Hi everyone! Did anyone have to pay a fee to tour a venue? It's a reputable venue I found here on wedding wire and after reaching out to the venue coordinator, he stated there is a $50 fee to tour. Is this common?
I have never heard of that. Do you have your heart set on this venue? If you go with this venue I strongly suggest you read the contract all of the fine print and try to find any sort of hidden fees because I have never in my life heard of a $50 fee to tour the venue.
Thanks everyone! So the manager stated a portion of it is donated to people effected by covid, he didn't state if the rest went towards a credit for the venue. It seemed kind of fishy to me so I wanted to double check as I've never planned a wedding before lol. The venue is definitely not my first choice I just wanted to keep my options open. I will absolutely not be considering them anymore.
Though it’s not common, I wouldn’t consider it a red flag. Some businesses in the wedding industry either hold credit card information and then take a fee if you cancel your appointment, or in fewer cases, charge a fee automatically. I work at a bridal salon in Chicago. We hold credit card information and charge $50 if a bride cancels with less than 24 hours notice. We know of a couple of other nearby salons that charge $50 for a bride to have an appointment at all. It’s definitely not unheard of! I would ask how much of it goes to Covid relief as a donation, and ask if the remainder of the $50 can then be deducted from your bill if you decide to book with them.
A portion could mean $0.01. I would not pay a fee to see a venue. If it was a catering or cake tasting fee, it would be more understanding since you are eating some of their work. However, you take nothing away from the venue if you go on a half hour-hour tour. Especially because if you chose them you will be spending way more than $50. Also, it makes me feel like they don't do that good of business. If they feel the need to get money for tours, my gut says it's because they're not making as much money on weddings being booked there.
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Nope! Never experienced paying a fee. A venue tour is to their as advantage and a time to sell you on booking their property. Also, It’s not your responsibility to assist that business toward their alleged Covid donations (in that case..... is the fee optional?). Glad you’re going to skip that place because they’ll probably have all sorts of other fees down the line.
