Wedding day timeline for a 3pm ceremony

By Forever Farrah Published 2026-10-19.

A 3pm ceremony wedding day hour by hour. Hair and makeup at 9:00am, dinner at 4:45pm, send-off at 9:30pm, with and without a first look.

For a 3pm ceremony, start hair and makeup around 9:00am, be dressed by 12:45pm, and do a first look at 1:15pm so portraits are done before guests arrive. Guests are seated for dinner at 4:45pm, dancing opens at 7:00pm, and the send-off is around 9:30pm. That assumes a 30-minute ceremony, an hour of cocktails, an hour of dinner and two and a half hours of dancing.

A 3pm ceremony, hour by hour

Wedding day timeline for a 3pm ceremony, with a first look

Time	What happens	Notes
9:00am	Hair and makeup begin	Ask your stylists how long each person takes and work back from being dressed.
11:30am	Lunch for everyone getting ready	The meal most often forgotten.
12:00pm	Photographer arrives for details	Rings, attire, invitations and shoes.
12:45pm	Getting dressed
1:15pm	First look	Moves most portraits to before the ceremony.
1:30pm to 2:15pm	Couple portraits, then wedding party photos
2:15pm	Out of sight; guests start arriving
2:30pm to 3:00pm	Guests seated, prelude music
3:00pm to 3:30pm	Ceremony
3:30pm to 4:30pm	Family photos, cocktail hour for guests	Have a written list of family groups and someone who knows everyone.
4:45pm	Guests seated for dinner
5:00pm	Grand entrance and first dance
5:15pm to 6:15pm	Dinner	Feed your vendors at the same time as guests.
6:15pm to 6:40pm	Speeches	Agree a length with each speaker in advance.
6:40pm to 7:00pm	Parent dances and cake cutting
7:00pm to 9:15pm	Dancing opens
9:15pm	Last dance
9:30pm	Send-off

Without a first look

Skip the first look and couple portraits move into cocktail hour. The morning is the same, but you see your guests later: wedding party photos start at 1:30pm, and you join the reception when guests sit down for dinner at 4:45pm.

What to watch with a 3pm start

• It's the most common slot, so book vendors early.
• Golden hour often lands in cocktail hour, a good time to slip out for ten minutes of portraits.
• Dinner at 4:45pm suits most guests without a heavy cocktail hour.
• Build in buffer. Add about 15 minutes after hair and makeup and 10 after family photos, the parts that most often run late.

Change the ceremony time or any part of the day to get your own schedule:

Build your wedding day timeline from the ceremony time

Other start times: 1pm, 2pm, 4pm, 5pm, 6pm.

Frequently asked questions

What time should hair and makeup start for a 3pm ceremony?

Around 9:00am, so that everyone is dressed by 12:45pm. Ask your stylists how long each person takes and work back from there; a large wedding party may need an earlier start.

When does the reception start after a 3pm ceremony?

Cocktail hour starts as the ceremony ends, around 3:30pm, and guests sit down for dinner at about 4:45pm.

What time does a wedding with a 3pm ceremony end?

With two and a half hours of dancing, the send-off is around 9:30pm.