50th Wedding Anniversary Planning

By Suz Daykin

50th wedding anniversary planning can be a bit stressful! 50 years of making friends and family can mean that there would be lots of people to invite and the expectation of a great party as well as a big mixture of ages can add to the pressure. Not that I am trying to put you off! If you plan your anniversary party then there will be no need to panic.

You first need to think about the type of party that your golden couple would enjoy. My aunt and uncle had a big party, organised as a wedding, complete with dancing but my grandparents enjoyed a family meal at one of their favourite restaurants. Which would they enjoy?

When you have worked out if you are inviting everyone or just family you will have a rough idea of numbers. You will now need to find the venue! Look at local hotels and function facilities, get menu samples, bar prices and if not included, the room hire. Also ask around, a local community hall could be just what you are looking for in space and also facilities. A number of community centres have their own kitchen and just ask that you clear up afterwards. This could save you a fortune. If the couple are members of a local social club or golf club they may have membership discounts to hire the room, plus this is a venue known to them and the service would be great, you may even get a few extras.

When you are looking around any of the possible venues think about the size of the room - is everyone going to be seated at tables. The location - is it easy to find for your guests that are travelling, is there overnight accommodation if needed? And the decor - would you need to spend lots to make the room look nice?

When you have all the information, the next stage in your 50th wedding anniversary planning is to collate all of the facts; prices, sizes, ease, minimum numbers etc. We find the best way to do this is to have all of the information on a spreadsheet so that you can compare apples with apples. When you have made your decision you will need pay a deposit to the venue to secure the date, and make sure you read the contract!

Now that the venue is booked you will need to organise invitations and possibly accommodation. It would be a good idea to contact local hotels for prices so that you could include a list of possible places that your guests could stay in the invitation. Don't get involved in booking accommodation, let your guests do that otherwise you may find that this will take up most of your time. Get your guests to reply with any special dietary requirements

Discuss catering with the venue or with the caterer when you have your replies so that they have all the details of children's meals or special needs. You will need to confirm numbers a couple of weeks before the party - check with your venue as to what is best.

Organise any decor - it could be flowers, balloons, candles and either book with the decor company or get your volunteers ready! You may want to get into the venue the night before to get everything in place. Make sure your venue knows this as they may have another function on.

If you want to have a special 50th anniversary cake then you will need to book this with a baker in advance, some people have replicas of their wedding cake or the wedding cake they always wanted, others will have fun cakes that show off their personality.

Venue booked, invitations sent and received back, numbers confirmed, decorations done, cake ready at bakers, all that is left is to have a great 50th anniversary party!

Suz Daykin is the Editor of Anniversary Gifts By Year, the complete guide for anniversary gift ideas and how to organise great anniversary parties.

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