Bachelor party
From Free net encyclopedia
A bachelor party (also called a stag party, stag night (UK, Ireland and Canada), or bucks party (Australia)) is a party held for a bachelor shortly before he is married, to make the most of his final opportunity to engage in activities a new wife might not approve of, or merely to spend time bonding with his male friends. A bachelor party may involve activities such as going to a strip club, hiring a female stripper or escort, drinking alcohol and gambling.
The task of organizing a bachelor party is often assigned to a male sibling of the bachelor. And in the absence of a male sibling, a male friend will organize it. The task often falls to the best man as well.
The tradition is thought to have originated with a bachelor dinner that was traditional in ancient Sparta.
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Variations
In the United Kingdom it is now common for the party to last for more than one evening, hence the increasing prevalence of the phrase "stag weekend". A spin off has been the growth of the Stag Weekend Industry in the UK with various companies taking the "hassle" out of the weekend. It has also become increasingly common for a stag party to include some form of activity such as paintballing or motorsports rather than just drinking.
It has also become common for a similar party to be held for the bride-to-be. This is known as a bachelorette party or hen night.
A tame version is the so-called Stag and Doe party, in which both the bride and groom attend.
Bachelor parties have also been the subject of many movies, especially comedies.
UK
In the UK, stag weekend trips are becoming mini-holidays with the groups taking part in various day time activities as well as the expected night out on the town and the inevitable strippers. Popular UK destinations include Brighton, Bournemouth, Newcastle, Nottingham and Edinburgh. There is now a growing trend for stags to go abroad, with Dublin topping the list, followed by Prague, Amsterdam and Maastricht.
United States
In the United States, Las Vegas and Atlantic City are popular bachelor party destinations.
Canada
In Canada, Montreal is one of the most popular bachelor party destinations due to the city's large number of sultry and sumptuos strip clubs with dance "contact".