Long Tables? Or Round Tables?

You’ve booked your reception venue and made your guest list.  Now you have to figure out where people will sit at the reception.

Your planner or the venue may have one good question to get you started:  Do you want to have long tables or round tables?  Or both?  There are good things to say about each, as well as some drawbacks.  (It also happens that a venue stocks one or the other and if you want something different, you have to rent them.  Do keep that in mind, as well.)

Large round tables seem to be the standard for wedding receptions.  They look elegant, and there is a lot of table space for outstanding centerpieces.  But all that table space means that with round tables, you can fit fewer guests into your reception venue.

Here's a classic use of round tables at a wedding reception. Photo by hannahelaine photography (hannahelaine.com).

Obviously, you can’t exceed the number of guests that the fire marshal rates the hall for, but if you have more guests than will fit at round tables, it might be time to consider long tables (also called banquettes, for whatever reason*).

Round tables can also be casual. Photo by Magical Moments Photography.

People sometimes think that long tables are more casual, but long tables can be perfectly elegant when they are draped and dressed well.  They also have the advantage of bringing your guests closer to each other at the table, making conversation easier across the table.

Here's a beautiful use of long tables. Photo courtesy of christytylerphotography.com.

You also have the option of doing some long tables and some round tables.  I’ve seen this done to excellent effect at wedding receptions.  It’s a little trickier to do the layout this way, but that’s no reason not to try it.

(*A banquette, for what it’s worth, is actually a long, upholstered bench against a wall, the kind you might sit at if you’re sitting at a row of long tables.)