What would you do?

I am so, so sorry that this happened to you. That is quite a nightmare. For your sake, I hope that the venue and any services that were potentially included with your venue were refunded in full.

Now, I will answer your question as if I was in your shoes.

The first thing I would do is go "all hands on deck" with your guests and vendors.

1) Vendors

-If you have a wedding planner, explain the situation, and go into immediate planning to a location within relative proximity to Phoenix, or wherever most of the guests are going to be coming into town from. I say Phoenix because that appears to be the closest airport to the venue, and a location where if guests are flying into town, they can find a hotel that will accommodate their budget (if applicable). You can also try Tucson, just in case. Keep in mind that Tucson will be a smaller air port and most guests flying into Phoenix will have to drive over 80 miles to get to Tucson.

If you do not have a wedding planner, I strongly suggest you hire a reputable one immediately to help you with "damage control".

2) Reach out to all other vendors and explain the situation. Keep them informed of the process and that you will be looking for a new venue. Ask if any of them are willing to travel to the new venue of your choice once you book. If not, this may be a tricky situation with getting initial deposits back, as most probably will not. Be prepared to either book with new vendors and/or loose deposits. Some may honor returning all of the money due to the extreme circumstance. It doesn't hurt to give a positive review of such a vendor if they do this.

3) Family/Friends/Guests

This will be lengthy, but send an email something to the effect of:

Due to the unfortunate circumstance of our venue being sold (name of fiancé) and I are looking to have our wedding elsewhere. We are attempting to book with a new venue on the same day at the same time to minimize any inconvenience to our guests, and will keep everyone informed of the new venue, and if the wedding is ultimately rescheduled. We apologize for the late notice as the venue being sold and canceling our date has been recent news to us.

We appreciate all kind thoughts and prayers during this time.

With much Love,

(Your name + Fiancé's name)

This will be time consuming, but if you can personally reach out to all guests, I am sure they appreciate the thoughts. It doesn't have to be a drawn-out conversation, and you can say that you are trying to settle the situation as quickly as you can.

I hope this helps. You might want to try some smaller hotels or venues. They might let you have room blocks too.

I gave your post some more thought, and wanted to add a bit more to my initial response.

If your wedding is on a Monday as listed, the silver lining is that most vendors and places should have spots available to fit you in on short notice.

The potential bad news: If you really and truly want a venue similar to the one you wanted, it may mean a longer drive for your guests, and some added costs for you.

-Distance from the Sky Harbor Airport to Rancho Tonto is about 102 miles.

-Distance from Flagstaff is about 150ish miles, give or take. Sedona is very popular, and can be pricey.

What I meant by saying, "small hotels" is that you can potentially have something that is all-inclusive and established. These can be similar to a Hilton property, or like the, "Little America Inn" (North of Phoenix). Established, all-inclusive venues don't hurt either, like Saguaro Buttes (Tucson Area).

Another option to consider are what Wedgewood Weddings have to offer. They are known for all inclusive packages.

I would say that peace of mind is especially important at this time. You don't have to have the most expensive venue in the world, but one with an experienced venue coordinator, catering team, and with linens and chairs (at minimum) that are included, you can breathe a little easier.

Last, but not least, allow yourself to grieve. This should have never happened, and frankly, it is inexcusable what your original venue did. I hope that for everyone's sake, that the new venue is accommodating, and you will have an even better wedding than what you initially imagined.

You can always opt to have an anniversary and post-wedding photo shoot in a place with a similar aesthetic after your wedding. You will not be the first bride to do this.

View Quoted Comment This helped so much. Thank you for taking the time to write me. We went down the list you gave and it made things organized. Our family hopped right in to help. We are setup with 6 viewings between school/ work these next couple weeks. All vendors will still work with us. Plan is to try and keep the same date and time. So far venues have it open.

View Quoted Comment You are welcome. Happy I could help. I had some wedding SOS moments myself.


Let me know if you need or want any more suggestions.

Hello again,

I just thought I would drop a line to see how your wedding planning is going and if you might need more in terms of suggestions.