Seven Questions to Ask When Booking a Wedding Venue

Your wedding venue will be one of the most expensive and important decisions you make for your big day.  The wedding venue you choose should be a reflection of the two of you as a couple and a space you can imagine your dream wedding coming to life in.  Many factors will play a part in making your wedding venue decision.  Consider these seven wedding venue questions to ask when booking your venue so it can go as fun and smoothly as possible.

1. Is there availability for our date?

The first thing you should check is wether or not the venue you’re interested is available on your wedding date! Unless you’re willing to be flexible with your wedding date, you won’t want to waste time inquiring about places that are already booked.  Places book over a year in advance, so keep that in mind.

2. What is the size of the venue?

If you haven’t already, now is the time to create a mock guest list to get an idea of how many people will be attending your wedding.  When you’re asking wedding venue questions, make sure you find out if the space can accommodate the amount of guests your are planning for, plus a dance floor if desired.  If you’re going to have a live band, you may need a bit more space than you would if you were to have a DJ, so make sure to check if the space can accommodate both.  If you’re planning an outdoor ceremony, you may also want to consider a place with extra space to move the ceremony indoors if unfortunately the weather decides to not cooperate that day.

3. What is the breakdown of price?

If you’re planning with a specific budget in mind, this should be one of the most important factors you consider. Considering what you’re getting with the price of the venue.  Are they providing any additional services such as chairs, decor, flowers, DJ, etc. or are you just paying for the space?  Some venues require a separate rental fee and some just charge the price per head for food and drinks (if catered in house).  Some also include liability insurance while others require you to take out your own insurance policy for the event.  Make sure you know all the costs upfront before signing any contracts.

4. Are there any food and beverage minimums?

Before you fall in love with a venue, make sure there aren’t any hidden food and beverage minimums you have to meet in order to book.  This is common at a lot of venues, and the minimums usually fluctuate depending on if it’s peak season or not.  The food and bar price per head may be within your budget, but if the venue requires a f+b minimum of $25,000 (I can’t even make this up, I heard this many times while searching for our venue in New Orleans), depending on the size of your guest list, it wouldn’t even make sense to look there.

5. Do we have the freedom to choose our vendors?

Depending on the venue, you may have the freedom to chose your own vendors or provide your own alcohol, or you may not.  Depending on location, some venues let you pick your own food and drink caterers while others have contracts with a specific company or have an in-house team.  If you have your mind set on a specific company to do your food, drinks, or cake, make sure it’s allowed before you book!  From my experience, a place in the New Orleans French Quarter that allows you to provide your own alcohol is pretty much nonexistent.

6. Where do I want the location to be?

Once you have an idea of the city you want your wedding to be in, it’s time to focus on the specific location.  If your ceremony site is different than your reception site, consider how far away the two places are.  Do you want your guests to drive from point A to point B?  Will you be providing transportation to and from?  If you want to avoid additional costs of transportation for yourself and guests, consider a venue with a pretty setting for both your ceremony and reception, or a reception venue within walking distance of your ceremony site if possible.

7. Are there any rules for decor?

Each venue has their own rules when it comes to decor.  Most won’t allow you to affix things to the walls, although pipe and drapery is typically acceptable.  Some also have strict rules when it comes down to candles, rose pedals, and sparklers.  If those are on your must have list, make sure your venue allows it before booking!

There are literally 100 wedding venue questions you should ask when booking a wedding venue to make sure there are no unwanted surprises in the end.  I highly recommend if you’re planning a wedding to get this wedding planner & organizer which is full of useful checklists, timelines, tips, worksheets, calendars, and wedding venue questions to ask for literally every step of the way!