A drive-thru bridal shower is such a memorable and neat alternative to the traditional party. While lockdown restrictions are easing up in most states, bans on large gatherings remain.
That means you’ll have to get a little creative when it comes planning your wedding, including the fun parties leading up to the big day. If you need some great drive-thru wedding shower ideas, keep reading!
Host a Memorable Drive Thru Bridal Shower!
What is a drive-by bridal shower? How do I host one? Will guests know what to do? Will they even show up?
SO many questions and I’m here to answer every single one.
During such weird, uncertain times, many wedding plans have been completely halted. While that may not be the worst of people’s problems, it’s certainly upsetting. Don’t let anybody tell you otherwise!
With social distancing and bans on large gatherings looking like it will carry on into the near future, it could be time to start making alternative plans.
One of these plans could be a drive-by wedding shower! If you want to explore the wild world of drive-by wedding showers, I’ve got you covered.
(FYI, this post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, we earn a small commission at no extra charge to you.)
What are drive-by wedding showers
Essentially, it’s a way that couples can practice social distancing, while still having a shower/party.
Cars will line up at the front of their home, drop off gifts (from a safe distance, of course), and wish the about-to-be-wed couple their best wishes.
Literally, just think of it as a drive-thru but for wedding gifts and well-wishes. How cute.
Why should you do this? Because people really do WANT to celebrate with you and make this special time as special as it should be.
Also, people really need something to look forward to right now. So, you’d be benefiting the greater good.
Related: Drive by engagement party ideas
How to decorate a drive-by wedding shower
First things first, you need to decorate. This is the first step to planning your perfect dry-thru wedding shower. Just like with the celebrations you would have had without quarantine, decorate the same.
This could be a Kardashian-inspired pastel theme, a boho aesthetic, or an ultra-modern feel.
For a Boho drive-by wedding, you could opt for a tent instead of a front porch – that would add to the effect. Otherwise, you just need greenery, flowers, balloons, signs, and a chair for you to sit on.
A cute banner for your garage door is one of my favorite ideas for drive by wedding shower because it helps everyone find your home easier.
Etsy has some cute options, like this fun backdrop that comes in 3 sizes.
If that’s just not really your thing, we found some others that you may love. Check out our top 7 favorite Drive-By Bridal Shower signs that we’re madly in love with. Of course, you could always make your own, or enlist an artistic friend to do it for you.
Basically, set the ambiance just right. Get chairs for the couple, and decorate them like thrones. Make it all stand out, and have “stations” for certain parts. For example, one table for gifts to leave, another for sweet treats to take!
Have your guests decorate their car for the occasion, too!
Don’t forget to have your guests decorate their car, too! Not only will it get them in the party mood and make everything so cute, it may actually even make your neighbors a bit more relaxed about the parade of cars coming through your street.
After all, when they realize that everyone is coming to celebrate the happy couple, it’s hard to get mad about a little extra traffic.
Check out some of our favorite cute drive-by bridal shower car decorations for ideas! I recommend buying decorations ahead of time and having it sent to your guests.
It’s not really fair to expect everyone to pay for their own decorations. After all, if it was in in-person party, you wouldn’t make your guests buy the balloons and banners, now would you?
Send out invitations so everyone knows when to arrive
This is very new to most people, and some a little bit more planning and some well-thought-out instructions are necessary.
Still send out invitations to everybody that you want to attend. Make sure you let them know what you want them to wear, what time to drive up, and what to do. This is a first for many, so don’t miss out any details.
Amazon has some adorable drive through bridal shower invitations, like this one pictured below.
- Bridal Shower Invitations – features eucalyptus greenery graphics, elegant typefaces, and premium white envelopes
- Personalize at Home – easily fill-in important details with included space for name, date, time, place, rsvp, and registry
- 25 Invitations and Envelopes – easy to write on and includes ample space for all of your party details
Decide who comes and when
As you’re preparing your invitations, decide whether you want everyone to arrive at the same time or at staggered times.
If you have a tiny driveway (or grouchy neighbors), you may want to give out time slots.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that each person comes one at a time, spends five minutes, and leaves so the next person can come. I mean, it CAN go that way if you think it’s the best option, but it’s not your only choice.
Decide how many cars your driveway or street can reasonably hold at once, then use that to guide your planning.
For example, if you have a nice big driveway that can hold 10 cars, but you have 20 people coming, split the party into two sections. Have half of them come for the first 45 minutes, then the next half for the last 45. I’d leave a 20-minute buffer between, though, to give stragglers a chance to leave.
You could also allocate someone as the escort. You know, the one who will make sure everything is running on time, people are following their time slots, and everything runs smoothly.
Keep the good times rolling with some fun & games
Think you’ll have to ditch the fun and games portion of your party? Think again! Even though everyone will either be in their car or standing 6 feet apart outside, you can still have some fun. One great idea is to get a photo booth.
Why do this? It makes up for the fact that you couldn’t all have pictures together, as you would at a normal shower.
This can be complete with frames that mention that it’s your wedding or even life-size cutouts of the soon-to-be-wed couple. That would be a funny little addition.
As I keep mentioning, it is up to you to keep all your guests safe. Keep wiping down surfaces and anything that may be getting touched.
It’s better to be safe than sorry. You could make sure that your guests know about all this, and they can choose what to partake in or not.
If that’s not something that will work for you, or you just want some other ways to keep everyone engaged, take a look at these 10 amazing drive-by bridal shower games to play.
I also recommend taking a peek at some of our favorite virtual bridal shower party games, as you can also play all of these while your guests are in their car outside your home if you do Facetime or Zoom.
Don’t forget the party favors!
Party favors act as both a nice “thanks for coming” gift and a little memento of the occasion.
You don’t have to spend a fortune on them, don’t worry.
Rather than buying a bunch of little favors and candies, I’d go with one really great one that they can actually use.
If you need some ideas, we came up with some inexpensive and fun drive-by bridal shower favors for you, so take a look!
Be mindful of your guests’ safety
Everyone needs a little bit of happiness in their life right now, but remember to be mindful. This expands past making sure that the virus cannot be spread on surfaces and in person. Keep your distance and squirt hand sanitizer as often as possible.
Even if your area has “flattened the curve” and things are improving, it’s still smart to go the extra mile to keep everyone healthy. You can never be too safe, but you can definitely be sorry.
Be mindful of your neighbors, too
This also means that you should make sure your neighbors know about your wedding shower. Let them know that there will be extra traffic that day, and that guests will be honking.
Better yet, ASK them if they mind. That way, they feel like you’re really considering the impact that your party has on their lives. If you’re close to them, you can even invite them to join in on the festivities.
If not, consider giving them a little “thank you for not freaking out about all the noise” gift. Maybe one of your favors, or a nice basket of treats from your party. While you don’t have to do this, it just makes for a more peaceful community overall.
If they say “yes, we mind,” well, then you’ll have to do a bit more work to get them to come around, or resign yourself to the fact that they’re grumps and will get mad no matter what you do. If that’s the case, just make sure you follow all local traffic laws, including any that your home owners association may have.
Please, be extra mindful of any essential workers that may be sleeping while you’re having your shower. If you can, keep the noise down or make it super quick and painless. It’s a difficult time.
Well, I think this is an amazing idea. Not only can you still have a shower, but your friends can also share your excitement. This is so important for morale – we all need something to look forward to right now.
I hope I gave you some great ideas on how to plan your very own wedding shower.
Just remember to be safe and sensible. Have fun, but not at the risk of your own or other’s health.
FAQs
What are the best practices when sending drive-by bridal shower invitations?
First of all, timing is everything. The earlier you can send you drive-by bridal shower invitations, the better. But just remember this important tip: Make sure details like date, time, venue, and theme (if applicable) are already finalized.
One of the best, easiest, and most cost-effective ways of sending your drive-through bridal shower invites is through digital means. You can email the invitations directly to your guests. Unfortunately, some people may not be as active as you would hope when it comes to checking their inboxes. So have a Plan B ready. A good alternative plan is to send the invite through FB Messenger or any other messaging app (WhatsApp, Snapchat, Telegram, Viber, Line, etc), preferably one that your guests are fond of using. If all else fails, you can try sending a text message reminder or follow-up.
It is also wise to include instructions in your drive-through bridal shower invitations. What instructions, exactly? For one, you can include information for those who want to participate in the drive-by parade. For sure, they would want to know where they should convene, or if they should coordinate with a lead driver for the parade.
What refreshments should I serve during my drive-thru bridal shower?
Remember that your guests may not be able to stay for long. Moreover, they are just driving by and some of them may be busy behind the wheel. So it is recommended to serve refreshments that are portable or those that can be wrapped easily.
And if you decide on wrapping refreshments, allow a little bit of flexibility for your guests. You can wrap them in a way that the food can still be unwrapped quickly. Trust us, if you have guests who prefer to eat their refreshments right there and then, they will definitely appreciate the extra lengths you went through to make their drive-by dining experience easier.
You can explore some options for appetizers and desserts that are easy to carry. Examples are pre-packed snacks, cupcakes, or chocolate treats. Cookies, chips, vegetarian options
As for drinks, you can choose from bottled beverages like lemonades, juices, iced teas, or even iced coffees. You might want to avoid serving hot drinks that could spill over inside the car. But if you do, make sure they come with lids that can be secured firmly.
What are some of your favorite drive-thru bridal shower ideas? Share below!
I’m a freelance journalist/writer/content marketer with BA Hons in Journalism.
