Bachelorette planning can be exciting and easy for some, but stressful and nerve-wracking for others. It can be overwhelming and feel like a second job, planning a fun weekend for anywhere from 8-30 people, but I promise it will be worth it when you see the look on your brides face all weekend long! As I’m walking through the motions to plan a girlfriends Bachelorette next April, I thought it would be a good opportunity to bring you along for the ride for when and if you need to plan one of these in the future, hopefully this can help ease a little bit of the stress.
It really feels like gone are the days of one night out in your home city and more and more Bachelorettes (and Bachelor Parties) are weekend ordeals, which means pre-planning is absolutely necessary. There is no such thing as planning too early, but there is such thing as planning too late. Depending on the type of weekend you are planning, (especially if there is any kind of travel or booking accommodations involved) the earlier the better!
Who plans the Bachelorette? There is no tried and true rule for this, typically it starts with the Maid of Honour, but there are instances where there is no MOH or the MOH isn’t a great planner nor would she love to do it. The best advice I can offer for who plans it would be whoever typically plans things for the groups, typically an A-type personality. Let them (or a group) go with it and they’ll reach out for support where needed, but they probably enjoy this the most (hey, that’s me!).
6+ Months before
Talk to the Bride
The whole purpose of the Bachelorette Party is to celebrate the Bride-to-Be, so ensuring that you connect with her first is important. You need to understand her expectations for the weekend, where she might want to go or what types of activities she wants to do. And most importantly she’ll need to provide you the guest list for all of the people she wants to be included in the festivities.
It’s important to get as many details as possible from the bride to ensure that she is getting what she wants out of the weekend. Some important questions to ask: is anything off limits? While some brides want the whole white sash, veil and decorative penises everywhere (no thank you!) some brides prefer to keep it classy ;) Does she want a low key weekend or a big party? Does she want to be surprised with some of the activities or does she want to be involved and approve every last detail? Does she want to be out and about interacting with others or does she want to stick to hanging out with just your group for the weekend? Bring up budget expectations! If you're flying somewhere you can expect the budget wheelhouse be between $1400-1700 vs staying somewhere local can be done for under $300-400.
Once you hear a little bit about what the bride wants, I would provide a few different recommendations for her to choose between (or maybe she'll say surprise me!). For instance, for my girlfriend Carissa’s we had an idea that she wanted to go somewhere warm and she is a big country music fan, so we had presented her with the idea to go to Tortuga Music Festival in Ft. Lauderdale and she was 100% in (stay tuned for this Spotlight coming April 2019)!
Talk to the Bridal Party
The next step is to figure out a date, which means you’ll need to talk to the bridal party. Since these are the ladies that the Bride’s included in her special day, it’s important to make sure that a date works for the group. You’ll also want to make sure this group is clear on all of the expectations from budget to any support you might require from them.
This is also a good point in time to discuss expectations from the bride. While the night out in the city it is quite usual for the bride to not pay for anything, with some of these bigger ticket Bachelorette weekends it get's a little bit tougher to cover off an extra $1500. Usually the bride will pay for herself to get there and accommodations, but the group covers off everything once you get down there (drinks, meals, etc.). This might also be something you discuss with the bride to see if she has a preference one way or another.
Do Your Homework
Research! Research! Research! Before sending out the initial e-mail invite you’ll want to have as many details as possible which means spending a week or two researching everything there is to know. If you are flying I would suggest plugging the dates into Hopper, which is a great app that tracks flights and let’s you know the best time to book for the best price. Start to look up hotels and AirBnBs - depending on the location and number of people there are pros and cons to both. Look up any activities that are big in the area and any associated costs.
This is also where I build out a skeleton itinerary and budget. Nothing is locked at this point but it helps you to plan the days and understand any of the costs associated with each.
Google your destination x Bachelorette and there will be a lot of sites that come up (hopefully this one in the near future!). Some are definitely better than others, but it’s helpful to read as much as you can on your destination, combined with what you know the bride wants, it makes building a kick-ass itinerary a lot easier.
The Guest List
Compose an e-mail to send out and invite the bride’s selected guests. Based on your research you’ll be able to provide them a good overview of what’s in store for them this weekend including a date, proposed budget, details of how many days may be required off of work and suggested flights. Let them know when different expenses might hit - for instance you'll likely have to pay for flights and accommodations early on in the process which are typically big expenses, but then food & bev and activities will be paid for once you arrive at the Bachelorette. Provide a timeline to RSVP - usually 1-2 weeks is good. There is a 99% chance you'll need to follow up with a few people, so be prepared for a couple of follow up e-mails or messages to provide additional information if required.
Book the Big Ticket Items
This is also the timeline to book the big ticket items like flights and accommodations. Go back to the Hopper tracker you set up and continue to follow major airline seat sales because you'll want to book when you see an appealing price. Big shout out to all the girls heading to Tortuga this April - I had found a round trip, direct flight to Ft. Lauderdale for $269CAD which is crazy! And literally within 2 hours of sending the e-mail, 14 girls had booked their flights.
AirBnB is usually the most cost effective route as it allows you to cook a couple of your own meals vs always having to go out and gives you a 'home base' to chill in during any downtime. Set up a favourites tab on your account and start browsing. Make sure you read all the details before booking and think about things like everyone having a bed/pull out vs. air mattresses and the girls to bathroom ratio (14 girls getting ready with 2 bathrooms might not be the most ideal situation).
3-6 months before
Finalize your itinerary. Make sure that you have a well thought out itinerary and don't 'over plan' allowing you to have some downtime in the schedule (especially if you have a pool at your hotel or AirBnB), but on the flip side, don't have so much free time that people get bored.
Start to think about what kinds of Bachelorette accessories you might want. Some popular options are customized bathing suits, flower crowns, hats, t-shirts or tank tops. I’m really excited about one of our options for Carissa’s Bachelorette, but want to keep it as a surprise for her, so you’ll need to wait until April to see what we got! These accessories don’t need to break the bank, $30-50 tops. Etsy can be a girls best friend here! There are so many great options for customization at great rates, so look around and you'll be sure to find something perfect for your groups needs!
While themes and hashtags aren’t at all necessary, it’s a fun way to customize your experience. Think about your weekend - climate, activities planned, music, etc. I love building a mood board (see below for the inspiration I had used when planning Scottsdale) that helps to keep everything feeling consistent all weekend long.
1-2 months before
Book your reservations for any brunches, dinners and drinks you have planned. If you want to get bottle service any night then start to connect with the bar/promoters to ensure that you have a table or get on any guest lists. This is also when you should book your big activities such as a Pedal Tavern, a Catamaran trip, high tea, a dance class, etc.
Turn your itinerary into a work of art! If you are a graphic designer or have a friend who can help you out here, that is ideal. But no worries if not, a friend told me about an app app called Canva and I used that to create our Scottsdale itinerary. It was super easy, user friendly and looked pretty damn good in the end!
Buy any additional decorations you want to bring along with you to help bring your mood board to life and jazz up your accommodations. This is also when you should purchase any Bachelorette 'kits' if this is the route you want to go down.
Ideal Bachelorette Kit:
- Advil
- Flawless U Eye Masks
- Bottles of Water
- Mouth Wash or Gum
- Drinking Vessel
- Note from bride (while not necessary, it is a cute personal touch adding in a customized note from the bride to her girls)
After the Bachelorette
Send a thank you note to the group, create a photo sharing folder so that you can all share pictures from what was likely the best weekend ever and of course reconcile the budget. As most Bachelorette's typically go, I'm sure one girl is picking up a tab here and another here as it's not always efficient to order 15 drinks separately. Pull up the budget document you had worked on before and add in any additional expenses that took place on the trip that will need to be reconciled and let everyone know who owes who what! Hopefully the research and pre-planning worked out so there weren't any major surprises to your bank account!
Bachelorette Parties can be the most fun weekend if planned properly, so I hope this helped to relieve any stress you might have had going into the planning process. If you have any amazing Bachelorette locations or want to see any specific Bachelorette spotlights let me know in the comments below.
Cheers,
Nicole
Bachelorette Destinations
Montreal, Quebec- coming soon
Prince Edward County, Ontario - coming soon
Niagara Falls, Ontario - coming soon
Toronto, Ontario
Calgary Stampede, Calgary
New York City, NY - coming soon
The Hamptons, New York
Nashville, Tennessee
Chicago, Illinois - coming soon
Boston, Massachusetts
Miami, Florida
Las Vegas, Nevada
Tortuga MF, Florida - coming 2019
Stagecoach MF, California
Napa Valley, California
Denver, Colorado
Austin, Texas - coming soon
All Inclusives - coming soon
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