Venue Capacity

Firstly, budget is going to be absolutely critical for you. Can you afford to host 500 guests? Is either set of parents prepared to help out (be careful, this kind of money can have strings attached)? When do you want to get married, and how much can you save before then?

To me, 200-300 people is a MASSIVE wedding. We had 75 and it was lovely - I wouldn't have wanted any more than about 120. You say you have big families, but do you really need to invite your third cousin twice removed that you've only met once? Talk to your FI and see what he's thinking at.

900 guests??? 200 is already a big wedding. Is money not going to be an issue? I can't imagine being able to afford to properly host almost a thousand people. Id look at your budget first, decide how many people you can afford to host, then make a rough guest list before picking your venue.

What is your budget? Food and alcohol alone for all of those people will be extremely expensive.

This reminds me of my friend from Mexico. We were talking about what was considered a small or big wedding. Her sister had 800 guests and she thought 200 was small. I couldn't imagine finding 800 people to invite and thought 200 was big. I'm curious, where are you from? ETA: from what I've seen personally with 800+ guests weddings is that families have been saving for a long time for this occasion and can host properly. Here's hoping that's the case here.

I thought so too!! Thanks for clearing that up MrsWrs. But she was dead serious that her sister had 800 guests and she couldn't imagine cutting the guest list. It's rude to assume other people's finances, but I'm pretty sure she's wealthy. Maybe it's her social circle? She wasn't joking though. She could not imagine a 200 guest wedding that wasn't considered small.

As others have said, your budget will determine how many guests you can have and what type of venue you can afford. I can tell you, though, that a venue that can hold 200- 300 people will not be a small venue, as a minimum of 200 is considered a large wedding.

You should not find a venue that can hold a large crowd just to hold a date but look for something more accommodating, because the venue you book and sign a contract with is the venue your wedding will be held at; or else you will loose deposit fees, and those are not cheap. Also, once you set a date, you have to book caterer if they're not exclusive, photographer, florist, DJ, etc. and they need to be available for that day, so you can't just change your mind on the venue once it's booked.

Honestly, I think next year is best because I am obsessed with work and I can't stop working. I live in Arizona, so November of 2018 or mid-October. So, this is the situation... My family is willing to pay for most. I just started to look online at venues and fell in love with stunning venues. But then, I see they can only have up to 200 guests. My brothers are excited and already are buying everything. I'm middle-eastern, so it is like a big family affair.

I'm not too worried about everything because my aunt does alterations and designs dresses. She's amazing. The guests, okay, this is how it goes. You invite one person with a plus one, and they invite six people. So, that is how it gets big. They do however cover their food and they bring a gift. lol

So, you guys didn't have a guest list before choosing a venue? because that is what I am afraid of.

You only let the people you invite come to the wedding. We are having around 100 (maybe a few more) and we have had tons of people come ask us to send them an invitation or if they could bring x, y, z with them and we just say, "I am so sorry but due to our budget and venue we aren't able to accommodate any more people." That would solve your problem and allow you to find a venue that you wanted.

I had a rough guest list before I went looking. I had a max of 120 and my venue holds up to 320 so it wasn't a problem. Now I'm down to 60-70 people. But I definitely had a rough guest list so I had an idea of numbers.

If you want an intimate wedding you could always do a as a destination wedding & then a big reception (200-300 is not small).

My nephew had 900 people at his wedding and they ran out of food andddd cake anddd booze! A party vs a wedding Ive learned now is very different. We are only having 100 people and to me that's small. Especially if you want to take care of your guests with good food and open bar.