Home
Weddings
Ideas
Advice
Suppliers
The Whole Works
The Whole Works
By Louise Baltruschat Hollis
Engagement parties are such a fun way to let your friends and family know that you’ve found the one. Hooray! It’s time to properly celebrate.
You can also use this as a perfect opportunity to introduce your nearest and dearest to your fiance if they’ve yet to meet, so they know who he/she is before wedding planning commences.
Photo: Matt Fox Photography
In this ultimate engagement party guide, you will find answers to your burning questions, a step-by-step guide on how to plan an engagement party plus a plethora of unique engagement party ideas to get your creative juices flowing.
Skip To
An engagement party is a perfect chance for you to celebrate your future marriage in front of your friends, family, and future in-laws.
The engagement party can be a great way for you to introduce yourselves to one another’s families, especially if you are from different cultures and have yet to meet. It can also be a great opportunity for friends and family members to socialise with each other. Engagement parties are a great ice-breaker before wedding planning starts.
However, an engagement party is not necessary, it’s down to personal choice. For example, you may be planning to have an intimate wedding with few guests. Or you have a small budget which could mean an engagement party doesn’t suit you. Perhaps you decide to keep wedding planning low key, skip the party and move straight to wedding planning.
Overall it depends on what you want and feel is best for you.
Engagement parties are traditionally held to celebrate when two people get engaged. Generally, the party consists of family and friends.
It is a way for guests to tell their stories and share memories with those who will be in their life as they begin their new journey together. Engagement parties are considered an opportunity for both sides of the family to meet and greet before the wedding itself. For some, they bring up feelings of nostalgia reminding them of when they became engaged themselves.
The most important thing that needs to happen at your engagement party is bringing together new people and catching up with friends and family members! There can be great food, fun music, meaningful speeches, interactive games or a few drinks. The sky is the limit.
Engagement parties are a great way to celebrate with your friends and family to show them that you are getting married. They can be expensive, but luckily there are ways to cut down on the cost of throwing a party.
Many factors can affect the price of your engagement party: number of guests, venue, entertainment, food, etc. This makes it difficult to give a price range because it depends on the individual situation and may vary from party to party.
An engagement party can cost as little as a round of drinks at your local to a full-blown extravaganza costing thousands. Most importantly though, don’t feel pressured to blow your budget. Do what works for you.
The person who hosts the engagement party is typically the couples’ parents or a family member. They are hosting a party to celebrate their child’s upcoming marriage. However, more often than not the couple throws their own engagement party in more recent times.
Traditionally, the couple’s family has paid for the engagement party. But, more commonly now, the couple themselves pay for their engagement party.
Photo: Liza O’Malley Photography
Some people think it’s best to keep the party in their home (or another familiar place) and others think it’s more fun to go out for dinner or drinks at a restaurant or bar before coming back home for dessert and games.
One way of making an engagement party special is by hosting it at a venue with landmark architecture or unique features.
Many different types of venues can be rented for engagement parties. For example, there are a plethora of art galleries that can provide guests with original artwork and sculptures to look at while they enjoy their drinks.
Some theatres provide spaces for lecturers and performances.
Other types of venues include hotels, ballrooms, museums, restaurants, parks, woodland, campsites, halls, barns, gardens and bars. Be brave and think outside of the box.
One of the most important aspects to think about is setting a date for your engagement party. The engagement party is usually scheduled before wedding planning officially begins.
It can be held anywhere from six months to a year or more before the wedding itself. There are five things you should take into account before setting a date for your engagement party:
The guest list is everything. It sets the tone for the event, and it determines who you’ll be surrounded with all night. The right guest list is a balancing act between good friends and family.
It’s important to choose your wedding guest list first, you should only invite those who you will be inviting to your wedding.
Here are some tips to help you determine your ideal guest list:
Your party doesn’t need a theme to be perfect, but some couples like this idea. You could have a colour theme or mood theme, or you could just have an assortment of decorations that work together well.
You could also choose an exciting bespoke menu or special personalised drinks. Personalise your party with a unique playlist or hire a DJ or live band to entertain you into the small hours. Whatever makes your heart sing.
Send out party invites as soon as you have the date, venue, theme and timings arranged. That way your guests can make space in their calendar to come along.
Be sure to make it super easy to RSVP, whether that be on social media, in person or via phone/email. This should help to speed up the responses.
Some engagement parties are formal and others are more relaxed and casual. The dress code can vary depending on what type of event it is and where it’s being held.
When looking for an outfit, try and be on a similar page. Don’t worry about matching your outfit colours, but choose something you feel comfortable in, relaxed and totally yourself. You want to party feeling confident.
Host your party at home or in your back garden. Get a gazebo, buy-in drinks, fire up the BBQ and nail down your playlist.
You will have yourself a fun, low-key, budget-friendly engagement bash. Here are some other at-home engagement party ideas:
Photo: David Boynton Photography & Film
How about a picnic in the park engagement party? Have a game of rounders/cricket/football, ask guests to bring a hamper of food and stock up on Pimms. Don’t forget to bring blankets, parasols and cute decorations.
Host an intimate engagement party for close members of your wedding party by having a meal out. A cosy, intimate meal will allow your nearest and dearest to get to know one another before wedding planning kicks off.
You can kick back and relax, no major planning stresses, just great food and lovely company.
Photo: Benji North Photography
If you want to throw a full-on party, hire an event space. You could go to a local venue, such as a hotel, pub or bar. Or you could opt for a quirky space like a museum, boat, barn or tipi.
Then come up with a theme for decorations to make it extra special.
Photo: Craig Williams
How about a weekend away to celebrate your engagement? You could always invite just a small group of friends, hire an AirBnB or go camping.
Whatever takes your fancy really, but extending the celebrations are sure to increase the number of memories made.
Why not head to a cute cafe for pancakes or to your fave greasy spoon for a proper fry up? Rally around your loved ones and have a really special brunch treat, don’t forget the champers!
What better way than sharing your engagement news than by hosting a surprise engagement party? If you have nerves of steel and can wait long enough to keep the secret. Then go on and surprise your friends and family with the lure of a low key get together.
Bam, announce all in a special speech or with a cool banner on arrival. Wait for the tears and smiles all round.
Photo: Marianne Chua Photography
Afternoon tea is a popular way to celebrate life’s milestones, so surely it’s perfect for an engagement too? Either head to a swanky hotel, a local tea room or bake up a storm in your kitchen.
You know you deserve those scones and lashings of steaming hot tea. And maybe a cheeky cocktail.
Gather your squad and head to your favourite festival. Think fun outfits, glitter makeup and incredible music. This is perfect if you envision a festival wedding, it gives a real sense of what’s to come.
When all is said and done, an engagement party is totally optional, it can be a casual affair or an opulent bash. You could opt-out of having an engagement party or throw the biggest party your loved ones has ever seen.
However, always stay true to yourselves as a couple, stay within your budget and enjoy the process. Your engagement is a special time and you will want to look back on the best memories ever.
Proposed Changes to UK Marriage Laws: What You Need to Know The government has announced what it calls the biggest overhaul of marriage laws in England and Wales since the 19th century. The proposals aim to make weddings more flexible, boost the hospitality industry, and give couples more choice over where and how they marry. […]
Read More
One of the first decisions couples face when planning their wedding is whether to invite kids. Children can bring something special to the event and might even have their own roles as ring bearers or flower girls, but they also come with extra planning considerations. There’s no right or wrong answer. It’s your wedding after […]
Read MoreYou May Also Like
Explore more posts from the blog
Want In On Our Happy Wedding Letter?
Join over a thousand engaged couples (and counting) who have snagged our fun no-nonsense regular wedding advice and inspo straight to their inbox. Plus you'll get planning checklists & spreadsheets for absolutely nada.
© 2010 - 2026. Whimsical Wonderland Weddings Ltd & Wedissimo Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
Leave a Reply