Are bridal expos worth attending?

They're kinda fun just because you get free stuff and free food samples but I didn't really get any amazing ideas or anything from any of the ones I went to. It probably depends on the area though. I live in a relatively rural area so I already knew of most of the vendors out there just from doing research online. I suppose if you lived in a bigger city there would probably be more to see!

If you don't have certain vendors booked they can be very helpful

FH and I went to one - but we had already booked our DJ, Photographer and venue. We were hoping to speak to florists and bakers but there were virtually none in attendance. It ended up being kind of a wash for us. The majority of people there were vendors we had already booked - but we did speak with a suit store and a shuttle service so that was helpful.

If you can get a list of who is attending vendorwise in advance it might be helpful - or if you don't have the majority of your vendors booked.

They are worth it, especially if you haven't booked your vendors yet. I went to two and had great experiences at both. It was worth the time. The first one was very crowded so it was difficult to navigate sometimes, but I was able to talk to vendors and get ideas. I wound up hiring my DJ at one, getting a 40% off discount by booking him there, plus some free upgrades. I also hired my DOC from a bridal expo and saved $500, despite booking her a few months after the expo. I won some doorprizes, but they often raffle big prizes like honeymoons, floral packages and such.

Create an email just for this event, the bridal expo hosts will give your email information to all vendors and you will get a shit ton of emails every day.

No, speaking from personal experience. I felt very pressured by the majority of the vendors. "Sign up today and get 200 dollars off". Also, I received many unwanted emails. I think I've found better resources using wedding wire and googling other things. Also, I talked to other brides.

It depends on what you have done so far in the way of vendors.

If you have your vendors booked, there really isn't much for you there. If you still haven't booked a number of vendors, then they are a great place to meet them and see what they have to offer.

I mean, if it is only $10 to get in...why not. You can check things out and walk around.

I went to two events. The first event was very small and not worth going at all. However, the second one was much bigger, and I found my DJ there. When I went to the second event the only vendor I had booked was my photographer (because it's my FSIL). I was mainly looking for cakes, caterer, and DJ There were several caterers, but not many bakers. There were also a handful of DJs, and other various vendors.

I would say it is totally worth it if you don't have any vendors. There are also giveaways you could win, and freebies that vendors give away.

I think if you're still uncertain about some vendors, it can definitely be worth your time. I attended a couple right after we got engaged, but before we had really discussed anything about the wedding, so I didn't really utilize any of the information I was given. Now that we've selected our date and venue and such, I think it'll be much more useful.

Some tips!

Make an email for wedding stuff, and only wedding stuff. The expos around me give your information to every single vendor if you sign up to attend, drove me crazy.

Also, it was really overwhelming for me to bring more than 2 people, the expos can be so crowded, the more the merrier does not apply to this :p

I think they are. Especially if you are in the beginning stages of planning or don't have much planned yet. I attend the ones by Elegant Bridal and they have a drawing for a 8 day 7 night honeymoon at each expo! Its great I was one number off one time

If it is really crowded sometimes its sucks waiting to try to talk to a vendor, I tend to go to ones where I am interested in the venue as well, cause they have it set up how they would the night of a wedding.

I plan to go to one next month. The baker I am wanting to use is offering discounts when booked at the expo. I also got a discount for bartender service from one I went to last year. They are better for people in the beginning stages of the planning process to get ideas on things and meet with lots of vendors at once instead of making various meeting with them.

I booked vendors that I met at a bridal event. But I did get the list of vendors first and researched the companies before hand. Then when I showed up, I talked with my top contenders and booked the ones that offered me the biggest discount day of. I think that worked well for me.

I went to one expo with my friend who was planning her wedding at the time three years ago. While it helped her get more information of which vendors are out there, we were pressured into filling out forms to get information or samples of items. Also, as part of the registration we had to provide information just to attend the event. That's fine, but I continuously received wedding vendor mail long after their wedding up until I moved. I also received many phone calls from vendors we didn't even speak with at the event. Needless to say, it helped her but we all got contacted in excess afterwards.

I did not attend any expos for planning my own wedding, WW helped me instead.

I didn't think it was worth it. Even though I didn't provide my phone number I still received spam phone calls of "you've won such and such". We did go to a couple open houses at some venues and found our caterer. It also gave us a chance to tour the venues without a real sales pitch.

I ended up finding 3 of our 5 vendors at the expo we attended. Our venue hosted it which meant we also got to sample to the catering. We won 100 free appetizers as the door prize and $500 off a photographer we had 0 interest in and emails us once a month to remind us to book her. Just be careful, you will end up getting spammed with calls, texts and emails from vendors there.

I personally have had a lot of fun at bridal expos. Generally you can find the same info doing research online and reaching out for quotes via e-mail, but it's a fun experience and a great way to make connections with vendors, try food from caterers and bakers (the ones I went to anyway) and get some decor ideas. Also, many vendors offer discounts for clients who attended the bridal show.

Totally worth it!! If you're close with your mom, take her! We got deals on vendors, free food, photo booth pics, and I won a free engagement shoot! And I found my dress there!

Thanks guys! I think I will give it a shot. Worst case it won’t be too helpful but it’ll probably be a fun time to get my mom and sis involved in planning.

For the experience - yes! but other than that they weren't very helpful to me.

Keep an open mind, and yes. What better way to meet vendors face to face and gather info?

From my personal experience, it was not worth it. The particular expo had more than half the vendors it advertised not in attendance, it was cramped, and no samples. The raffle it did led to junk emails and a phone call about me "winning" rings, honeymoon, and glasses but had to attend a meeting where they tried to sell cookware (my FH and I did not attend). It just wasn't worth it for me.

We went to two. They helped TREMENDOUSLY. We planned in six months or so. It was way easier to go to a table and say, "Hi. Our date is December 2nd this year. Are you available?" If they were, we got more information. If not, we struck them off the list. It was much quicker than an email or a phone call.

Our venue had some vendors that we HAD to choose from their list. Most of them were at the bridal shows, so we were able to try food or meet DJs and see if they were a good fit for us.

We met our photographers, caterer, bartender, room block and hotel manager, dress shop owner, wedding planner, and cake baker all at two bridal shows. We also met some vendors that we would have gone with until we found out that we just didn't "fit" with them or get along hardly at all. Some were rude or sarcastic, some were high strung, and others just weren't available or this wasn't their main job. (One cake baker was studying to be a dentist and made cakes on the side at her home. No shame to her! But I didn't want the risk of her having an exam or anything and struggling with our order.)

It was also just really fun to go with my MOH and FH to get food and admire the booths.