7 Tips for Throwing The Best Bachelorette Party Ever!

Woot woot! It’s Bachelorette party time! While movies like The Hangover make party planning a breeze ( you know, minus the whole tiger and missing groom part), there is more to planing a great bachelorette party than booking a hotel room and rounding up your ladies. 

I just came back from my own bachelorette party in Austin, Texas, so I wanted to share my tips and insights for helping you plan the best bachelorette party ever! 

1. Ask the bride what she wants and is comfortable with. You’re her friend, so you probably already know if she’s looking for a crazy wild weekend or something more low-key. Still, ask her what she wants out of a bachelorette party. Also figure out how much she wants to be involved with in the planning so you can keep her in or out of the loop the right amount. Are you a bride reading this? If you want your MOA to do the planning, tell her! She’s not a mind reader. 
2. Head to WeddingWire forums to get fun ideas and chat with other MOAs. This is especially helpful if you’ve never thrown a bachelorette party before and have no idea where to begin. Read up on other people’s threads or start your own if you have questions or want feedback from ladies who have been there, done that!
3. Bring goofy props. I’m looking at you, penis necklace. There is only a few times in your life that society lets you do something stupid like run around town drunk with matching penis necklaces, bride squad gear and sashes. Or, matching swimsuits. Embrace it. Plus, you’ll probably get a few free drinks out of it. 
4. Don’t be afraid to go somewhere off the map. Aka, you don’t have to go to Las Vegas. Off-the-radar places like Austin (where I had mine), Catalina Island,  Charleston or Miami can make for great weather, unique experiences and easy access from most of the country. Everything you need for a great bachelorette party! If attendee’s budgets are smaller, look at places within 5 hours from where the bride lives and find something fun, even if it’s a weekend at a cabin or a girls camping trip! 
5. Set a theme, but don’t feel like you have to stick to it 100% of the time. My theme was “Kara’s Hoedown” and we all got plaid shirts and cutoff shorts for one night of craziness on the town, but my girls and I got to wear whatever made us comfortable during the day. I thought that was the perfect balance. We ran into a couple of other bachelorette parties out and about in the day time that were all matchy-matchy and it didn’t look like fun being forced to wearing the same outfits for an entire weekend. Don’t forget to work in a fun how well do you know the bride questions game! 
6. If it’s a big group, consider making an itinerary. My group was just 4 girls, so it was easy to wrangle everyone and make decisions on the fly. But, we met a bachelor party of about 25 guys (no joke!) and they had an itinerary because there was no way anything would get done or happen if a plan wasn’t in place. If you have a big group, consider making one to stay sane!
7. The party doesn’t have to be in the same month as the wedding. Just because traditionally bachelorette parties are within the same months as the wedding, don’t feel like you have to stick to that. My party was in April but my wedding is in September. We picked this because everyone had way more free time in the spring vs the end of summer, and we wanted to go to Austin, where the weather is perfect in the spring and death in the summer. And I actually really liked hanging with my girls and getting all pumped up for the wedding a few months in advance. I know that there’s going to be a lot of last minute things to do leading up to the wedding (plus, limited vacay days) so I loved having my party early. Consider an earlier bachelorette party, too!

I hope this helps you plan your own AWESOME bachelorette party. Leave a comment below if you have questions or something to add! And, for fun, below I included a photo of us on our Hoedown Night.