Late Friday morning, months and months of planning finally came to fruition as my sister and I drove to Savannah with her friend Alison. We were on our way to meet up with a big group of girls (17!) to celebrate Leslie’s bachelorette party.
When we set out to pick a location for Leslie’s bachelorette party, we wanted to find a fun city that was drivable for most women attending, super fun and very walkable. Savannah fit the bill and a location was selected late last autumn. When a Groupon popped up for a hotel located right in the heart of the city – within walking distance of River Street and Savannah’s City Market – our wallets were quite grateful and we quickly reserved four rooms at the Inn at Ellis Square for the weekend. (We called two days before to request rooms next to each other which worked really well!)
Going into the weekend, Leslie was mostly in the dark. She knew we were going to Savannah and I mailed her a very short and vague clothing guide a few weeks prior, but other than that, she didn’t have any information!
Once we hopped in the car, Alison and I gave Leslie a modified version of our weekend itinerary that looked like this:
I printed off detailed itineraries for all of the other girls that had additional information. They were emailed the information ahead of time, but I also had hard copies ready for them at the hotel. Information overload was key in keeping our group of 17 together and on the same page all weekend!
Arrival in Savannah
Leslie, Alison and I arrived in Savannah around lunchtime and quickly met up with a small group of girls for some food and drinks at Tubby’s, a rooftop bar and restaurant located on River Street.
We dined outside and everyone was in a great mood! The weather more than cooperated, providing a light breeze that warranted sweaters but didn’t require heavy coats and hats.
After our late lunch, we walked to the hotel so we could check in and everyone could change and get ready for dinner and a night out.
I shared a room with Leslie, her childhood friend, Colleen, and her two best friends from high school, Alison and Shannon. These three girls are so much fun! I initially joked that I was the outsider on this bachelorette party since I was obviously the only family member attending, but Leslie’s friends were all so kind and welcoming to me that I never felt like I wasn’t part of the group.
While Alison, Shannon, Colleen and I got ready in our room, we had Leslie finish getting ready in another room with some of her best friends from college so we could transform our room into a fun and festive location for the first night of bachelorette fun!
Prior to our arrival in Savannah, I sent out a list of crafting ideas to everyone attending. I actually got this idea from my friend Ashley who did something similar before our friend Merri’s bachelorette party. I know many people really want to help and contribute something to bachelorette parties, but all too often people simply say “let me know what I can do to help,” and I’m unlikely to assign tasks to people because I never want someone to feel like they are stuck doing something they don’t actually want to do. By sending out a list of ideas, people were able to respond to me and take over certain projects that they felt comfortable handling which was great!
Alison C. was in charge of banners and made three adorable banners that said “Bride-to-Be,” “Cheers to Leslie” and “Pop, Fizz, Clink,” which was the theme of Leslie’s bachelorette party!
Allison S. made these adorable “just in case” kits. They were a huge hit! (She found the little white bags at The Dollar Store.)
I brought fun sunglasses and light-up rings for everyone since people seem to love accessories during bachelorette parties!
I also decorated glass chalkboard mason jars with everyone’s names that we then filled with sangria once everyone arrived. (I used paint pens rather than chalk so the names would stay in tact.)
Once everyone arrived back in our room, Leslie joined all of us looking absolutely gorgeous in a pink Tart infinity convertible dress that I bought for her on sale during the holidays on HauteLook. (The rest of us wore all black so she would stand out even more!)
Leslie’s college roommate Christina had Leslie close her eyes while she outfitted her in an adorable personalized sash and a fun veil!
And then it was time for our first bachelorette activity: The Bachelorette Party Question Book Game! This game is a blast and always makes the entire group laugh. Plus, it’s a great way to incorporate the groom in the fun!
We had fun reading Ross’ answers to the questions I sent to him and Leslie made all of us laugh when she guessed his answers on Friday night.
Once we were done with the game, it was time to boogie! We walked to Garibaldi’s for a nice dinner before heading off to Savannah Smiles Dueling Piano Bar for the night.
Our dinner was fantastic – Garibaldi’s risotto and mussels are amazing – and Savannah Smiles was the perfect place for a bachelorette party! We danced and sang to live throwback music all night and the place wasn’t overly crowded. A big win!
Our weekend in Savannah was off to a great start and the fun only continued the following day!
More to come!
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This looks like a blast! What a great way to spend a bachelorette weekend 🙂
Ahhh how fun! This is so exciting. What a great time! Congrats Leslie!!!!! 🙂
amazing post, Julie! Looks like you had a lot of fun!
May i make a little suggestion re the appearance of your blog- the picture of you is right beneath the advertisement (weightwatchers) i think it would be nicer if your picture with info appeared above that ad….what do you think?
I totally agree, but unfortunately that’s a requirement from my ad network. :/
Wow, you all really know how to throw a party! All of the little details are so cute and thoughtful. 🙂
You can tell how much thought and love went into all your preparations 🙂 I can’t wait to hear all about the details – it looked beautiful!
Isn’t Savannah Smiles a BLAST!?
Yes!!! We had such a great time there and absolutely loved the music!
Oh my gosh you guys did such a great job! Wish I had all those people doing that for mine, haha. Being that I got married young, many of my friends didn’t even have jobs, so we had to stay local 🙁 No worries, it was still fun! I love the idea of getting away to somewhere different, and all the touches for Leslie were remarkable. She’s lucky to have you as an amazing sister!
This looked so fun! I’m going to Savannah for my bachelorette in May. Loved reading your fun itinerary. 🙂
You will have the best time!!!!!!
And congratulations to you! <3
This looks like it was so fun!! I love all the details you guys went into–so cute!
I love your sister’s dress. So pretty.
wow you’re awesome at planning this kinds of parties! letting everyone tackle a specific pinterest-inspired craft is a great idea. they can be a little overwhelming to tackle all at once 🙂
When my friend Ashley did this for Merri’s bachelorette party, I thought it was a fantastic idea. I think many people really do want to help, so being able to select something that genuinely interests you or plays to your personal strengths made a lot of sense to me! I owe all the credit for that one to Ashley!
Awww, Garibaldi’s is where the hubs and I went for our rehearsal dinner and our first anniversary. Love that place!
And Savannah Smiles can get pretty rowdy! Glad y’all had a good time. 🙂
I have a dumb blogging question. How do you create the inserted documents (like you did for the bachelorette packing list & schedule of events above? Is it just a PDF file you insert?
I created the images in PicMonkey and saved them as a .jpg so they upload like a regular photo. 🙂
Thanks! I will check it out.
I’m currently seeing a guy from Georgia and he has told me many stories about how fun Savannah is! Hopefully I’ll get to go someday! It looks like you arranged an amazing bachelorette party for your sister! For my best friends wedding this summer they maid the people in the wedding party mason jar glass with our names on it. The jars for the girls had red lips on them and the jars for the guys had mustaches!
This sounds like so much fun! I went to Savannah a few years ago- what a beautiful city!! Can’t wait to hear about the rest of the weekend. You ladies did a great job planning!!
oh my gosh, you should be professional bachelorette party planner – all that stuff is so cute! And 17?!? Haha that’s a big group, but more fun with more girls I’m sure!
How fun! you guys made such adorable decorations and party favors, everything looks amazing. Congrats to Leslie and Ross!
So much fun!!!! I just checked out those mason jars on BBB and they are just too cute!!
First of all, what an amazing weekend so far, you are such a good sister/ bachelorette party planner there are such fantastic little details! Second, when can my friends get married I want to do this. Third, I have a weird obsession with savannah that I cant quite explain but it was been #1 on my US cities to visit list for way too long.
I’m getting married in October, and I am totally sending this to my MOH and bridesmaids haha! How adorable. You all clearly care so much about Leslie. So sweet!
I love the idea of having a bachelorette party in Savannah! Mine is in Canada somewhere in June, according to my bridesmaids. It will be interesting 😉
So many cute ideas, Julie! Your sister is lucky to have you and such wonderful friends. Looks like a great weekend!
I have my best friends bach. party in May and these ideas are great!!! Love the idea of sending out different crafts, you should post top ten best ideas for these parties since you have been on so many!
i loved reading your recap of leslie’s bachelorette weekend! it looked like a BLAST! i’ve commented on this before, but i really think you should be an event/party planner… you’ve got quite the talent! =)
What a fun bachelorette!!!!
Planned to a t!!! Love the mason jars, so nifty!!!
what kind of camera do you use? i am sure you have said before but cant find it.
So jealous of your bachelorette skills! I’m having trouble planning my own bachelorette party in La Jolla and this made me have total bachelorette party envy 🙂
You seem to plan the most amazing bachelorette parties and bridal showers. I had such a hard time doing it for my sisters and sister in law, I wish I would have thought of half the things you did! Leslie is lucky to have you as her maid of honor!
You do clearly have a talent for planning these getaways!! I planned a bachelorette party last Feb, and have another one coming up this summer. The first one turned out to be lots of fun, but I was so stressed for the last two weeks until we got there (Key West :))
I would love to have more information on your process! A post/round up on ideas for planning would be awesome as I go into party number two. 🙂
Looks like so much fun! Can’t wait to read about the rest of your party weekend! 🙂
That looks like SUCH a fun time had by all! I love all the cute and thoughtful details, like the decorations and the personalized mason jars. Cheers to Leslie!
sooooo. much. fun. 🙂
You should be an event planner! 🙂 I have heard great things about Savannah–now I really want to go!
I love how detail oriented you were when you planned this! Savannah is such a fun city – I can’t read to rest!
Love it! How was your experience using groupon for a hotel?
Really great!! I just called and mentioned the Groupon and they treated it like a typical reservation!
Sweet! Thanks for the response, can’t wait to hear more about Savannah!
Looks like such a blast! You are seriously an amazing party planner. In a few years if I have to plan a bachelorette party for one of my friends, I’ll probably be looking back at your posts like these for ideas! 🙂
What a fun weekend!! I just attended a bachlorette party this weekend too! Congrats to Leslie- she looks just like your mom in that picture with the “Future Mrs…” sign on!
Looks so fun! I pinned a few of your ideas for my own Bachelorette party!
Leslie looks gorgeous! & You always plan what looks like pretty awesome bachelor parties Julie!
Love this!! I am getting married this year and appreciate the inspiration!!
Looks like a great weekend! Your sister is very lucky.
I LOVE the mason jars! It looks like you put a lot of thought into the schedule and little details. What girl wouldn’t want to be a part of that weekend!?!
I love the suggestion of the craft list! We are planning my sister’s bachelorette (she lives in Savannah!) and the craft list is a nice way to involve everyone! Great idea! PS Savannah smiles is one of the most hilarious/fun places ever 🙂
You are amazing at planning parties! I definitely aspire to host a party of your caliber one day.
you’re the best big sister! I love all the little crafts/details you put together for the party. So thoughtful and fun!
Looks like so much fun! My hubby and I went to Savannah for our 1st anniversary and had a blast. Can’t wait to go back sometime. Also, Leslie is blessed with so many girlfriends! How awesome!
This looks like so much fun. I love all the little crafty touches and what a great idea to let people choose from a list of things they can do to help. I’m bridesmaid for two friends next year and this will be a great way of letting others get involved with the planning and taking some pressure off me before the day.
Reading this has made me start getting excited for my been do (bachelorette) in May!
Looks like so much fun! 17 girls must be so overwhelming! I love Savannah too, its such a great town.
This is absolutely adorable! My favorite goodie is that mason jar tumbler!