Budget help

With an outdoor wedding in November you’ll definitely need a tent with heaters. For a guest list that size a tent will probably run between 3-5 thousand to rent. You’ll also need to rent bathroom trailers which I believe are around one or two thousand. The cheapest catering I’ve seen is $10-$12 per person for drop off bbq, Mexican, or Italian. You’ll need to think about generators, renting a dance floor, and renting tables/chairs. Weddings at a “free venue” usually end up being more expensive than a traditional venue so that may be something to think about. Also the larger the guest list the more expensive the wedding will be so if budget is tight I would definitely cut down the guest list.

Mine is roughly around $13,000 with venue, dj, food, dress, tuxes, and photographer. We are having a barn wedding so we tried to keep it simple and rustic.

I mistyped our wedding is 9-12-2020. There is no need for restrooms as there is a men’s and women’s restroom there with 3 toilets in each. We have access to electricity so no need for a generator. The quest list is already cut to only include family and a few close friends. We aren’t sure on the price of the tent but there is a company the plantation does business with often that we would likely rent from. The reason we opted out of paying for a venue somewhere (while it would probably be much easier) is because Ames plantation is special to us, we are very DIY type of people and want to really be able to create something magical.

Like Kelly said in her post, you have to think of everything you will need to rent. On top
of a dance floor and table/chairs. You will need linens, silverware, plates, cups, lighting, etc. Yes a free venue is nice in theory but things add up quick when planning a wedding. I would pick a budget that’s realistic for you and work backwards from there so you can find vendors within your budget.

Our wedding is the same size and is running us around $25k. Here's our current rough breakdown:

Venue: $5250

Dress+Alterations: $2200

Grooms Tux: $200

Photographer: $1800

Catering3200 (Buffet with chicken breast or pork tenderloin, garlic mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, side salad, sweet tea)

Bar: $3100 (Beer, Wine, three signature drinks with vodka, whiskey, and gin)

Cake: $600

Flowers: $1080

Stationary: $350

DJ: $775

Security: $400

HAMU: $300

China: $600

Officiant: $600

Misc. Decor: $800

Favors: $300 (Koozies and custom bags for homemade cookies)

Rings: $1000

Rehearsal Dinner: $1500

The remaining $1000ish will go toward tips and gifts for the wedding party.

A lot of this can be adjusted depending on what you plan to do for food and drinks. The venue cost can also be deducted completely for you but I'd definitely look into the dance floor and table/chair cost. I will say, I was going to have a wedding on our families ranch but after the cost of all rentals it was going to be around the same price as just renting a venue, but more of a headache. Weigh the positives/negatives Let me know if you have any questions!

I would agree with PP about finding cheaper catering then. The larger costs go towards reception so if you can find cheaper options it'd be better

You can save a bundle by not doing real flowers! I'm using artificial, and with coupons and sales I paid less than $100 for 6 bouquets, 4 corsages and 9 boutonnieres!