Bachelorette parties are getting expensive. Here are 3 tips for maids of honor from an event planner to manage expectations.

• Sarah Patton runs an events company that specializes in organizing bachelorette parties.
• She said they can cost guests $3,000 each, including lodgings, activities and meals.

This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Sarah Patton, an events planner in Nashville. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I've been working in events planning for 17 years. I'm now the CEO of an events planning company in Nashville. People trust me to plan events for them. I have the best job in the world.

When I started the business in 2013, bachelorette parties took place over one night.

Now, bachelorette parties are often full weekend events. They usually involve travel, not only to destinations within the US but to other countries. They tend to be two or three nights, though I've been to bachelorette parties that have lasted five days.

About 75% of our business is bachelorette parties. Most of the bachelorette parties we organize are in Nashville, but we've planned them in 10 destinations across the US. Our clientele are on the luxury end of the market.

Before, the maid of honor, who usually organizes the bachelorette party, would invite a group of five to seven people, often the bridal party. Now, I see groups of 10 and 20.

They're exciting and fun — but a big time investment.

The average bachelorette party includes a flight, hotel or Airbnb costs, food, activities, and everything they do for the weekend. Most of the time, the guests also cover the costs for the bride, so the guests incur her weekend costs as well.

Most guests spend an average of $2,000 to $2,500 for a weekend getaway to celebrate the bride-to-be.

Most of the time, we work with a maid of honor to organize the party, though sometimes we work with the bride or mother of the bride.

Here's what I tell the organizers to do to manage expectations.

1. Be upfront about all the costs

People need to be prepared for the costs of bachelorette parties. They need to budget and save for them.

The organizer needs to tell people upfront what the lodging and the activities cost and set expectations for dinner costs, too.

2. Give deadlines for collecting payment

We see that sometimes, as the bachelorette party gets closer, guests decide they're too much money and can't afford it.

We coach our clients to give deadlines for payment to guests.

If people need to pay in increments, we set those dates for the organizer.

But with the cost of lodging, I always tell clients to make sure they collect that payment when a guest says they're coming — regardless of whether they later cancel. Otherwise, it can be seven people instead of 10 people splitting a house. It's unfair that that cost is shouldered by the remaining people.

3. Split checks equally

We tell our clients to make sure guests know they're splitting the check in restaurants equally.

We can't have guests protesting that they only ate a certain thing or had one bite of the appetizer, for example.

You have to set those expectations upfront with everyone that they order what they want within a reasonable amount, and then they all just split the bill.