Venues

Since we knew we wanted our own caterer our primary requirements were space and location. We were very opposed to a hall that looked the same for every wedding, we wanted something as unique as us and our relationship. We live in a beach town and wanted to find a venue at the beach, preferably with direct beach access. We needed indoor and outdoor space to accommodate the guests we planned to invite. Of course budget is huge and while we thought we might have to bust it for the venue we ended up finding the perfect location that fit. I hope this helps. Good luck!

We knew what season we wanted to get married in, and we had a rough idea of our budget, but we really focused on a venue that had an appropriate amount of space and felt like us. We ended up picking a distillery because FH loves bourbon, and it's a really cool local spot that's surprisingly pretty inside. We looked at a few vineyards that were also gorgeous, but they were either out of our price range or a little too rustic.

It really depends on the couple and your priorities. Budget and capacity should always be number one. We knew we wanted a barn or ranch style venue, so that was non-negotiable for us. It was important that they had a Saturday open in the fall. We also knew we wanted to be able to bring in our own vendors instead of selecting from a pre-set list. If you want an all inclusive venue, obviously that should be a priority for you. If you're having a DW or lots of out of town guests, nearby accommodations would be important.

Congrats on your engagement! Having a date helped us. We’re getting married in 2.20.20 and looked at 3 venues with that available date in Puerto Rico. We found the perfect place that has the hotel rooms, beach and reception area all at the same place. It’s convenient for everyone! Also close to the airport! You should do a food tasting when you’re thinking about booking a venue. Think about what important details you want, high ceilings? Chandeliers? Lighting? Etc. I also looked at pictures on wedding wire and looked up the venues on yelp.

We had a ballpark date and knew how many guests were attending. When we started looking, we honestly chose what gave us the most bang for our buck but that was still nice. So, we chose a beautiful hotel that covers catering, cake, linens, champagne toast, open bar and cocktail hour. This way, most of my stress is covered and my venue is also beautiful and reasonable.

Costs and food. But we ended up going with a venue we had an early date at aha so it was kind of meaningful

We wanted to be on the beach with a great view and good food!

We wanted a very small intimate ceremony so we were looking at places in the forest or possibly Airbnb a cabin in the woods, but then the problem of deciding who to invite came up. Eventually we decided it would be easier for us to go to the courthouse, so that’s what we’ll do with our parents and grandparents. It works perfectly too because there will be a live webcam set up so the rest of our families can watch us get married! I have anxiety so I love the idea that everyone can share in the moment with us without having too many people in the room!

Every venue I looked up had really strict restrictions like we have to take their catering services and decorations and cake and basically not have our own touch on things. So I was getting extremely frustrated because I want my wedding to have everything that we want and not just everything that the place has available. We found a great venue that allows us full use of the building for 9 hours and allows us to do and bring whatever we want. So in essence, we are only paying for the Shell of the building. The price wasn't that bad considering the place comes with 3 coordinators and includes the ceremony outdoors as well so I was sold immediately. It also helped that they give the bride and groom complimentary mimosa and beer packages 😉

For me, what was important was having a venue that did not require a licensed caterer, had no alcohol restrictions, and did not require us to use any of their vendors. So I ended up calling my dance studio and they agreed to rent the black box theater to us for our reception - our reception will be on the stage of a theater and our food and drinks will be in the big bay area room next door and it's going to turn out so nice!!

FH and I wanted to get married at the church we first met at. Since we're members, the church is letting us use their building for free!

We were looking for a venue that met:

-All inclusive services

-Ceremony and reception space for 100 guests

-Near a major town and/or hotel

-Ease of communication with staff

-Affordable

We knew this was our venue almost immediately.

Budget! But we also wanted to be able to hire our own caterer (for both cost and quality reasons) and new we wanted an open space with lots of good natural light and space to dance.

We wanted a lot of space and still a luxury look even though we on a budget. And we found a spot for around 7000$ including buffet service and open bar and up to 250 people fit in that pretty location. Its called Mona Visitors Lodge in Jamaica

What is important differs from couple to couple. It is all about what your priorities are. We wanted something that would be hassle-free and the least amount of work. We chose an all-inclusive location that will handle our ceremony, reception, catering, flowers, and day-of coordination. Because we knew we wanted all-inclusive, we made sure that the catering is on point and we instagram stalked their designs to get an idea of what they can do. Overall, this has cut back on a lot of planning stress.

View Quoted Comment Hey Stephanie, I am with you I have been leaning towards hotels for convince as well as budget. It offers accommodations for the guest and they offer so much with their packages!

I wanted a venue that had outdoor ceremony options and temperature controlled (we are doing a barn wedding so only looked at these types of venues) and I wanted to be able to have a full open bar as a lot of places were beer and wine only.

View Quoted Comment

Exactly! Honestly, everyone I've spoken to as well as my friend who is also currently planning a wedding, wishes they would have done the same! It truly relieves so much stress and then all you have to do is decor, dress, officiant, and DJ! Plus my venue and most venues, offer at least 5-6 vendors to choose from for cake, catering etc so it's not like you're locked in to just one! Look into it!

View Quoted Comment Where is this venue?

View Quoted Comment It's at a place called Noah's event venue. They have locations all over