While guests don’t need to know all of the details about your wedding , there are still some very important details that they will need to know. In addition to the basics of the when and where of the wedding, you will be glad that you delivered certain wedding reminders for your guests. Whether it’s on a wedding website, as a wedding invitation insert, or even on the wedding invitation itself, here are certain details you’ll want to make sure to share leading up to the big day.

1. Dress code

All wedding planners recommend that you always include a dress code no matter how formal or casual your desired attire may be. Guests want to arrive appropriately dressed and it is your role as the host to help guide them. If you are choosing something beyond the easily understood ‘black tie’ or ‘cocktail attire,’ I recommend offering additional explanation.

It’s also not a bad idea to give guests a heads up in regards to footwear, especially if they’re going to have to do a lot of walking between different spaces, or if everything is outdoors on grass. Sometimes people won’t listen to your advice, but I have seen so many people in improper footwear at outdoor weddings (think women in heels trying to walk down a grass/dirt hill for a ceremony location) so make sure to tell your guests that they need to wear flats if you’re having a similar outdoor ceremony.

2. Wedding event timeline

Not that all of your guests will need a detailed schedule for the whole day but they will definitely need to know what time to arrive at the venue, when the ceremony and reception will begin. Add these details to your invitation as well as to your wedding website. Other details that you may want to mention is the time of the first dance, when the cake will be cut, toasts etc. 

3. Seating arrangements

While it might not seem all that important, wedding planning specialists all agree that one of the most important things to tell your wedding guests is where they will be sitting during the reception. If you’re having a wedding with a sit-down meal and it’s not a small, intimate wedding, then you should assign your guests to tables at which to sit for dinner, but that doesn’t mean you need to assign them to specific seats. People like to be told what table to sit at, but they don’t like being told which seat to sit at. A great way to convey seating assignments is by escort card, since guests can pick up a card to take with them rather than having a chart, which can create a bottleneck as guests look around to find their names.

4. Accommodations suggestions

If most of your guests are unfamiliar with the area, they’ll really appreciate a few suggestions of where to stay overnight. How much detail you put in your wedding guest information cards is up to you. You may simply list the names of a few nearby bed and breakfasts, or you could propose a variety of options for different budgets.

Some hotels will offer discounts, or set aside rooms so your guests can all stay in the same place. If you have time, it’s worth calling around in advance to find out what’s available. You can then recommend the best places and ensure people find it quick and easy to book a place to stay.

5. Share room block information

If you have a lot of out of town guests, you will want to book a hotel block for everyone. This will help them reach the wedding venue in time and it will make it a lot easier for them to plan the entire trip. Remind everyone of these hotel rooms you’ve booked, to make sure they forget about it!

This is a detail that should be shared early on, especially if you’re anticipating a lot of out-of-town guests. Set up room blocks in a few local hotels (consider offering a couple of hotel options at different price points). Room blocks are great, because not only do they keep your guests together, they also often come with a discount. You can include the room block information on your wedding website or a wedding invitation insert.

6. Provide transportation information

Details of how to get to and from your wedding is always helpful for guests. Depending on your arrangements, this could include:

• Nearest carpark

• Whether you’re providing a minibus or coach transportation

• Phone numbers of good local taxi firms

• Public transport options – bus, tram or train

• Nearest airport and cheapest flight options if relevant

7. Wedding Hashtags

If you are planning on having a wedding hashtag, let everyone know well before your big day. That way, everyone can use the hashtag during all of the events leading up to the big day, from the engagement party to the bridal shower to the rehearsal dinner. By the time the big day rolls around, your wedding hashtag will probably be coming up on auto-suggest for members of your bridal party.

8. Remind them again to RSVP

One thing guests are sure to forget? Your RSVP date. Yes, you printed it very clearly on the wedding invitation, but don’t be surprised if your RSVP-by date rolls by with many of the guests failing to respond. People forget—it’s just the way it is. However, you have chairs to order and caterers to plan with, so you’re going to need an accurate guest count. Consider sending out texts with a wedding RSVP reminder. Wording on these doesn’t have to be complicated—just send a quick, friendly text saying something like: “Hi there! Working on the guest list and I was wondering if you were going to be able to come to the wedding? We really hope you can make it”

If you’ve got a lot of guests, however, it might get tricky to send out 50+ individual texts. Group texts usually cut off at 30, and, moreover, this isn’t really the kind of thing you want to send in a traditional group text. Consider signing up for a service like WedTexts, which allows you to send out reminders for anything, including the RSVP date. Best of all, you can tailor the wedding reminder wording to say exactly what you want.