Torn between 2 venues, what would you do?

Although your budget is a good p.o.v. you should go with your heart. The way you described the second venue to me that sounds like your dream. You can always take pictures near water etc. Besides, it's a precious memory of when your FH asked you to be his girl. Good luck and congratulations

View Quoted Comment I made a pro/con list and financially the banquet hall is smarter and offer things I wouldn’t have to worry about at the lodge, but like you said, the lodge is beautiful! Such a tough decision but I think I’m leaning lodge! I’m gonna call my mom tomorrow and get her opinion, moms always have good advice 😂

View Quoted Comment Thank you for the advice! That’s definitely something I hadn’t really thought about too much, second venue would probably be less stressful set up/decorating wise!

Personally I like the lodge. It has more character then the banquet hall

I personally like the lodge

I would also take into account the cost/preparation/time to decorate each location. Do you want a blank slate to decorate or something with inherent character? We ended up going with a more expensive ceremony venue that was naturally beautiful and requires little decoration, which is saving us both money and stress.

We are having our wedding at a lodge in a park. We toured a total of 10 venues. We ultimately chose the lodge because of it's style, scenic and quiet location, price, the freedom of time line and catering options.

You're lodge option sounds very similar to mine. We have to rent wedding chairs, dinnerware if we don't get it through our caterer, and tablecloths. Or buy tablecloths because it can be cheaper that way. We will also be responsible for set up and break down and cleaning.

We are doing the set up and prepping appetizers the night before. Our main meal will be catered. We get to bring in our own alcohol so that saves a ton of money. There isn't a bar either but we will use a table for soft drinks that people can grab and another two to make a makeshift bar. We will likely have the RD there as well.

It's certainly more hands on which is a con. However with helping hands and a good workable plan in place it doesn't have to be overwhelming.

There are plenty of DIY brides that can give great ideas and advice if you choose the more hands-on venue. There is nothing wrong with the banquet hall. We knew from the beginning we didn't want one. We wanted a great view of either the downtown arch (I'm in St. Louis, Missouri) because of 4th of July fireworks or surrounded by trees and grass or water and still be able to see fireworks.

Like you said, both options are great but when it comes to weddings I personally prefer ones not in a banquet hall. We looked at golf clubhouses, wine bar, 1920's play house, old factory turned venue, and the lodge. The play house was awesome too but a bit too small sadly.

One of the factors also was the additional service fees and ceremony site fee that drove costs up by as much as 33% by time tax was included. A $8k total was suddenly over 10k, not within budget.

There isn't a wrong answer here but what aligns with your vision. Which is best both inside and outside. And would a day of or week of coordinator be someone you'd be willing to use if you felt like you needed it?

I’d go with the Lodge. Stick with your vision for your wedding then look for other places to save money. Think about how you want to remember the day. Stay as close to that as possible and within reason. You don’t want to regret anything.

View Quoted Comment Thanks for the insight! I really appreciate it! I think I’m really leaning lodge, even though it’ll be more work it does have the inherent character that I like! And I can’t get over the outdoor ceremony space! I might have to think about a coordinator though, I didn’t really know much about them until recently.

I prefer the style of the lodge, but I wouldn't wait 2 years to get married there unless ya'll were already planning on waiting that long.

View Quoted Comment Yeah it’s definitely something to think about! I think the lodge definitely has a natural beauty to it that will make what I want for decor work well, the other venue might look a little plain. Thanks for the advice!

View Quoted Comment We were originally planning on waiting two years because the lodge was all booked up for 2020 but now that I found this venue it could go either way. I don’t mind waiting but I wouldn't mind 2020 either.

My guess is that either venue will work out well for you. Ultimately, I think what you will remember will be overall feelings of your wedding day (love, excitement, etc) and less on the specifics like what your ceremony arch looked like.

That being said, I won't pretend I'm not concerned about aesthetics for my own wedding so I understand your dilemma here. We ended up having a similar situation and I chose the venue that made more sense logistically, which for me equates to less stress. Overall go with your gut, it also helps to sleep on it. Good luck!

I personally like the look of the lodge better but it’s up to you and your fiancé and whoever is paying for the wedding!

I would say go with the second option. It has sentimental value to the two of you, which is such an added bonus! It also seems WAY more cost effective.

View Quoted Comment Is there an option to compromise? Can you do the ceremony at the lodge and do a lower cost, lower stress reception at the banquet hall? It might mean more in site fees but could be the best of both worlds.

We we fell in love with a venue but the the site fee was really high considering they had a short list of caterers and all the linen and place settings have to be brought in. A coordinator isn’t in our budget and I was getting overwhelmed just thinking about the logistics. During the off-season they allow ceremony-only weddings for a reduced fee, so we can get our dream ceremony and are doing a really nice restaurant reception that will only need the set up of some centerpieces.

View Quoted Comment Unfortunately the ceremony location is apart of the lodge so in order to use it you have to rent the lodge.

I called my mom and talked through it with her yesterday and then also talked about it with my fiancé and we’ve decided we’re gonna go with the lodge. Ultimately it’s my dream venue, and while it might be a little more work and money we think it’ll be worth it.

I say if you're having second thoughts on the venue, go with your gut. Personally, I wanted less to deal with, so I only looked at venues that covered the majority of my check boxes. My venue ended up having catering, lodging, set up, tear down, a bar, and some decor. But at the end of the day, its what works best for YOU!

Oh tough.
The photos tell me number 1.
The text tells me number 2.
Good luck!

View Quoted Comment

I'm happy you were able to come to a decision, Kenzie! Did you book it yet?