Planning the Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties

By The Celebration Team 22 Dec, 2015

Just getting to grips with the terminology for a bachelor/bachelorette party is difficult, never mind the planning – in the US it’s a bachelor and bachelorette party; stag and hen night in the UK, and in Australia it’s the hen and buck party. South Africans have tended to follow a more subdued tradition of a bachelor party whilst the bride and her girlfriends get together for dinner or tea. This is changing, and we appear intent on following in the footsteps of women in the UK, who think nothing of spending an entire weekend bingeing on alcohol in a European city of their choice.

What is a bachelor or bachelorette’s party

The bachelor party is held for a bachelor just before he gets married – to make the most of his ‘final opportunity’ to engage in activities of which a new wife might not approve, or just to ‘bond’ with his male friends – it depends to whom you are speaking.

Traditionally a stag or bachelor party includes lots of drinking, gambling, going to a strip club or hiring a female stripper, and a number of pranks at the future groom’s expense – if you are happy calling it a ‘rite of passage’, then indeed, this rather debauched tradition can pass as such.

You could say that the bachelorette was a spin-off. Women got tired of spending the evening wondering what the men were getting up to.

The do’s and don’ts of organising either

Usually the task of organising a bachelor/bachelorette party falls to the best man and matron of honour or bridesmaids. There are some noteworthy guidelines that should help you keep your noses squeaky clean:

DON’T leave the organisation until the last minute – eleventh-hour parties are not impossible, but definitely not worth the agony of juggling everyone’s schedules or trying to find a venue
Planning – make sure that everyone has a map or directions to the venue and one or two contact numbers as not everyone will travel together
Breaking the ice – not everyone attending is going to know one another; something like fancy dress gives everyone something in common.
Collect money beforehand – if you are staying overnight in accommodation, avoid collecting money the morning after; make sure you get deposits or money upfront ahead of time.
Check with the bride and groom – if you’re verging on the ‘wild side’ for the party, they may have an agreement to which you are not privy.

Bachelorette party ideas:

The low-key bachelorette: