ups 💄

• Shots start getting ordered at the bar 🥃

• The atmosphere shifts from formal to full-on party 🎉

• Evening guests arrive and you get a chance to greet them

Aim to leave at least an hour here. It gives you breathing space, allows for any mop-up photos that were missed earlier (or delayed if the weather wasn’t on your side), and sets the perfect vibe before you hit the dancefloor.

💡 Timing tips:

• Midweek weddings → Don’t start your first dance earlier than 7pm. Many evening guests will be coming straight from work.

• Weekend weddings → You can usually bring this forward slightly to 6–7pm, depending on how far guests have to travel.

  

• Some sample timelines to help you get going

As you can see:

• With a 2pm ceremony, things can start to feel tight – the afternoon and evening flow quickly, and there’s little breathing room between key moments.

• With a 12pm ceremony, you’ve got the opposite problem – lots of downtime to fill, which can sometimes mean long lulls for guests unless you’ve planned plenty of entertainment.

👉 That’s why I usually find 1pm is the sweet spot. It strikes the perfect balance: enough time to enjoy a relaxed morning, but still leaving you plenty of space in the afternoon to soak it all in without rushing.