Buffalo ny September Bride sos

The CDC released guidelines for weddings a few days ago... https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/large-events/considerations-for-events-gatherings.html


we dont know if NY will adopt these or change them to fit our unique situation but i assume this is what will be followed. the question is what will the capacity restriction be. today cuomo said phase 3 will allow 25 people gatherings. im waiting to see what phase 4 will be. im guessing maybe 50-100 but only time will tell!

View Quoted Comment Thank you for the detailed information this is very helpful. We hope that our venue will understand our concerns and move us to 2021. I never thought my wedding would be this stressful and our venue would be so difficult and not understanding towards the impact this will have on all our guests.

View Quoted Comment It seems a lot of vendors and venues are kind of desperate for money and dont want to postpone until they have to by law. i have no intention of postponing- I cant wait any longer to get married, ill do it in court if i have to. Im not impressed with the communication from my venue at all either. even though they know very little i would like to at least get some updates or something that theyre just waiting on guidelines.

Has Cuomo announced when/what Phase 4 will be? I cant find it anywhere. We need info on masks, guest count, any other social distancing requirements. Our venue also knows nothing. Also, does anyone know if this is done by county or if the reopening plan applies to the whole state?

Unfortunately, I think you'll have to wait until July to get a clearer picture. Cuomo does seem to go by the CDC guidelines, but with NY being hit so hard, he might actually be stricter.

I'm sorry, this is so confusing for everyone!

Phase 4 will not begin until Phase 3 has been deemed safe, if NY is anything like NJ. So, there is no current start date for Phase 4.

View Quoted Comment Good morning,


I have been unable to find much on phase 4. My curiosity is guest count, if we have to wear masks, social distance? It all just sounds like a nightmare. That’s why we may just leave our venue and go somewhere else if they won’t move us to next year.

View Quoted Comment Thank you for the feedback. Our venue seems to think they know it all and stated phase 4 is June 30th and there will be no restrictions. I feel like they only want to here or say whatever will make them guaranteed money this year. Reason why they are only giving us a 5 week notice.

View Quoted Comment Oh I have daydreamed of doing that so many times haha. I love the idea of cancelling the venue and having something in our backyard so we’re not tied to their restrictions. But I dont think we cancel the venue without paying for the whole contract still. I cant believe the wedding is in two months and i have literally no idea if its happening or not.

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Hey Lea,

I completely understand being such a scary unknown. I feel every venue should understand that. I would even be fine with paying a little extra for our venue to move it to next year. But it seems they are in it for the money this year regardless of how you feel and if you own father and soon to be father in law are in the high risk pool to contract COVID-19. Never thought this would be happening. Best of luck with you as well and hopeful your venue will understand and move you to 2021.

View Quoted Comment Phases are by region, so it depends on what phase your region is in currently. Each phase is 2 weeks long so its pretty easy to figure out when the next phase begins. For example, Long island will be in phase 3 on June 24th, so phase 4 will be on July 8th. All the regions work the same as long as the numbers stay down which obviously, they have.

View Quoted Comment Thank you! I didnt realize it was by region, it’s so time consuming reading up on this and understanding it 😂

View Quoted Comment I’m surprised your venue is pushing you to keep your date. my venue is acting bothered by the fact im still moving forward with it. almost as if they wish it would be postponed. I would think some wedding is better than no wedding for them but who knows

View Quoted Comment Yeah they have given us nothing but stress over the situation and will not offer us a refund even if they will not allow us to move it to next year. We have to many people at risk and we want everyone to be there and comfortable.

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How much are they charging you to cancel altogether? If you can move on for a free/slight cost that might be best.

View Quoted Comment Hi Claire,


Well they are keeping are entire half deposit of a few thousand if they can’t find someone to backfill our date. And refuse to move us to next year even with canceling. Really a terrible venue to deal with.

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We are stuck in a similar situation for our wedding in Long Island in September. If we cancel now it is around 10k, if we cancel next month or later it will cost us around 20k in lost deposits. With the uncertainty of what's going to happen in NY by then, it puts us in a really bad position.

With the resurgence of coronavirus in many different parts of the country, I wish wedding venues would be more flexible. Also, Cuomo really should iron out the details of his guidelines and be more strict. Health and safety is more important than anything and we can't imagine exposing our guests to potential illness cause the disease will still be around at that time.

View Quoted Comment Idk if you saw his briefing today or read the new phase 4 guidelines but weddings are not part of the phase 4 reopening at this time. they are dividing phase 4 into subgroups that will reopen over a period of months so only nature parks and similar acitivities will open at the start of phase 4. they did not indicate when the other businesses like casinos, gyms, catering halls, etc will be allowed to reopen. my wedding is also in september so i’m very nervous. Just hoping they can accomodate us in some way even if its an intimate dinner

View Quoted Comment If your very concerned about the safety of your guests, are you not willing to postpone for a later date?

View Quoted Comment Yes we have by cancelling our wedding and moving it somewhere else next year as our venue is not very helpful and shows no empathy other than a 6 week notice and no guarantee on dates available.

View Quoted Comment Smh...the more time goes by the more I feel I may be in the same situation 😪