Christmas Day guests leave when?

[panicovernow]

I'm interested to know what time your guests leave on Christmas Day.

We are hosting again this year. Previous years have finished late with family leaving around midnight. Now I love a party but Christmas Day is very tiring as hosts when we've been up from 6 with kids and cooking! DH and I share the cooking and preparing.

So my question is if your guests leave around 8-9 how do you get that to happen? Or are they just socially aware enough to know its time to leave!

Pick a time (6pm, 9pm or whatever) that you want people to be off by and start inserting into convo now. So you're managing expectations from the off.

That is perfectly simple. However I would find this awkward to do. And there is the problem I suppose!

I think 6 is far too early to expect guests to leave and 9pm is still too early-unless they have children to get home. Children go to bed, adults have some time alone- so 11pm is the earliest that I would expect a guest to leave.

If your guests have come for Christmas lunch served at lunch time 6pm is a perfectly acceptable time to expect them to leave... (IMO)

Ours arrive in time for breakfast and leave when the kids go to bed at 7 ish. I think leaving time is very much dictated by arrival / food serving time in general, so agree that if someone had a lunchtime dinner then early evening is perfectly acceptable as a time to leave.

And I also agree that expectations should be communicated now!

Presumably they are close family...I would just tell then. My family leave about 6 but that is because my mum starts to fall asleep.

If we go somewhere or host, we normally rock up around midday for sit down at 1-2 then have and evening meal around 6-7 and then play games and drink well into the night. Its either a taxi / drive home if they want to (usually grandparents) at around 10/11 or carry on playing games for our lot if they want.

We are an easy lot and a close family though and its always been done like that.

If you need people out at a certain time, just be up front.

There's no particular time for leaving here, but I am very particular when they arrive. Don't want to see anyone till 2 at least, later if poss and I encourage everyone who can to go to the pub. Don't serve dinner till 4.

When my kids were little, their bedtime usually signified to guests that it was time to go home, and I was more direct with some guests (my mum and dad) and told them it was time to go as we were knackered. They didn't mind that.

My mum is very odd and does xmas lunch at 12.30 (leads to having to carefully plan breakfast so.youre not too full) and so everyone leaves after the queens speech at the latest. This year we are having lunch and going after the washing up as parents moved miles away for no reason whatsoever so im proving a point!

MIL/FIL will arrive around 9ish and will stay until about 5pm then leave as MIL is sulking about not hosting and BIL will arrive around lunchtime then leave as soon as he’s eaten as he’s got a fairly drive.

Dparents leave around 6 everyone else around 7 or 7.30 to get the kids to bed

I was due to be hosting (again) this year even though it was very near my due date....now cSection planned for 17th Dec, and (after what will have been 5 weeks in hospital) will only be home with Dd2 on 22nd/23rd..Dd1 only 14months and just miss her so much I just want me, DH and kids alone for at least a week to settle, lots of cuddles....but DH adamant his mum will be over for Xmas, so ok but I've said to him now I'm literally doing nothing and to pass that on....other family I just know are still expecting to come over but I'm going to put a huge stop and 'no chance' on it....
It does feel wrong to dictate times/ attendance especially to family over Xmas but straight to the point is always better than ending up resentful and knackered!

My parents always arrive about 1.30 and I do dinner for 3ish. It’s very relaxed with drinking and nibbles and then once dinners over and washing ups done we sit down for an hour with a cuppa.
Then when we feel revived amenough we pour more drinks and play games.
My parents leave about 8ish.
It’s worked like this for a few years now.

My mother and step father come at around 3pm Christmas eve and leave at the same time.boximg day ! My mil and step father in law will come Christmas morning from about 9.30-11.30 just after the kids have opened present and they'll leave before I start preping for dinner x

A bit of a different situation here as we usually host Christmas Lunch for the in laws and occasionally my parents but my brother hosts Christmas Day Tea.

So our guests generally leave arrive around 11am and leave around 4.00pm.

We then get to my brothers house for around 6.00pm-6.30pm and leave around 11.00pm (I know some stay later at his)

Ive had this with in laws a few years ago! Still here till 11pm. I was exhausted and hadn't got to see Call The Midwife christmas special . Hints were not picked up on so i eventually stood up and said i was tired and going to bed!

Get the dc to make festive invites!!
With times!!

Our parents leave around 7-7:30. Once all clean up has been done and we've all sat and watched a bit of telly together.

In previous years when we have had other guests who we thought might not take the hint, we sent a text with timings including when to arrive, what time lunch will be served and put something like and we're expecting you to be ready to roll home at around 7! Keep it casual and humorous.

They don't - they all stay!

This year i am shoe-horning 11 adults into my house for a 2 night stay.

I go to bed when i am tired and leave them all to it.

Some leave around midnight and my parents stay over. People normally arrive after 12 noon and dinner is normally around 5pm.

Do what I do. Take myself off to bed when I have had enough. Christmas is a long day and we always host it.

I love the sound of your Christmas days where the guests leave early! Or at least by 10. It's just the last hour I would love to sit and unwind with a bit of Christmas telly. Hints have not been picked up on in the past. I think light hearted messages will be used. Thanks for all your suggestions

About ten suits us with dinner eaten about three. No guests before about half one. This gives time for presents, games, nibbles or a bit of TV.

I think you just have to be honest, who are the guests and whose side of the family are they on? Just have a tactful (blunt) word. We are going to one of my sibling’s for Christmas this year, it’s a four hour round trip, fortunately DH is happy to drive. We will arrive around 12 noon and leave by 7pm.

Last year we hosted, we ate in the evening & guests arrived for the Queen’s speech & then left around 9.

But we are not really late night people - as you can tell .

I have invited 8 people for Christmas, they plan to arrive at 5pm!! WTF??

Just turn up for the food after all the work is done then! (They are all local)