I don't think any of my bridesmaids are going to come to my bachelorette party.

Am I Overreacting?

Hello all,

I (34F) am engaged to my fiance (43M). We have been planning our wedding and it is set for next year in the winter.

My fiance doesnt drink alcohol and I drink very little. We are both older and so instead of leaving it uo to our respective bridal parties to plan some kind of bachelor/bachelorette we decided to host a joint one.

We will float the river that runs through our town (everyone will pay their own $25 fee for the vendor to pick us up and drop us off), and then we will come back to our home for a barbecue (funded by us). If anyone wants to bring alcohol they are more than welcome to BYOB. I am going to make a few gallons of fresh squeezed lemonade and put out some fruits and non-alcoholic champagne for a lemonade bar.

My fiance groomsmen include his two brothers and two of his friends. They will all be attending as will their wives, kids, and girlfriends.

My bridesmaids include my aunt (who lives 4.5 hours away), a friend who lives two hours away, and another friend who lives nearby.

We planned it for next summer and set a date because my bridal party has work, school, and kids to plan around. The groomsmen will all have that day off work already as they don't work weekends.

My aunt spontaneously and uninvitedly decided to come visit us next month (not complaining too much. I am excited to see her), and she is unsure if she will be able to come back for the bachelorette party.

My friend who lives nearby said she may not be able to make it to the float trip part because she might not be able to take that day off work.

My friend who lives about 2 hours away will most likely be able to come, so I am relieved at that.

This is planned 7 months out so that we could be as accomodating as possible, but now it looks as though it will mostly be the groomsmen and their families.

I have asked nothing of the bridal party that would cost them money except for this. I am paying for their dresses and suits. We didn't want them to feel forced to pay for some kind of pre wedding shenanigans. I know it's not the cost of the float trip that is deterring them, I have offered to cover it and they said no. We have a guestroom so my aunt wouldn't have to pay for a hotel and my other traveling bridesmaids parents live nearby.

Am I wrong to feel disappointed and hurt?

Edit to add: thank you for the feedback. I canceled it. My fiance will still go and have a bachelor party, but I am not going to attend and I guess I just won't have a bachelorette party. I can't face all of his friends and explain why none of mine came.

Update: Please stop sending me mean messages. I get it. You clearly think I am the asshole here. So instead of having a bachelorette party. I'm going to be crashing the bachelor party with the other wives and girlfriends. I will have a great time doing what I want to spend my day doing and the bridesmaids are just going to miss out.

Yes. This has changed my view of our friendship considerably. I won't be ending any friendships, but they are definitely more casual now.

Posted Dec 10, 2025, 2:57 PM UTC

54106
Loading comments…