Finding a venue for your wedding is tough.
After all, there is a lot to consider – like, what kind of venue do you want?
Do you want a hotel? How about something outdoors? Or you can always go for a more traditional church wedding.
When my fiancé and I sat down to start our wedding planning, we had already (digitally) gone through so many venues that it began to feel overwhelming.
Even though there were a few hiccups along the way, we soon found our two venues – one for the ceremony and one for the reception – and they couldn’t be more perfect for what we had envisioned for our big day.
But there were a few things I wish I had considered before kickstarting the process.
How many guests are you having?
Having a firm number, or even a within-10-or-so-people number, on a (possibly what seems like an ever-expanding) guest list is a huge bonus when searching for a venue.
Many places have a minimum number requirement for certain rooms, and you don’t want to end up with somewhere that is going to be too big (or too small) for your celebrations.
What’s your budget?
This one kind of ties in with the above, because it’s more than likely that your budget will effect the guest list and vice versa.
But there’s no sense in looking for a venue before you settle on a budget, because if you fall for somewhere that ends up being out of your price range…well, that’s just setting yourself up for a heartbreaking fall.
Seriously, it’s not fun. Trust me.
Are you having a city centre wedding? Or one in the countryside?
Location, location, location – it’s one of the biggest key factors when it comes to settling on your dream venue.
Namely, where is the wedding going to be taking place?
If it is in the countryside, are guests going to have to travel a lot – or would you be organising transport? Are there going to be hotel rooms put aside for guests?
If it is in the city….well, it’s basically the same questions.
Are there going to be kids allowed at your wedding?
If so, is the venue kid-friendly? Would you have a kids table at the reception or would you be organising a babysitter of sorts?
Are you having the ceremony and reception in one place?
If so, is there a separate area where your guests can have a cocktail hour while you have your photos done?
If you’re going for two different ceremony venues, you need to factor in things like transportation (how close are the venues? are people going to have to walk ages?), do they have different maximum capacities, are they easy to access in general (lots of stairs? is there an elevator? or is it all on one level?).
You may have to compromise on some things
Sometimes, restrictions at your dream venue may mean you don’t have it as long as you want it for.
Other times, it may be that they only have a certain kinds of decorations – or a maximum numbers cap that is smaller than your guest list.
Whatever it is, having a bit of extra wiggle room on the details of your big day could be a huge benefit if you have fallen head over heels for somewhere.
Keeley and Sam are saying ‘I do,’ in May 2019. And with less than two months to go, this bride-to-be admits she’s still learning the ropes. In the run-up to her Big Day, Keeley will be writing a weekly blog about all things wedding-related… from the start of planning, to walking down the aisle.
