Please show up. Good luck! Go home.
That sums up how Talia Maiden went about her one-night-only bachelorette party. In June, the New York-based designer and writer posted online about a party she partied with close friends for less than 24 hours. The idea is to have an aperitif at a Lower East Side bar, enjoy a private $1,100 dinner at a 25-seat restaurant in Chinatown, rent a party bus for an hour, and finish with a night of screaming at a nearby dive bar.
Maiden said she and her friends called an Uber by 2 a.m. and told them to return to their respective beds. “I was able to leave everything on the dance floor without having to look at the multi-day itinerary,” she wrote. “It was perfect.”
Maiden’s night out is different from what many think of today’s bachelorette parties. A multi-day destination vacation with coordinated outfits, scheduled activities, multiple nights out, and a running tab will have many women wincing when they see that final Venmo request settling the bill (and maybe even sending a few side texts about it). In 2025, the average single partygoer will spend about $1,300 per party, nearly double the 2019 average, according to wedding planning site Joy.
Beth Montemurro, a sociology professor at Penn State Abington who studies American bridal showers and bachelorette parties, said the packed girls’ night out is a lot like the modern-day bachelorette parties that emerged in the late 1980s and ’90s.
The proliferation of bachelorette parties in the three decades since then reflects what has happened to weddings in general, influenced by the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, along with the rise of individualism, Montemurro said. Businesses followed the trend, with clubs and day spas selling group packages for singles, and cities like Nashville and Austin branding themselves as hot spots for bachelor parties.
More groups can now choose their destination party. Back in 2019, 40% of these events were held in the bride’s hometown. Currently, that number remains below 25%.
But as the topic of high wedding costs has garnered attention in recent years, Montemurro says some cost-conscious brides may be looking to do something simpler that “keeps costs down.”
With countless recent headlines blaming the ballooning bachelorette party machine for rising costs and ruining friendships, some brides are ditching the hassle and returning to a “90s girls’ night out” to better balance finances, time constraints, and personalities without sacrificing fun.
Choose Your Own Adventure Bachelorette Party in Chicago
When Olivia Sullivan got married in 2022, she attended nine weddings and attended three or four bachelorette parties. She says many parties require travel, and she typically spends about $1,500 on a weekend bachelorette trip, which she believes is now the norm.
Sullivan, 34, told CNBC Make It about her past trips: “Some have been good, some have been very bad, and some have been very expensive.”
When it came time to plan her own party in April 2022, she chose a different path. She asked about 20 of her closest friends, family and loved ones to join her in Chicago, where she lives, for a day filled with their favorite activities.
Olivia Sullivan kicked off her bachelorette party with a morning spin class, followed by afternoon tea, a private dinner, and bar hopping at her favorite spots in Chicago.
Courtesy of the subject
About 10 of them started their morning with a spin class (which Sullivan said costs $25 to attend), grabbed coffee and pastries, and headed to a downtown Chicago hotel the bride had booked for herself and an out-of-town friend. That afternoon, a dozen more women joined her for tea at the Langham Hotel (about $100 per person), then they all met for a private dinner (another $100 per person) and bar-hopped at Sullivan’s favorite spots.
Sullivan, who thinks wedding culture as a whole has gotten “a little out of hand,” said the day’s events were more about speed for her. It also had many benefits. A “choose your own adventure” schedule allowed women to join events or join in the middle.
It also meant I could invite more friends. “I didn’t want to have to make a decision about which 10 of my friends I wanted to bring to The Bachelorette,” she says. Guests could “spend as much money as they wanted and spend as much time as they wanted.”
For decades, party costs have been a major source of bachelorette drama, Montemurro said. When she interviewed women for her 2006 book, Something Old, Something Bold: Bridal Showers and Bachelorette Party, she noted that some partygoers were frustrated by having to pay for limousine rentals and drinks for the bride’s night. The cost, she says, doesn’t compare to what we now think of as “a weekend or a trip to Nashville or Las Vegas.”
Will Ferrell’s character crew in Newport, Rhode Island
Sullivan says the best part about having a micro-bachelorette is that everyone can be on the same page for a night of raucous fun, rather than having to keep up the pace over a long weekend of parties.
That was also the main goal of Mackenzie Newcombe, who was planning a surprise bachelorette wedding for her sister Kate in May.
The agenda for Kate Newcombe’s single night in Newport was to appear on the local bar scene dressed as various Will Ferrell characters.
Courtesy of the subject
The one-night slumber party at his cousin’s house in Newport, Rhode Island, was the perfect plan, Newcomb said. Most of Duchess Kate’s Boston-area friends could easily get there, accommodations were free, and attendees could rally in their best party personas.
“We’re going to do our best for the bride. We’re not going to get off the dance floor. We’re not going to make phone calls. We’re not going to complain about anything,” Newcombe says.
The evening began with a hibachi dinner at his home (approximately $1,100 divided among 12 women, according to documents seen by CNBC Make It). And the women took inspiration from Kate’s celebrity crush, Will Ferrell, to dress up as his most iconic characters. Costumed Ron Burgundy and the Ricky Bobby’s crew spent the night shutting down the town’s bar scene.
“Everyone’s drinking, everyone’s dancing, and no one’s hungover,” Newcombe said. “Just come, have a perfect night and leave.”
Mackenzie Newcombe helped throw a surprise one-day bachelorette party for her sister Kate in May.
Courtesy of the subject
Newcombe, 33, said low cost was a big factor in making the party a success for her sister. The increasing financial burden of attending large wedding events has been a hot topic among friend groups for years.
According to a 2025 study by Credit Karma, 38% of Gen Z and Millennial wedding guests said they borrowed money to attend a series of events.
Montemurro said some recent participants are at a stage in life where their desire for expensive solo travel has been satisfied. American women are marrying later in life, and many may have already taken many solo trips, have friends who are responsible for raising children, or have discretionary income that allows them to plan trips with friends without being tied down by wedding commitments.
Montemurro suspects that these women may not feel as much of a need to go all out on their own solo trips.
Just come, have a perfect night and leave.
Newcombe, who organizes multi-day book trips for a living, says single-night singles are the perfect compromise for “anxious brides.”
“This allows you to enjoy this classic cultural experience while still being as financially inexpensive as inviting friends over for a perfect bachelorette weekend,” she says. Plus, for anyone worried about mixing friend groups or navigating friendship politics, “one night can and will definitely absorb it.”
new york city slumber party
Planning a bachelorette party takes a lot of time, money, and a lot of texting, but one thing that’s remained the same over the decades is the reason women plan and attend bachelorette parties: to show the bride they value their friendship, Montemurro says.
Alyssa Simmons, of Washington, D.C., said she hopes that by planning a one-day bachelorette party, she will “get back to focusing on what’s really important,” spending quality time with close friends as she moves on to a new chapter in her life.
Alyssa Simmons, third from the left, is planning a day-long bachelorette party with friends in New York City, where she spent her early 20s together.
Courtesy of the subject
Simmons, 30, who grew up in New Jersey, said he plans to gather five or six friends in New York City, where many of them spent their teens and early 20s, for a day of activities and an overnight stay. Her Spring 2027 party itinerary includes brunch in Harlem, where she and her fiancé met, a burlesque show, and a nice dinner outside.
Simmons has spent up to $2,500 on a four-day bachelorette trip, an amount he would happily set aside as a gift for his best friend, and is considering a trip to another Dominican Republic soon. But for her, an only child with self-professed limited social skills, a one-night party is the perfect balance as she can celebrate without spending too much time, money or energy.
“Some people get obsessed” with wedding events, she says. “I love it for them, but it’s just not possible for me.”
Simmons, who is planning a wedding for Labor Day 2027, says she wants to shake things up and do something a little different for herself and her friends.
“I thought this was a really good compromise. It’s been a long time since I’ve had that slumber party atmosphere with my daughters, especially in New York City,” she says. “I thought it would be really fun to do it this way.”
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