Wedding ‘welcome bags’ have been incredibly popular at our couples’ weddings this year, and are a generous and effective way of helping your friends and family settle in and fully immerse themselves in the experience. However, not all welcome bags were created equal! Having guided many of our couples through this element of the planning process in 2023, we’ve put together a guide to great wedding welcome bags. You are about to find out when these gifts are a good idea, how to create bundles your guests actually find exciting and useful, and the logistics of handing them out.
Who Needs Wedding Welcome Bags?
In our experience welcome bags work best when you are celebrating over multiple days, with guests travelling to one central location for the duration (such as a destination wedding). Think about offering 1 welcome bag per couple/guest room rather than 1 per person.
Asking your guests to travel long distances, particularly overseas, to celebrate with you can feel daunting, but providing wedding welcome bags on arrival is just one way of showing your thanks and giving something back to them so they can make the most of the experience. They serve as a thoughtful gift to show your appreciation to your guests for the effort (and cost!) involved in attending your wedding.. Imagine arriving in a foreign city ahead of a wedding, and being greeted by information, advice and recommendations about the area…you can get your trip off to a great start before the celebrations even begin! Which brings us onto…
What To Put In Great Wedding Welcome Bags
Before we dive in, it’s important to note that the first step in putting together your welcome bags is to decide on your budget for them, broken down into a total figure and how much this costs per bag. This will really help guide you in the right direction when looking for items to fill your bags. This summer our couples have spent between 5 and 50 euros per bag, and it goes without saying that the quality and quantity of contents will be heavily dictated by this! Deciding on the spend for welcome bags is always my starting point when working with couples on this.
Creating great wedding welcome bags requires some thought, and you need to consider what your guests will actually find useful, entertaining, or want to keep during your wedding. Here are some suggestions of what to put in them;
- Wedding itineraries, schedules and dress codes – this is particularly useful when having multiple days of events. Although you have likely already given out this information in the form of an invitation or wedding website, including a welcome booklet detailing where they need to be, what time to arrive, and what the dress code is will save you fielding a lot of questions!
- Local guides – help guests navigate the area by providing local restaurant recommendations, must-sees and even taxi numbers or Uber availability. You can also let them know about any experiences or activities they can get involved in, as well as those arranged by you as part of your wedding celebrations
- Personalised, branded favours – choosing the perfect little keepsake is a bit of an art, but if you get it right your guests will want to hang onto their favours to remind them of the wonderful time they had with you. Think about having elements of your bag ‘branded’ with your initials or a monogram for an extra special touch.
- Local nibbles and drinks – this has been especially popular at our Italian weddings this year, and guests love to be greeted by local wines, home-grown olives and other snacks and refreshments they can enjoy in their rooms
- Local souvenir items – one of our couples married in Greece and used local Myconian suppliers to help fill their welcome bags, selecting a gorgeous bag and keyring typical of the island town. While local souvenirs can often fall into the category of ‘tacky’, it is possible to find beautiful, handmade or locally designed trinkets your guests will love
The most important things to consider when ‘editing’ what might go in your welcome bags are location and season. If you are getting married in Italy in the middle of summer, little fans or water bottles will be gratefully received by guests in the heat (but bear in mind that, if budget permits, it’s always better to try to include reusable water bottles if possible!). If you know you are having your ceremony outdoors on grass, make this clear in your wedding itinerary and consider providing heel protectors for high-heeled shoes.
The Question of Distribution
The final consideration for great welcome bags is to think ahead about how they will be distributed. Do you want them to be placed in guests’ rooms before their arrival, or delivered once they are checked in? Who will go around and hand them out? Many hotels and resorts will deliver welcome bags for you for a small extra fee, but bear in mind they don’t know your guests personally and so room changes can cause confusion.
We recommend delivering to guests at their hotels if they are staying at your hotel, or one you recommended. Otherwise, you can choose to have a table and greeter at your welcome event to hand them out there. If you do this, just ensure all the information for the welcome party is sent to your guests in advance!
Great wedding welcome bags can really make a significant difference to your guests’ experience, and the advice we’ve given here is a good starting point for you to work from when putting them together. Don’t forget that if your budget doesn’t stretch to welcome bag gifts, a thoughtful welcome note with an itinerary booklet or sheet will always be appreciated instead. Our blog is full of helpful tips and advice for planning your wedding, and if you’d like the expert guidance of an Elegante by Michelle J full planning service, get in touch – welcome bags are just the tip of the planning iceberg!
