The Cash Crunch

Sometimes the tone of the party and, to a large extent, the events of the party will depend on how much money you and the other guests have (and are willing to part with). If you’re just out of university, a three-day trip to Las Vegas is probably out of the question. If you’re all fairly established, asking close friends to pony up $100 each might not be out of the realm of possibility. Try to get a feel for your budget early on in the planning process; you don’t want to cancel a carefully-planned event at the last minute because it’s out of your guests’ price range.

There are two ways to divvy up the expenses: you each pay for your costs during the party, or you collect a pool of money and use it throughout the night to cover the group’s costs. Which option you choose may depend on what kinds of activities you’re planning. If you schedule a long night of clubbing, you can all buy your own drinks and pay your own cover charges (except the groom, who must not pay for anything!). But if you’re planning to go to a hockey game, the tickets will have to be purchased ahead of time, and that means you’ll need to collect money from everyone at some point. Try not to discuss or collect money during the bachelor party, however, as you don’t want “business” to get in the way of the groom’s good time.

Hot money tips:

• On the invitation, list a schedule of events and their costs (exact or ballpark), and be sure you let people know that they can participate in as many of the events as they wish. If some guests are embarrassed about their shallow pockets, they can opt in for a beer at a local pub and blame a prior commitment for their inability to go skydiving.
• When coming up with your budget, make sure you take into account “extra” expenses such as tips and cab fares so that you aren’t the one stuck with these fees.

Next: The week before