Premium How To Guides

When you wake up and realize that you haven’t seen your immediate family in a year, let alone your extended family, you know it’s time for a family reunion. Or do you? Let’s think about this a little first. First off, are you SURE you miss them?

You are? Ok then, read on. Lucky for you, your hankering for family time is easier to quell than ever before. Here’s our suggestions on how to go about planning a family reunion you won’t soon forget:

Step1:
Make a list of all the family members, including your own nuclear family, who will be invited to the reunion. You might run into difficulty tracking down those family members who have moved several times, or even been married multiple times. Find them and invite them, even if they don’t want to be found. You can easily accomplish this by using a people search engine, which makes finding people and their contact info a snap. Those estranged relatives don’t stand a chance!

Step 2:
Set the date! Choosing a date for your reunion is very important. Perhaps contact everyone and take a survey of when the best time would be for everyone. Try to accommodate everyone’s schedule. The summer months usually work the best for most people because kids are out of school.

Step 3:
You should decide on a budget first and foremost. Before anyone gets carried away with elaborate ideas, sit down with the “benefactors” of the reunion and decide how much should be spent.

Step 4:
After you have decided on a budget, the fun can begin! The next step is to choose a location and the duration of the reunion. Is this a day affair or a week-long extravaganza? Choosing a place to hold your reunion doesn’t have to be daunting. Research various hotels, inns, and country clubs and visit the ones you are most likely to choose.

Step 5:
It would be a good idea to plan the menu beforehand. Find out if anyone has any special needs and try and accommodate everyone. Again, you really can’t please everyone, but you can certainly try. It might be a fun idea to have the reunion catered with food that celebrates your family’s heritage.

Step 6:
Make sure you appoint someone to document the event with photographs and video. Hopefully you have a professional or aspiring photographer in the family!

Step 7:
Don’t forget to plan fun social activities for the reunion. Icebreaker games, sports, contests, and talent shows are a great way to reconnect with family members, and get to know the ones you didn’t know so well before. Include games that will appeal to all ages, and don’t forget the prizes!

Step 8:
Ask for help! That’s why they’re your family. Plus, no one wants to see you play the martyr at the actual event, complaining how no one helped. You should enjoy the reunion too!

***Picture Thanks to mauri212***