How to politely say “no children” on your invites

How to tactfully inform your guests that you would prefer your wedding day to be child free on the wedding invitations?

This can be quite tricky as it could potentially offend some wedding guests if not worded in a polite and respectful manner. Another popular dilemma is how to invite some children but not others.

One very obvious solution would be to make sure you omit the child’s/children’s names from the invitation and envelope. The guest should then assume that the child is not invited. Unfortunately this is not specific enough for some people, which is where the etiquette comes in.

We suggest a line or two of text at the very bottom of the invitation (or on a separate insert), in a smaller sized text.   TIP: Try to avoid saying “No children”, it can come across as being a bit abrupt and rude. Here is a selection of our favourite and most popular phrases:

• “With respect, we would like our special day to be an adult only occasion“

• “We would like to respectfully ask that our wedding day be for adults only“

You may wish to add on a specific reason in order to explain your decision in finer detail…

• “In order to keep numbers to a minimum, I’m afraid we are unable to accommodate any children at our wedding“

• “Due to the small size of our wedding venue, we are unable to invite any children. We also thought you might enjoy a night off.”

To finish, we have saved the most difficult until last. How to invite some children, but not others…

• “To cut down on costs, I’m afraid we can only accommodate children of immediate family members. We hope you will enjoy having a night off!”

• “In order to keep numbers to a minimum, we can only invite a small number of children. We also thought you might like a night off!”