How Long Do You Need a Wedding Car For?

Work out the time from when the chauffeur needs to arrive at the bride's address to when the couple step out at the reception, and that is your booking. It usually covers the collection, the drive to the ceremony, the ceremony itself while the car waits, photographs outside and the transfer to the reception. The easiest way to be sure is to write the day out minute by minute, then add a sensible margin at the start and after the ceremony.

The chauffeur arrives before the agreed departure time, so the car is dressed, parked well and ready for photographs at the house. Families often like pictures of the bride and the person giving her away beside the car before they leave. Allow for that in the plan rather than squeezing it in; it is one of the most photographed moments of the morning.

If the bridesmaids travel separately, their car normally leaves first so they can be at the ceremony before the bride arrives. That second car has its own timings, which we plan alongside the main booking.

Journey time depends on the distance and the roads. The chauffeur studies the route beforehand and allows for traffic, so the car arrives at the right moment rather than too early or too late. For register offices with back-to-back ceremonies, arriving in the right window matters more than arriving as early as possible.

The ceremony length varies widely. A civil ceremony may be short; a church service or a religious ceremony can be considerably longer. The car and chauffeur wait throughout, which is why ceremony length has such an effect on the booking.

After the ceremony many couples want pictures with the car: at the church gate, beside the open coach doors of the Phantom or somewhere scenic on the way to the reception. Talk to your photographer about how long they need, and tell us. A planned photo stop is part of the booking; an unplanned one can put pressure on the timings.

The transfer to the reception is often the couple's first quiet time together as a married pair. If the reception is a short hop, it is brief; if it is further, it becomes a relaxed drive. Either way, the booking normally ends when the couple are dropped at the reception.

Some weddings need the car for more of the day. A ceremony and reception in different counties, several collection addresses, or an Asian wedding with separate journeys for the baraat and the doli all extend the booking. Multi-day celebrations are planned as one itinerary covering each day required.

You may also want the car later in the evening, perhaps to take the couple to a hotel or an older relative home. Any extra journeys can be included in the fixed quote as long as they are arranged in advance.

A small civil wedding where the ceremony and reception are at the same venue may only need an arrival. That is a perfectly normal booking. The quote covers exactly the journeys and time you choose, so there is no need to pay for hours you will not use.

Start with the ceremony time and work backwards: the journey from the house, then the collection and photographs, then the chauffeur's arrival. Then work forwards: ceremony length, time outside afterwards, any photo stop, the transfer. Send that outline with your enquiry, or call 07977 407474 between 07:00 and 23:00, and the chauffeur's timings will be built around it with a fixed price.