Creating Welcome Bags for Out of Town Wedding Guests

If you are planning a destination wedding or having of out of town guests, you will want to provide wedding welcome bags for your guests. Wedding welcome bags are an excellent way to welcome your guests to your town or wedding location. While wedding welcome bags can be lavish and extravagant, they don't need to be. You can make them to fit into just about any price point. Just fill the bags with with lots of goodies and have them waiting at the hotel with your guests arrive. Here are some ideas for your welcome bags that your guests will love.

Be creative when choosing the bags to welcome the guests to your wedding. For a beach wedding, use tin beach buckets with a little shovel. For a tourist town, use a cloth shopping bag. Try mini sling bags or cloth back packs for your younger guests. Browse craft and dollar stores looking for baskets, and other creative containers. Order tote bags embroidered with your names, wedding dates, or the names of the guests. To save a little money, use hand-decorated paper bags tied with pretty ribbons.

When looking for items to put in your wedding welcome bags, start with free items like local maps and coupons for tourist attractions. You can get these items from the hotel concierge, or the local tourism office. Look for self-guided tours, horse carriage rides, museum attractions, and activities that are unique to the area. You will want to call a few local restaurants and ask for 'free appetizer' or 'free dessert' coupons for your guests. Most will be glad to oblige. You should also call local companies and ask for free samples of their products.

Be location specific when filling your wedding gift bags. If you are in Georgia, give them peaches. If you are in Washington or Upstate New York, give them apples. If you are in Florida, give them oranges. Beyond fruit, brainstorm the most popular food and snacks from the area. Go to the local farmer's market and pick up honey, jams, and other food items that are made locally. It doesn't have to be only food though. If you are having a Disney wedding for example, be sure to given them a Disney themed bag with Disney ears in them.

Visit your local big box stores for low cost bag fillers. The most important item you can put in your wedding welcome bags is water. Provide two bottles of water per guest. For an added touch, add personalized wedding water bottle labels that you can purchase online. Other items to buy in bulk are mints, packets of aspirin and Tylenol, chewing gum, and candy bars.

Add a few finishing touches to your bags before delivering them to the hotel. Place the gifts on tissue paper in the colors of your wedding decor to give your guests a sneak preview of your theme. Add ribbons to the bag and tie on a small trinket from the wedding location. Don't forget to write a short personal note for your guests to put in the wedding welcome bag.