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Wedding Transport – Arranging Your Wedding Cars |
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For your wedding day, you will be arranging
for a number of experienced specialists to come together and each do
their own part of your big day - and they each will know what is
required in their specialist fields.
What we have prepared for you here is information on arranging
your wedding transportation with specialist wedding car providers.
We don’t profess to be experts in all aspects of your wedding
day, but we can assist with choosing and appointing the right
transportation company for your wedding cars, and with our advice things
should run smoothly on the day. In the past, the bride's parents usually
took responsibility for the financing of the wedding - many still do. However these days, more and more couples are financing and
organising the whole event themselves.
When you start out, organising a wedding can seem like one giant
headache. Certainly it’s
a big task and a very important day where you don’t want any unwelcome
surprises! But it’s not
that bad – wedding organising is a matter of common sense, mixed with
a sense of logical planning and organisation supported by your family
and friends. Don’t worry – you have all these things already! Start by running through the wedding day itself in your mind. Imagine the different scenarios from the point of view of the bride, groom and your intended guests. Where will they travel from, who can – or cannot – travel together, does anyone have any special needs, who can arrive at the wedding venue earlier than others (thus, having to wait longer for the ceremony), how will you transport those guests arriving by wedding cars provided by you from the wedding venue to the reception, will the bride and groom or anyone else require transport later in the evening?
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Finding The Right Wedding Car Company |
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Your choice of wedding transportThere
a many specialist wedding car companies to choose from, each with their
own fleet of vehicles. Your
first consideration will be the sort of vehicle (or vehicles) that you
choose for your wedding. This
is down to personal choice and budget – you can choose almost
anything from a horse to a Masseratti!
Most people will make a choice from the general selection of
the most popular forms of wedding transportation; horse drawn carriage,
vintage cars, elegant cars and limousines. Horse and CarriageIf the horse and carriage appeals to you
for the bride’s trip to the venue and for the bride and groom to leave
afterwards, then you may also have to consider additional wedding
transport for the groom to travel to the wedding, and for your bridesmaids,
immediate family and special guests to get to the church or venue.
When planning to travel by horse and carriage consider the
distance that you are expecting the horse to travel (from the bride’s
home to the wedding venue and afterwards from the venue on to the reception), most
carriage operators have a restriction on the total distance that their
horses can travel. Extra
travelling time will need to be built in to your plans as the horses
will cover the route at little more than a brisk walking pace.
Additionally, bear in mind that the route will need to be
negotiable for the carriage – as well as the horses, so very steep
hills, any cattle grids and busy traffic areas could be a difficulty. Vintage and Classic CarsSome specialist wedding car suppliers have a bespoke
fleet of vintage or classic cars for you to choose from.
Arrival and departure from the church or other wedding venue in
one of these classic cars is a certain head-turner.
You will need to choose a specific vehicle when booking the
classic or vintage car,
as each one will be unique. Bear
in mind that these are, by their very nature, older cars so ask the
operator what contingencies are in place in the event of breakdown. Luxury Wedding CarsMost wedding cars, and most additional
wedding transport requirements, are chosen from the top-of-the-range
luxury car market from bespoke manufacturers such as Rolls Royce,
Bentley, Mercedes, etc. Even if you have chosen a ‘special’ form of
transportation for your wedding day, you will still have to consider how
your bridesmaids and other special guests will travel, and that probably
means hiring this type of luxury car for your main or additional transport.
The majority of weddings will utilise these cars to provide the
total transport requirements for everyone, including the bride and
groom. The Wedding LimousineStretched limousines have an established
track record as wedding cars in America and are becoming ever more
popular in other parts of the world.
They are luxurious and have the ability to carry a much larger
number of passengers than most other cars.
Dressed with wedding ribbons in a coordinating colour they look the part!
The vast space in the passenger compartment easily accommodates
the groom’s party (Best Man, Groomsmen, Ushers, etc.), a limousine
means that the bride’s mother and
the bridesmaids can travel together in one car and they will hold even the
most flamboyant of wedding dresses. At some weddings, the bride chooses to travel to the wedding
along with her parents and bridesmaids as one party – this is ideal if
the wedding venue is a long distance from home and could save time or the
expense of an additional wedding car. Specialist Wedding VehiclesOccasionally, the bride or groom (or both!) will have a wish to travel by a bespoke personal choice of transport on their wedding day. Sports car transportation (Porsche, Ferrari, Masseratti, or one of many top makes of fast cars) to the wedding is increasingly popular with the groom, and some brides. Often, this is the bride’s surprise gift to the groom on his wedding day. Alternatively, one of the happy couple takes the opportunity to fulfill a long term desire to travel in a particular, and unusual, type of vehicle and the list for these is as differing as the people themselves – we have seen people arrive for their wedding by Tractor, Double-decker bus, London Taxi, Fire Engines, Helicopter, the list is endless! Organising Your Wedding CarsYou’ll need to consider how many wedding cars you’re going to need for your wedding day, and of what type. If you are able to book all of these with one operator it will make co-ordination easier, but if not, then most wedding car companies have enough experience to make sure that their involvement on the day is executed efficiently and in cooperation with the other cars that are attending. You will need to consider the number of people you need to travel to the venue, the capacity of each car and the locations that they are travelling from. Don’t try to overburden each car; there is only so much it will be able to do when you consider traffic conditions and the fact that you don’t want your special guests to have to wait around at the wedding venue for too long before the service. Do
give some consideration to the fact that your guests may be a little
less concerned with the timing than you have been when planning it –
it’s not unusual for the car to arrive to collect them only to find
that they delay it for a further 10 – 15 minutes because they
weren’t ready at the allotted time!
If you need help with planning the schedule for the wedding cars
most vehicle operators will be happy to assist and draw on their
experience and knowledge. Finding The Right Wedding Cars SupplierWhen you have decided on your wedding
cars it’s time to locate a responsible, experienced operator that you
can trust with your wedding transportation.
This is much easier said than done!
Personal recommendations are always a good place to start, but if you
don’t have this advantage there are alternatives.
Try an internet search for ‘wedding car hire your-area’
or a local telephone directory listing under ‘Wedding Cars’.
When you have established that particular companies can supply
the cars of choice, then you need to start narrowing down the options
until you find the one that’s right for you.
The important thing to remember is to book your wedding cars as
early as possible, as the most respected companies are likely to have
taken bookings months, even years, ahead for their wedding vehicles. So how do you decide who to trust with
your wedding transport? Compile
a list of questions to ask each of the potential suppliers and you will
be left with enough information from each of them to make your choice.
Here are a few suggestions of what you may wish to ask: First of all, do they have the cars available for your wedding date? Age and condition of the cars you are interested in? The number of passengers each will comfortably accommodate? The chauffeur’s qualifications and experience? Are the chauffeurs uniformed? Type of insurance cover? (eg. Public liability, Passenger liability, etc.) What provision exists in the event of a vehicle not being available on your wedding day? What happens in the event of a breakdown during your wedding transport? Do they offer ribbons (and do you get to choose the colour) and floral arrangements in the cars? Is music provided in the cars, and can you supply it / choose it? Are the cars equipped with umbrellas in case it rains? Do they offer champagne in the car for the bride and groom as they leave the wedding ceremony? Will the car(s) remain at the wedding venue during the service? (You don’t want them leaving for another hire and risking your delay afterwards) What about additional charges if the
wedding over-runs the estimated time that you have booked the cars for?
(Most operators will build in an allowance for minor delays) Add your own questions into the list and
then compare all of the answers that you have after speaking to
everyone. This should give you a comfortable list of comparisons from
which to make your decision. Having decided on your preferred
supplier, confirm all of the booking details, times, addresses for
collections / wedding venue / reception in writing.
Confirm the agreed price if the transport company hasn’t sent
you a written quotation. Timing The Journeys To The WeddingIf you wish to time the wedding cars
schedule(s), it may be worth drawing up your itinerary for each car and
then driving the routes that the car will take on your wedding day.
If you do this on the same day as you plan for your wedding, at
similar times, you will get a good indication of the journey times
involved. If necessary,
allow for any local seasonal variations in traffic levels.
Don’t forget to build in an allowance for unexpected delays
when planning the journeys, for example possible road works, accidents,
bad weather, etc (but your guests themselves are likely to create the
delays by not being ready to leave when the car arrives!).
If you are travelling by a particularly slower mode of transport,
then make allowances for the speed of the vehicle. Review the transport arrangements for
your guests from the church / venue to the reception.
The bride and groom will travel together in one car (and normally
they are the first to leave), but cars that have made a number of journeys to
the church will have to be scheduled to shuttle people onwards to the
reception – starting with the parents.
Your best man is normally charged with the responsibility of
ensuring that all the guests have transport to the reception, so he will
be in the last car to leave the church / venue.
It is worth noting that it is wise to advise your photographer of
the time that you wish to commence moving to the reception – this is
one of the main delays that are created after the wedding ceremony and
is probably the single most cause of additional charges for over-running
the allotted time for the wedding cars! Final Checks and ConfirmationsBefore the wedding day itself, double
check your guest list and make sure that everyone has some form of
transport to your wedding. Ask
the bride and groom’s neighbours to leave sufficient access and
parking space for your wedding cars (and turning space if necessary –
a limousine is over thirty feet long). Re-confirm the transport booking arrangements with the
wedding car company. Obtain
the mobile phone number of the bride’s chauffeur and ensure the best
man also has it. Provide
details of the route between the groom’s home and the venue, the
bride’s home and the venue and from the wedding venue to the
reception, although most companies won’t require this, it’s a safety
net in the event that a car becomes lost. Finally, relax and enjoy your special day, leaving the professionals to do the job that you have asked of them. Good luck for the future. Andrew Shaw has years of experience in supplying wedding cars to all kinds of weddings and wedding venues. Practical advice on planning, arranging and booking your wedding transportation. Details of his UK operation can be found at Chariots Wedding Cars |
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The average wedding takes over 250 hours to coordinate!You will have worked hard to create your own perfect wedding day. With the right planning, you can be a guest at your own wedding knowing that the time and effort you have put into the planning will pay off. |
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