7 Tips to Guide Your Wedding Venue Search
Getting married soon?
Congratulations! However, you still have a long battle ahead! Planning a wedding is no easy task.
Finding the right venue, for example, is an arduous process. There are simply too many things to consider.
Don’t fret, we’ve got some tips to help you out. Follow our guide below to improve your wedding venue search today:
1. Lighting Sets the Mood
Do you know the exact schedule for your wedding? Will it take place during the morning or at night? Once you know the schedule, check your potential venues and study how well they handle lighting.
Keep in mind that the lighting sets the mood. If it’s too dark, you won’t get to enjoy taking beautiful photos and the only fix around this is to flood the venue with distracting bright lights. If it’s too bright, photos won’t look right due to too much exposure.
If possible, look for a venue that can offer a warm glow. You’ll want to capture sunset colors or a clear evening sky to let string lights do the job for you.
2. Capacity For All
Your wedding venue search should also take into account the number of guests.
A venue too big might look empty and boring. There might be too many blank areas and people might have a hard time communicating due to the open spaces. Your wedding might appear like a ghost-town even when you have a lot of guests.
If the venue is too small for the number of guests then it could get cramped. People will have to squeeze in and the area might get too hot, causing discomfort. It’s also a health hazard since some people might faint from the heat.
This is why you should finalize your guest list early. Include an RSVP in your invitations so you can immediately know how many people to expect and then you can find cheap cloth table runners. This can help you find the right venue.
3. Privacy Concerns
Found a nice venue but it’s right beside a karaoke bar? That’s not going to be a fun night. You’ll have to suffer through a stranger’s drunk singing while the father of the bride tries to deliver a speech.
Thinking about a wedding in the park? That can seem fun and even romantic but you’ll have to deal with strangers walking by and taking pictures. With so many outsiders, there’s also the possibility of some random guy crashing the wedding to pull off a prank.
In short, find a wedding venue that offers some privacy.
This doesn’t mean you can’t hold a wedding at the beach or park. You can still opt for these venue options but try to work around the privacy concerns.
4. Convenience and Security
Convenience and security should go hand-in-hand when picking a venue.
First off, is the venue close to the city center? Can your guests easily get there? If they had to travel from another city, are there amenities to help them get around, such as car rentals or public transportation?
Don’t forget to consider security too. If the venue is too secluded, like in the middle of the woods, then look elsewhere. You run the risk of people getting lost or their cars breaking down too far from civilization.
Put these two together and find a venue that your guests can conveniently reach and is also a safe location. It shouldn’t be too far and there should be multiple ways to get in and out. This especially counts for weddings held at secluded vacation islands and hotels in the woods or mountains.
5. Function
Find a wedding venue that prioritizes function over aesthetics. You can easily fix an ugly wall with wallpaper and hanging lights but there’s nothing you can do if the venue has bad acoustics and no space for a cocktail bar.
Make sure there are multiple restrooms. You don’t want guests lining up to relieve themselves.
Look for a venue that has good ventilation, heating and cooling services, and emergency systems. After all, you don’t want everybody to panic in case of a fire or earthquake.
6. Have a Plan B
Always make sure that the venue has a Plan B. Say, for example, you opted to rent the rooftop of a hotel. If it rains on the evening of your wedding, they should have an extra function hall or large pavilion tents to keep everyone safe and dry.
Did you choose a venue because of the food catering service and the large space? What happens if an emergency in the kitchen ruined the food or if hotel guests had to occupy the function hall? You need to negotiate with the manager to make sure there are other options!
Couples hoping for an outdoor wedding should prioritize organizing a backup plan. They’re the ones that might have to deal with bad weather ruining the occasion. You might have to rent pavilion tents if the venue you like can’t provide them.
7. Budget
Make a list of all the features you need at your wedding venue. The next step is to narrow that list down by crossing out all the places that go beyond your budget. You might want to go a few notches below your budget to save extra cash on emergency expenditure.
Yes, there are other expenses to consider even after you paid for the venue. You might have to pay for extra bottles of wine, more food, or an extended hour renting the sound system.
Complete Your Wedding Venue Search Today!
Don’t panic! With these tips, you can narrow down your wedding venue search to a few select places that truly hit the sweet spot. Now you can find places that not only look great but also take into consideration things like the number of guests, poor weather, and lighting!
Of course, planning your wedding doesn’t end with finding a good venue. There are other details to finalize, like the wedding gown and entertainment! Fortunately, you can rely on our other guides here to discover more tips and tricks!
