You’re engaged wohooo! It’s so exciting and you’re probably on the search for a wedding venue but where to begin? There are so many options out there how do you decide! Well just for you I’m going to reveal my top tips to make it a lot easier so you can find your perfect wedding venue!
Firstly and most importantly decide on your budget! Without a budget you don’t know how much you can afford to spend on your wedding venue. As I’m sure all married couples will tell you it’s easy for the costs to creep up if you’re not careful. So firstly figure out how much you can afford, if any family members are able to contribute and how much they can accommodate. This will then give you an overall budget.
It’s hard to know how much you could be paying so I’ve given a rough guide on costs, but it does vary on your guests numbers and time of year.
Venue Hire – £3,000 – £6,000
Photographer – £1,000 -£3,000
Videographer – £1,000 – £3,000
Wedding planner – £500 -£2,000
Food – £60 – £120 per person
Drinks – £25 – £40 per person
Florist – £1,000 – £5,000
Dress/Wedding outfit – £500 – £3,000
Suit – £1,000 +
Bridesmaid dresses £100 upwards
Make up and Hair – £250+ for Bride only
Cake £500 +
Decoration and Hire £1,000 +
Entertaiment £500 +
Wedding Rings – £1,000
📸 Nick Flemings
Obviously these are just rough prices but if you have a £15,000 budget there is no point seeing a venue that has a minimum spend of £10,000 because that’s already a 2/3 of your budget gone! Instead it would be better to look at a lower price venue, and here are my top tips when searching for one.
1) See a variety of options
Have a look at barns, manor houses, industrial spaces and compare the different styles and how it will fit your budget. You’ll soon realise what your style is and what spaces your prefer.
2) Ask questions
Go prepared with a list of things you want to know. Does the price include VAT, is there a place you can get ready on the day. Can you set up the night prior, does the venue come with staff? These are vital questions and you don’t want to assume things are included, and if they’re not those small things can add up to extra costs you hadn’t budgeted for.
3) Location Location Location.
How accessible is it? Is it easy for guests to find the venue, if you’re opting for city venue. Are there transport links, for guests to find their way. And if it’s a more rural location is it easy to find or will guests get lost. The last thing on the day of your wedding is lots of phone calls from guests saying they’re lost. If it’s not easy to find make sure you can add signage, especially for remote locations.
4) Caterers
Do you want to choose your caterers, if this is a yes. Just be aware most venues will want you to use their preferred on in house team. So make sure you ask this question to any potential venue if you have a caterer you really want. As this will limit which venues can accommodate your request and save you wasting time seeing venues which aren’t suitable.
5) Is it an exclusive use venue?
Exclusive use is where it’s just you and your wedding guests or are you happy for other guests to be there. For example hotels tend to have other guests staying and can mean you won’t be the only ones at the hotel, and you will only have a few areas which are privately yours for the day. It’s worth noting exclusive use will mean you’ll have to pay more.
Once you’ve seen a few options sit down and narrow down the top venues, and write a pros and cons list to all. Ultimately it can be a feeling that you know which venue you can envisage your day with, go with your gut feeling.
Annie Spratt
Lesley Curtis
📸 Sascha Gusov
It can be overwhelming to look for a wedding venue, but you’re in luck I have worked as a venue finder so I am a pro at finding hidden gems, and doing all the hard work so you don’t have to. If you’re struggling to find the PERFECT venue then do get in touch. I love finding my couples their venue.
So what are you waiting for just get in touch for a quote.
