Great Ways To Entertain Your Younger Wedding Guests

by Monday 21st September 2020blog

If you are having children at your wedding make sure you plan entertainment for them, weddings are a great time for children to see their family however they are not always the most entertaining of days out for them. There can often be a lot of sitting and waiting around which can lead to the children becoming restless and interrupting their parents who are trying to relax and enjoy the day with you. This can easily be prevented if you arrange appropriate entertainment, especially in those periods you would expect to be less interesting for them. For example, the wedding breakfast, which can be a very long 2 hours for a young child. Below I have put together the top ways I have found work well for entertaining your younger guests.

Hire an Entertainer/Nanny – There are different options for this, you could either hire a specific entertainer such as a puppet show for an hour or a Nanny who will provide entertainment as well as be there all day to watch over the children. If you have your own children you may find it best to hire a Nanny to look after your children and put them to bed in the evening, the Nanny can then stay with them until you are back to your room or even a family members room depending on if you have been able to convince anyone to have them for the evening. This way you have peace of mind that the children are being looked after whilst also knowing that you aren’t having to rely on family members, meaning they can also relax and enjoy the day to its fullest potential. Depending on your agreement the Nanny could potentially follow through with the entertainment you have planned yourself as below.

Children's entertainment for weddings
Outdoor Games – If you have outdoor space that you are expecting your guests to use to socialise, arrange outdoor activities and games for the children in this area. This way you give the children lots of space to play and run around to use all of their energy, whilst being in the same area as the adults. This will work great if you don’t have a Nanny or another entertainer, as the parents won’t have to stay inside near the indoor entertainment for the children as there will be options for them outside meaning no one has to miss out. It also means that the children get a change of scenery from being indoors all day. If your timing is more of an issue than budget you can buy pre-made games from local stores or even online if you are stuck for time, if you are watching the pennies then take a look at making your own. There are many good ideas on Pinterest that are simple to make yet a big winner with children, if you are not normally a DIY person why not take a look around your local charity shops? You will not only be helping them out but you are likely to pick up a bargain on some preloved games.
outdoor games for children to play at weddings - bubbles

Entertainment Packs On The Tables – As mentioned, the wedding breakfast can be one of the hardest times for your younger guests. It has become very popular to arrange packs for the children’s place setting with different activities to keep them entertained. They often include colouring, books, mini-games and my favourite that I have seen is disposable cameras with a list of photos they need to snap during the wedding day. This is great fun and will keep them entertained for a good amount of time, you can also arrange for the list to include snaps together with the other children to encourage them to get involved. This is a way to keep them entertained that you can arrange yourself and can be adapted to suit your budget, depending on your budget you can keep the packs very simple with low-cost goodies from stores such as Poundland or the Range or you can fill it with higher quality activities and toys they can take away after the wedding. Such as the disposable cameras, although this will cost more you will also get something to keep as you will get the photos developed, there may be a few hidden gems in there!

Young boy poses with camera at wedding

Kids Drinks and Snack Bar – Arrange for an extra trestle table to be set up in the main room and fill it with their favourite snacks and drinks, you could even arrange for the children’s evening food to go on this table separately away from the adults. It can be very simple to arrange but it will make them feel special and make them feel they have their own area, allowing them to enjoy food and drink times instead of parents having to force them to stay hydrated and make them eat. You can cater this to your budget, you can keep it simple with minimal snacks a couple of carton drinks and sweets or splash more cash and go for a chocolate fountain and a Slush Puppie machine, to give you some ideas.

Milkshake and sweet treats for young wedding guests

Movie Room – If you have a large group of children it is easier to keep them all entertained in one area for as long as possible. Creating a movie room will work great if you have a small room attached to your function room or you have a Nanny that can supervise the children in a different room in your venue. You can use a projector to display the film on a blank wall or even better a screen if you can get hold of one, if you don’t have the equipment you could ask around your guests ahead of the wedding or see if your venue has them available. Depending on your venue you can arrange for seating or just provide cushions and blankets for them to sit on, I am sure some classic popcorn wouldn’t also go a miss!

Sweet wedding treats - tray of popcorn

If you plan to have children at your wedding there are many ways you can arrange to keep them entertained so both the children and parents can fully enjoy your special day with you. I believe that if you have the budget available a Nanny is the first thing to arrange as they will oversee the children for the entire day as well as arrange the on the day logistics of some of the entertainment you have prearranged. Of course, any of the entertainment you are looking to arrange be sure to confirm with the parents beforehand to ensure they are happy with this and that their children don’t have any specific requirements.