Amy Young has helped plan weddings any time from sun up to sundown; from breakfast celebrations to high-spirited evening extravaganzas but it’s the humble lunchtime wedding that’s making a comeback.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile many couples still prefer a classic evening timetable, we\u2019re finding a growing demand for daytime celebrations,\u201d says Amy, the wedding planner at City Beach Function Centre<\/a>, which is nestled by the ocean in Wollongong.<\/p>\n And the benefits on offer are myriad.<\/p>\n For starters, it\u2019s often easier to lock in your preferred date and suppliers, especially during peak season when demand is high.<\/p>\n Just as importantly, there are, generally, cost savings to be had, possibly enough to fund a honeymoon or help with a mortgage.<\/p>\n \u201cCouples who do choose to host a lunchtime reception can save a substantial amount of money,\u201d says Amy. \u201cHowever, it\u2019s important to note they don\u2019t lose anything by way of sophistication or enjoyment.\u201d<\/p>\n At most venues, they still get to choose from the same menu and at City Beach, <\/a>they still receive generous inclusions such as $150 towards a wedding cake. They\u2019re still able to make use of a venue’s standard decorating options, the same wait staff and the same venue facilities but, because your wedding is in the daytime rather than evenings, which are usually booked solid, you can get the same service – for less!<\/p>\n The key focus, then, is making full use of advantages such as the gorgeous location.<\/p>\n \u201cWith a beachside venue, you have a beautiful outlook over the ocean, and with a lunchtime reception the stunning water views are something guests can enjoy the entire time,\u201d says Amy, who has two rooms<\/a> with private balconies looking out over the Pacific \u2013 the Ocean Room, which can cater for 80-110 guests and the Pearl Room, which can host from 130-300.<\/p>\n It also means guests can explore, as well as admire, their surrounds.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat a lot of people do here is have their ceremony at the nearby lighthouse, and then they just walk down here for the reception,\u201d says Amy, who notes plentiful nearby parking is free and untimed.<\/p>\n By doing it this way they have the time and the freedom to go for a wander along the beach or just take five minutes to breath in the salt air.<\/p>\n It also allows couples to play around with their timetable, since they\u2019re not rushing to fit everything in before the sun sinks under the horizon.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a lunchtime wedding last year where the couple didn\u2019t want to have their ceremony really early in the morning, so they tweaked the order in which they did things,\u201d says Amy, who notes City Beach also offers discounts for Sunday and winter weddings. \u201cThey scheduled the ceremony for right before the reception and then had all of their photographs taken afterwards.<\/p>\n \u201cThe beauty of this was they still had plenty of daylight to play with for their photo shoot, while the guests really appreciated not having that traditional gap in proceedings.\u201d<\/p>\n Lunchtime receptions are also extremely family friendly, as they can save parents having to find babysitters for a night, can allow children to come along at a time of day when they are alert and happy, and can also allow a group of littlies to be entertained by a hired babysitter either indoors or out.<\/p>\n Timetable tweaking further allows the wedding to be fashioned as a celebration in three parts \u2013 the usual getting ready, the festivities, and then the late afternoon and evening to play with in bespoke fashion.<\/p>\n Some people use this time to have dinner just as newlyweds, to encourage their guests to play tourist \u2013 especially for a destination wedding – or to stage an after-party with family and friends.<\/p>\n