All three venues are equidistant from our apartment and my moms house (where we will probably have the rehearsal dinner) and there are hotels near all of them for a room block.
Venue 1
Pros: 3 rooms/areas for ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception. Obsessed with the sanctuary for the ceremony, lots of beauty in the space that would require less decor
Cons: Reception space is small, it would be crowded but she says they're done up to 180 in the room and we are having 150, not enough parking for all of our guests
My response to the Cons: We will make the reception space work...the wedding cordinator says they have done 180 before and it fit, so we should trust her since she's the expert. I was thinking about getting a party bus or other transportation to bring guests (who will be intoxicated) back to the hotel because I'm very anti-drunk driving and I want everyone to have a good time. So we will have less cars there anyways.
Venue 2
Pros: Beautiful brick and exposed wood, lots of space, lots of parking
Cons: The reception room isn't big enough for tables and dancing so it would be dancing in the room that the ceremony was held in and I feel like that will exclude people who don't want to dance. Not as many opportunities for a variety pretty indoor pictures
My response to the Cons: No idea what to do about the dance floor, but we could bring in pipe and drape or other things to make different backgrounds for pictures
Venue 3
*they have ivory chairs, apparently these people thought the blue and purple were a good color combo...
Pros: Super cheap and we can rent the entire building, they do all of the set up for no extra cost, we have the building for 14 hours, gorgeous lake views (before it gets dark and you can't see it anymore)
Cons: Not many indoor picture opportunities, needs more decor to make it look less events center and more wedding
My response to the Cons: Since everything else will be less expensive we can spend the money on decor to make it exactly how we want and have pretty spaces for pictures
So there's my dilemma, my fiance doesn't have much of an opinion but he hasn't seen venue 3 yet so i'm trying to make another appointment so that he can see it and decide if he likes it. Did anyone else have this much trouble selecting a venue, it's seriously stressing me out!
What do you guys like? Any input on the pros and cons?
Picking a venue was one of the easiest things I did...but we had a VERY specific list of requirements, so it made it a little easier to manage.
ReplyDeleteI think I like your first venue the best. It seems to be the prettiest, but that is only based on the pictures. Good luck deciding!
Venue is definitely one of the most important pieces to wedding planning. I think the best way to determine your venue is determine exactly what kind of wedding you want. The "theme" for the day can pretty much dictate the space, since the 3 you provided all seem very different! Good luck!! Venue shopping was my favorite!
ReplyDeleteYikes, tough choices!! I like #1!!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Samantha's comment above. First you need to decide your theme and see which venue works best. If you want more of a traditional, elegant or classic theme, I think venue 1 would work best. If you want a rustic or vintage theme, Venue 2 would be perfect. Also think about what you want to splurge on and save on. If you know you want a designer gown and an awesome photographer, then maybe you want to go with Venue 3 since it's cheaper.
ReplyDeleteAs far as photos go, most photographers want to take portraits outdoors, so I wouldn't worry about photo opportunities indoors. Taking your photos indoors makes it really easy to date your photos based on surroundings. Outdoor photos look more timeless.
Venue is major! I only looked at one venue before deciding only because I knew what was around us. They are all beautiful. Go with what feels right.
ReplyDeleteOy that's a tough one! Do any of them provide anything else in their package, like catering? That could be a determining factor: if any provide catering, table settings and servers that's one less headache!
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