Once the wedding has been finalised, nothing gets couples more excited than their individual bachelor and bachelorette parties - a chance to let loose and have a little fun before settling down. 
Written by Rihaab Mowlana

A night of debauchery, fun and (hopefully no) regrets, the bachelor party is the last hurrah for the groom-to-be. Many will decide to go all out and have the best night ever before putting the ring on it, but all it takes is the simplest of don'ts for the shindig to go south. After all, aspiring to inspire The Hangover 4 may not be the best of ideas. 

The bachelorette party is no less than the bachelor party - after all, girls just wanna have fun too! Whether it's an extravagant line-up or a simple laid back do, a little bit of planning goes a long way to ensure that the bridal party have the time of their lives.

Here are the dos and don'ts of bachelor & bachelorette parties.

The Dos

Do consider the groom's/bride's wishes

It's HIS bachelor party after all. You've watched countless movies - you know how things turn out when the groom to be is forced into activities he doesn't enjoy doing. It may blow your mind, but not every guy wants the stereotypical bachelor party. As long as the it's perfectly understood that when he says “no strippers”, he ACTUALLY means “no strippers”, then respect his decision.

Same with the bride - you may be the maid of honour, but don't think you can read the bride's mind to a T. She might be subtle and drop hints or she may outright tell you. But if she doesn't, you're better off asking instead of assuming. Nothing more awkward than having planned a day the bride doesn't approve of.

The groom/bride is your responsibility

Everyone at the party should be responsible for the groom. As in, not losing the groom, keeping him from injury. The works. With plenty of drinks and distractions around, it's pretty easy to forget that one of you will be tying the knot soon!

Brides are usually less likely to be injury prone, but a few drinks can change all that. And never let her do anything you know she’ll regret once sober.

Have extra clothing on hand

It's highly possible the groom/bride will get intoxicated enough to do something that might warrant a change of clothes. Get your mind outta the gutter - the number of drunk grooms/brides to be throwing up on themselves is very high. Also for any other eventualities.

Plan ahead and have backup

Of course, going with the flow is fun. But planning ahead ensures that you don't miss out on any of the groom’s specific requests. Even if you have planned everything to the T, it doesn't mean everything will go perfectly. So have a plan B always.

Make it awesome

Put in the extra effort, after all you're part of his/her crew. Give him/her an epic send-off that he/she won't soon forget.

The Don’ts

Bring the significant other along

Never mind that he/she's your soulmate and the love of your life. Ditto his/her family members. In fact, the list of things that could go wrong is endless!!! If you absolutely must, then organise a more low key event to avoid embarrassing and awkward moments.

Pictures

A complete no no. You're more likely to drunkenly snapchat or instagram your shenanigans for the world to see. A seemingly innocent pic might have questionable backgrounds that you probably never noticed. Lay off the pics altogether. Some memories are better off in your head than in your significant other's hands.

Collections at the door 

A smart planner will budget for the event, check prices with the respective establishments concerned, and collect any money early. Leaving it until the last minute will lead to unnecessary stress and arguments. After all, XX is known to be a bad paymaster - so of course they “forgot” to bring money.

Alternative Bachelorette Party Ideas

• Strippers don't hold much of an allure to most women anymore. Instead many are steering towards more unconventional bachelorette parties.
   
• Have an old-school sleepover - You could up the ante and book a hotel room, eat ice cream, watch chick flicks and have a blast all night long!!! Not only is this comparatively cheap, it's sure to leave you with memories that last a lifetime!
   
• Photoshoot - Most people spend their time at the party with their phones in hand instagramming and snapchatting. So why not plan a glammed out photoshoot instead?
   
• Scavenger hunt - Scavenger hunts are truly underrated. You can not only limit it to one location but can spread it out with answers unlocking spa treatments etc.
   
• Road trip - When was the last time anyone went on a road trip? All the more reason to plan a road trip honeymoon. Plan a list of activities you can add to it, and you can make it the road trip of a lifetime. 
   
• Bucket list bachelorette - Now that she's going to get married, there's probably a lot of items on her bucket list she may not be able to do. So why not help her? While doing all will be near impossible, you’ll still have plenty of fun!!