Some wedding guests like to get down and boogie all night long, while others prefer to prop up the bar. Get your guests mingling and having fun with these top ideas for entertaining guests who don’t like dancing.
Fantastic fete ideas
Are you having an English country garden themed wedding? If the weather is nice then how about an outdoor fairground with old-fashioned stalls like a coconut shy, hoopla and swings?
Play ball!
How about a massive volleyball contest with a big soft ball. You could have the bride’s party on one side, the groom’s on the other. Be warned – this could get a little competitive!
Drum roll please
A drum tutorial. Everyone is able to beat the drums in some sort of unison, even if they don’t have any rhythm. This would be especially fun for any children attending your big day.
Line dancing fun
Although some guests are not keen on dancing, it may just be that they lack confidence in their skills on the dance floor or feel that their moves are a little out-dated. In that case, why not get everybody line dancing? It’s not enormously energetic (so good for the oldies), it’s great fun, you don’t need a partner and everybody will feel they are doing it as a group.
Picture perfect
How about a caricature artist? You know, the type of artist you see working on pavement stalls near city tourist attractions. People enjoy watching a caricature coming together; the person being drawn will wonder what it’s eventually going to look like and at the end of the evening they have something to take home with them. Maybe you could offer caricatures instead of wedding favours?
Crazy karaoke!
Although your guests may not like dancing, they may be karaoke fiends! You could set up a separate room with karaoke and watch the fun unfold. Sometimes even the most shy and retiring individual really comes to life behind a karaoke mike!
Spin the wheel
Set up a casino with a roulette wheel and a blackjack table. You can hire casino equipment and it’s a good idea to have somebody in charge of proceedings. Your male guests will enjoy channelling their inner James Bond fantasies and the women can pretend they are Bond girls!
Quiet chit-chat
Don’t forget that many of the guests at your wedding will probably just want to talk. Some people may have not seen each other for ages, particularly if they have flown in from abroad. So to keep them happy you’ll just need to provide a quiet area away from the music (like a chill-out room) where they can gossip to their heart’s content.
Magic moments
Magicians are great for multitasking at weddings. They can mingle with guests at the wedding reception and then entertain the non-dancers when everybody else has hit the floor.
Forget dancing
If you know that the majority of your guests aren’t interested in dancing and you’re not that keen yourself, then why don’t you rethink the time of your wedding? Instead of doing the standard afternoon/evening ceremony reception thing, you could get married in the morning and have a lunch instead. Then dancing won’t even come into the equation.
Anyone for croquet?
If you’re getting married in a country house wedding venue, then check if there is a croquet lawn. A croquet tournament is the perfect way of keeping all ages happy – it’s not particularly energetic but a match will absorb both the participants and spectators.
Snap happy!
Wedding photo booths will appeal to all ages and have the added attraction that they are a good source of wedding photos for you. Grandparents can be snapped with grandchildren, everybody can dress up in silly hats, moustaches and glasses… a photobooth is almost certainly going to be a winner.
