What are the most important things to consider when choosing a wedding venue?

Hi There

These are our Top 20 Considerations for choosing a venue:

1. First of all, do you both love the venue? Can you picture yourselves enjoying your wedding day experience at this venue?

2. How invested are the staff? The way that they treat you is the way that they should greet your guests. Were they courteous, and well groomed, did they offer you tea or coffee or was it a pure asked meeting? Hospitality is reflected in many ways.

3. Is their pricing and their contract easy to understand? Are there any hidden costs?

4. Assuming that you will visit more than one venue - is the per-head price value for money?

5. Are the bathrooms clean?  Always check the bathrooms!!

6. Is there sufficient parking?

7. Do they cater well for accessibility? And this goes well beyond having a wheelchair-accessible bathroom. Each of your guests should easily be able to move around the entire venue.

8. Are they flexible with menu options?

9. Do they provide some initial wedding planning support?

10. What will your weather contingency plan look like?  If you are in the mountains, is there a back-up generator?

11. What decor do they offer? Do they set up your place cards and extra decor? If not, how early can you access the venue?

12. How many meetings do they allow you in the lead up to the big day?

13. Do you have a dedicated coordinator for the day?

14. Are there any hidden costs?

15. How long do they give you to finalise the initial deposit? Taking into account that you are also paying deposits for other wedding services.

16. Do they allow pets?  

17. What if your guest numbers increase/decrease?

18.  Is live music permitted? What time does the music need to stop?

19. What is the duration of the function package? Can we pay for extra time?

20. What is accommodation and transportation like in the area, late at night?

Bonus Question: Can we bring external caterers?