Open Bar, Open Wounds

Many couples choose to have an open bar at their wedding. While this may seem like a generous gesture it is also an expensive and dangerous tradition. Irrespective of the occasion, free flowing alcohol inevitably gives rise to a multitude of situational problems. Before choosing this option, weigh the consequences closely.

Consider the Risks

An open bar means that everyone at your wedding has access to alcohol, often without proper identification. It also means that you are paying for that alcohol. This becomes expensive in two ways.

First the actual cost of the alcohol. At a large wedding the total cost can escalate rapidly.

The second is far worse than just spending money. Let’s suppose for a moment that the bartender does not check an id and on the way home an underage drinker gets stopped by the police. One thing leads to another and what happens? You could get arrested for contributing to the delinquency of a minor at your wedding reception. That surely not how you want to start off your honeymoon is it?

Maybe though something far worse happens and that underage drinker is killed driving drunk. Now not only can you be charged with contributing but you could also be charged with manslaughter.

Other problems that are not as grave but are just as embarrassing can also occur. If a couple of your wedding guests do not get along and one or both of them happen to be violent drinkers, before you know what is happening they have had a few drinks and are brawling right in the middle of your wedding reception. It’s nothing new. Horror stories happen everyday, triggered off by alcohol.

Nobody Loves a Drunk Groom

I personally know one groom who became so intoxicated that he brought up on his tuxedo during the reception. His post wedding photos were taken in jeans and a tee shirt. The honeymoon had to be delayed by a day because he was too ill to travel. This cost them extra for the change in their plane tickets. It also cost them extra for the tuxedo which they could no longer get their deposit back on. The couples wedding night was spent at the brides’ parents home with the bride asleep and the groom in the bathroom. What a wonderful way to start their life together. Without alcohol this would not have happened. Don’t let these things happen to you.

You Can Have Fun Without Alcohol

People are just as likely to have fun without alcohol. No one needs to be intoxicated to enjoy themselves. While some may believe that alcohol helps them relax, it isn’t true. Alcohol merely lowers inhibitions leading to disaster. A good host or hostess can make people feel comfortable without any kind of liquor. Rather than having an open bar, consider asking one of your more outgoing friends to act as host or hostess. They will be honoured to be a part of your wedding and you will save a great deal of money and heartache.

Sober is better. If you do not offer alcohol at your wedding reception there is a much less likely a chance that anything like this will happen. Besides wouldn’t it be better to remember your first night as a married couple?