Your wedding guests go to a lot of effort and expense to attend your wedding. They have travel expenses, wedding attire and jewelry, the gift, and so forth. Let them know how much you appreciate them by making sure that they feel welcome at your event. From the hotel to the ceremony to the reception, these are some ideas on how to greet your wedding guests with a warm welcome.

Your first chance to welcome your guests to your wedding is when they arrive at their hotel. The chances are that you will be way too busy to hang out in the lobby and greet each guest personally as they arrive, so you will want to make arrangements with the hotel to provide a gracious welcome to your wedding. There are a couple of ways that you can do this. One is to have wedding welcome bags, filled with everything from local delicacies to luxe lotions to details on the wedding weekend events. The front desk can hand a welcome bag to each of your wedding guests as they arrive, or the bags can be placed in each guest's room as a special surprise.

An alternative to the wedding welcome bag or basket is a wedding welcome packet. These packets include information on the weekend schedule of events, such as the times for the ceremony, reception, and day-after brunch. In addition, you can include maps and suggestions for local activities and landmarks for your guests to explore. These packets can be handed out at the front desk as guests check in, or you can make up a really cute packet designed to hang on the door of each guest's hotel room.

When your guests arrive at your wedding ceremony, you want to immediately make them feel comfortable. Depending on your ceremony location, there are a variety of ways to do this. One of the biggest new trends in weddings is to offer some sort of pre-ceremony refreshments to welcome guests as they arrive. This can be as simple as cold bottles of water for an outdoor wedding (you could dress them up with custom labels) to as elaborate as a mini cocktail hour. If you are looking for something in between, you can't go wrong with having a waiter circulating with trays of Champagne or prosecco to greet your guests.

For outdoor or theme weddings, the welcome for your guests can be a bit more involved. Couples who are having beach weddings will find that nothing says, "relax and have a good time at our wedding" quite like a basket of flip flops for guests to slip into. Make it even better by setting up a shelf where guests can stash their regular shoes. If you are having a tropical wedding, get your guests into the spirit by greeting them with beautiful floral leis. Designate a family member or a groomsman to place a lei around the neck of each guest as they arrive for your ceremony (instruct him to be careful not to snag any of the female guests' hair or wedding jewelry).

Be sure to give your guests an equally hearty welcome when they arrive at your reception. Trays of Champagne or a signature cocktail by the door they will enter is a perfect way to show your hospitality. Your guests will appreciate all the effort that you have put into making them feel welcome and comfortable, and it will get your party off to a wonderful start.

Saving money as wedding guest, can sometimes be as hard as the couple saving money on the wedding Event. Brides can sometimes in their quest for their perfect day forget that their guests have not saved up for this specific day like the bride and groom may have over a significant crunch of both time and money. Because of this forgetfulness, wedding guests often feel of pinch of having to buy something special to wear to the event, or to participate in the many pre-wedding and post-wedding events. Or even to purchase an expensive gift, just because they have been invited to the wedding. Friendship is one thing, but the wedding couple, must remember that their guests do not want to spend the rest of their lives paying for the happy event in collusion with them.

When planning the wedding the couple must take into consideration their guests range of attention-span during pre-wedding events and amount of money that may be spent for these prenuptial events. Shortening or eliminating them altogether is a plus for the wedding guests because their length of staying at a premium hotel may be shortened. Not everything should or has to be mandatory and revolve around the wedding event. That alone, will cut down on outfits to purchase. For my husband and my wedding, we dispensed with the rehearsal dinner, which saved both our wedding party time and money, especially since the pre-wedding gift was no longer "an expectancy". In actuality, we hadn't expected it, but with the traditions of the rehearsal dinner, the wedding party usually is expected to buy an additional gift for the couple who they are attending and vice-versa.

Since my husband and I were well into adulthood, we did not expect nor need any of the big-ticket items that have become the norm for most wedding gift registries. A few additions were set-up, but not entire stores-full of items. Gift certificates of small denominations were encouraged and although no one took us up on the gift certificates or really even the registry, Amazon and Bed, Bath, & Beyond were our picks. Most of our guests gave us money of varying combinations, which is always a plus, and a time-saver for the guests. Our wedding was on a Saturday mid-afternoon in a church which cut down on wearing apparel cost for most of our guests. Since it was a June wedding, buying or having dressy formal wear is easy for most folks. Summer weddings are easy apparel re-wear, with most people being able to wear it again to a barbecue.

Wedding guest favors can be something that will remind guests of your marriage ceremony for years to come. These gifts may seem like insignificant tokens, but can carry a great deal of personality and meaning when chosen well. Wedding favors for guests should be given some thought. After all, these favors are what guests will carry away with them and in some cases may keep for years. Moreover, they are a gift from the couple to their guests, representing the reciprocal bonds of love and gratitude.

Many couples feel that wedding guest favors don't need as much attention as other details of the special event. However, the guests are there to honor the couple and share in their nuptials, and wedding guest favors are a way for the couple to show the guests that their presence is appreciated and treasured. Also, many wedding favor gifts can be kept and used by the guests for years to come, making them a lasting reminder of you ever so special day. Wedding favor gifts can also help to let your personality shine through. By taking the time to select really fitting favor gifts, guests will be left with the impression that their presence is truly appreciated. Some really different favors can be great for getting conversation going at your reception.

Many couples drive themselves crazy trying to think of some unusual favors for their guests, but often end up with traditional and safe ideas. Quirky gifts might not go over well with some guests, especially those expecting a traditional service. Other times, guest favors that are too personalized to the couples' tastes just won't be generally popular. Favor gifts that your friends might love could be hated by your families. They need to be generic enough for all or most of the guests to be happy.

Useful gifts are often a good answer to the guest favor dilemma. Candles or picture frames can be good solutions, as offerings that guests can use may be longer lasting than the edible type. Whatever the choice, it is important that wedding gift favors fit well with the other details of the event. Quirky favors at a traditional wedding will be out of place, nor does a theme wedding with traditional favors make sense. Wedding favors will be more memorable when they make guests think of the couple as well as the ceremony.

Different kinds of guest favors serve different purposes, from delicious treats to active engagement in the reception to personalized keepsakes. Deciding which road to go requires deciding what purpose you would like your wedding favors to serve. Should they get guests involved in the ceremony? Should they strike up conversation among tables of strangers? Should they provide a decadent treat? Making this first decision can be helpful in selecting the favor gifts that are right for your celebration.

Once you've made that decision, the next step is to find the right wedding favors and personalize them as much as possible. Although guest favors are the same for all guests, they are still a gift from the couple to those who are sharing in their celebration. As such, wedding guest favors should reflect the atmosphere of the wedding and remind the guests of the couple.

Wedding favors should be specific to you as a couple and to your event, rather than being just some random gift that could be given out anywhere and by anyone. A personal touch can be as simple as creative packaging, but is one of the most important parts of the favor gift and really make a personal connection with your guests.