Arranging the tables at your wedding venue

The way your guests are arranged around the dinner tables at your wedding venue can have a big impact on the overall feel of your reception, so put some thought into the table layout that you would like.

It may be that you are limited by the size and shape of your venue, and the type of tables that they offer, but when you visit your venue always ask to see their tables and if you really don’t like the size or shape of them ask whether you can hire different ones. If you are having an outdoor or marquee venue and hiring your own wedding furniture, then you can have any layout you like.

Here are three of the most common table layouts for weddings so you can choose the one that best suits your wedding style and venue size:

1. Traditional

   The traditional way to arrange the tables at your wedding venue is a long rectangular top table for the bridal party and small round tables for your guests. The bridal party sit on one side of the rectangular table so that all the guests can see them, and the circular guest tables seat between six and ten people.

   This layout works well because it allows free movement around the venue, with guests being able to get up and move around without having to walk the length of the room. It enables guests to have conversations within small groups of six to ten, and also provides more scope for wedding decorations with each table requiring its own centrepiece.

   There is a slight move away from the traditional table layout as some couples think that guests may feel left out if they are put on a table with people they don’t know, or offended if they are placed on a table a long way from the top table. Putting together the seat plan for this layout can take a great deal of time, and it is quite common to end up with some fun tables and dull tables.

2. Horseshoe

   The horseshoe is increasing in popularity, and is a layout that creates more equality among the guests. Tables are arranged with a long rectangular top table which the bridal party sit along one side of, and then two additional tables placed at right angles to this forming a horseshoe, which guests sit on both sides of.

   This works best if you have a relatively small number of guests, although an additional table can always be placed across the bottom of the horseshoe to make a square, leaving a small gap for guests to pass in and out of. You could also create an E shape, with the top table being the vertical side of the E, and the guests’ tables being the three horizontal prongs.

   The downside of the horseshoe is that some guests will have their backs to the bride and groom, and each guest may have less people sitting within conversational distance than with smaller round tables.

3. Banquet style

   Banquet style receptions are currently very fashionable, with large tables and sharing platters helping to create a noisy vibrant atmosphere, inspired by Italian family weddings.

   

   To create a banquet style layout, have three large tables placed parallel to one another, with the bridal party sitting towards the centre of the middle one and all the guests gathered around the ends of the central table as well as the other two. The bride and groom can even sit facing one another if they wish.

   This is a very sociable layout, but table centres will just get in the way so look to suspend decorations from the ceiling instead. Make sure there is someone sitting at the table ends facing inwards to avoid the person on the end feeling left out.