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Craig — Whether planning a rehearsal dinner or a reception, couples must face one overriding consideration: cost.

Before the bride and groom even decide on a theme, a venue or level of formality, wedding planner Jill Waldman, owner of The Main Event, recommends setting a budget.

"Always start with a budget," she said. "Once you know how many people and how much you can spend, then you can start planning."

The rehearsal dinner

Far from being an antiquated tradition, rehearsal dinners are still a mainstay of weddings. What originated as an opportunity to rehearse the ceremony has grown to be a pre-wedding party, a family-to-family meet and greet or just time to relax as a group before the big day. "Rehearsal dinners are great because people from both sides of the wedding party can get to know each other in an informal setting," Waldman said. "It makes for a more intimate, warm wedding."

The cost of the rehearsal dinner is traditionally the responsibility of the groom's parents, although sometimes it is borne by the bride and groom themselves.

What it entails is determined by the budget. It can run from $10 to $100 a head, Waldman said, depending on whether it is a cocktail party, finger-food only, barbecue, buffet or fancy dinner.

Originally, rehearsal dinners included only the wedding party and close family. Now, Waldman said, the sky's the limit. She has seen rehearsal dinners attended by the entire guest list.

The reception

There are four musts for every wedding reception, Steamboat Springs wedding planner Lindsey Grannis said: flowers, music, food and drink.

"If a person has a drink in their hand, food to eat and music to dance to, that's all that matters," she said.

The wedding reception has three main components: the cocktail hour, dinner service and the formalities. The cocktail hour lasts for about one hour, during which guests arrive at the reception site, or if the ceremony and reception are held in one general location, the guests are escorted to the cocktail area. This time period allows the bride, groom and wedding party to finish being photographed before beginning the post-wedding activities. Guests typically enjoy hors d'oeuvres, hosted beverages and light musical entertainment. From the cocktail hour, the guests are escorted into dinner. Once they find their seats, the formal, traditional festivities are ready to begin. The festivities may begin right away with a grand entrance and continue throughout the meal and remainder of the evening.

There are several traditional components of a reception:

Grand entrance

The grand entrance into the reception is done at the beginning of the evening, and typically done while they guests are seated in the dining area just before the meal service begins. Traditionally, each member of the wedding party was announced as he or she entered the reception. However, the current trend is to introduce only the bride and groom.

Toasts

Toasting may take place during the cocktail hour, if the bride and groom are present, before dinner, or throughout the course of the evening. If you are serving multiple courses, toasting in between the courses is a nice way to keep the party in motion.

Protocol Dances

The first dance of the evening traditionally is done by the bride and groom. The first dance may be done immediately following the grand entrance, after the meal or at any other time during the evening. Once the first dance is over, the dance floor is open to any others who would like to dance.

At some point in the evening, guests usually expect to see a father/daughter dance in which bride and her father take the floor for a song.

Cake-cutting

Often done later in the evening, the cake cutting no longer signals the end of the evening, but rather the start of the party. The bride and groom cut the cake together and usually feed each other a bite of cake.

Bouquet and garter toss

These two traditions are being cut from modern wedding receptions, but should you choose to stick with them, the bouquet usually is tossed first, with the garter to follow. The entertainment and photographer lead the bride and groom through these activities. Some brides are tossing the bouquet just as they enter the limo for the grand exit. The cost of the wedding reception usually is covered by the bride's parents or the bride and groom.

When planning the reception, Waldman again starts with the budget and number of guests and then determines the details of the receptions. She recommends that the venue provide as much of the necessary equipment as possible, "for budgetary and convenience issues."

At an outdoor reception, for example, tents must be erected, table service brought, tables and chairs must be set up, as well as a myriad of other details that need to be seen to.

Venue

The same location options exist for both rehearsal dinner and reception -- and are limited only by imagination.

Either can be held in someone's home, a hotel, a restaurant or even outdoors.

"There is more flexibility with the rehearsal dinner because it's not a wedding, it's a party," Waldman said.

Steamboat Springs caters to "destination weddings." The entire wedding party and all their guests travel to Steamboat Springs for the wedding. There are dozens of locations and restaurants that will host a rehearsal dinner or reception.

In Craig, though there are several locations, there are few that do not have to be catered. The Holiday Inn is one. The hotel and restaurant can accommodate about 225 people for a full-plated dinner.

"We're pretty much the best game in town," restaurant manager and banquet coordinator Reta Hall said.

Choosing a restaurant, Hall said, eases a lot of the headache. There's no need to coordinate a caterer, arrange for drinks and clean up.

"If you can afford it, it's the only way to go," she said.