Should You Have a Silent Disco at Your Wedding?

Your essential guide to a headphone disco

Should you have a silent disco at your wedding? The answer is yes! You may have encountered a silent disco in your uni days or at a festival, but if you haven't, it's essentially a headphone disco, normally with two or three channels playing different tunes. Revellers can swap frequencies and dance along to whatever song they prefer - and bar some muffled singing along, the music is silent for anyone who's not wearing headphones. Not only is a silent disco fun and novel, but it has some practical benefits too!

Five Reasons to Have a Silent Disco At Your Wedding

1. It's great craic!

For some reason - most likely the novelty factor - silent discos are so much fun. While a band or classic DJ set-up is good for creating atmosphere at your reception, a silent disco later at night, adds a little silliness to the proceedings (especially when you take your headphones off and look around!), and we've yet to attend a silent disco that wasn't a hit with everyone involved, young and old. It makes a great ice-breaker too!

2. It allows you to cater to different musical tastes

If your other half is a fiend for pop and you're more of a seasoned rocker, a silent disco allows you to both have your music cranked up to full volume on your wedding night, likewise, it gives your guests with different preferences a chance to hear something they love.

Photo by Navyblur

3. It lets the party run later than usual

Many wedding venues have a sound curfew, particularly hotels, working farms, or anywhere in a residential area. A silent disco allows you and your guests to continue the party after hours without disturbing the neighbours. It's a particularly handy option for outdoor weddings where sound can travel.

4. It's guest-friendly

If you've got elderly guests or sleeping babies, a silent disco is a clever option to allow guests to chat (or snooze!) away without shouting over the music.

5. It's easy to do

Often big impact details are expensive or complicated to achieve. But if you're looking for ways to add a unique, memorable touch to your day, a silent disco is an easy, affordable way to do it. Your guests won't forget it in a hurry, and they're guaranteed to have a brilliant time.

Where to Find a Silent Disco in Ireland or the UK

Actress Hilary Swank had a silent disco at her wedding recently, if it's good enough for her!

Tips for Having a Silent Disco at your Wedding

  • Make sure you book enough headsets for all your guests - you don't want anyone to be left out of the party!
  • If you're hiring the silent disco equipment yourself, make sure all the headsets are charged up in advance!
  • Talk to your DJ about the different channels of music, you want to have a good mix of styles, but ensure everything is dance-worthy - pop, rock, Motown, eighties, and electronic always tend to go down well!
  • You and your other half could curate your own channel each, and have a competition to see whose gets the most guests tuning in!
  • Have some signage up to let your guests know how to flick between channels and adjust the volume of their headphones
  • Want to amp up the atmosphere even more, glow sticks, confetti canons, day-glo paint and glitter are always fun!
  • Only opt for a silent disco if you know you'll have lots of guests up dancing, otherwise you'll have too many people sitting down with no music in the background - a sure fire atmosphere killer!
  • It's a good idea to leave your headphone disco as the finale of your reception, so your guests are already amped up to get involved!

Planning your entertainment? Check out our recommended wedding bands and DJs

Feature image: Liz Wan Photography via Boho Weddings

  • 104k Facebook
  • 42.9k Instagram
  • 129k Pinterest
  • 294k Google+
  • 40k Email
  • 550k Monthly