How to ask for wedding contribution to a diy wedding weekend

My friend is having a destination wedding at a chateaux in France. She's costed the rooms at different price points, so bigger ones or better views cost more, smaller ones are cheaper, etc. and people can choose what they'd prefer and what they'd be comfortable spending. She's also not requiring people to stay on site - so it's kind of a "if you'd like to stay here and not have to worry about a taxi, these are your options" but people are very welcome to search elsewhere if they'd prefer.

I think you need to be prepared to swallow the cost of any rooms not taken.

In terms of whether the price is fair, it's totally dependant on the room and the location and whether it feels comprable or a better deal to if they searched for similar quality rooms and nearby hotels.

I would ask in advance if people would be interested in this - the last thing you want is to be landed with a huge bill when everyone decides they'd rather stay elsewhere or go home at the end of the evening.

If enough people express an interest, then simply tell them that the cost of staying is £xx for the night. But as Chloe says, you do need to be prepared to pay for any unused rooms. Three nights is quite a lot to give up for one wedding though, so unless whole weekend weddings are common in your social circle, you might be better off just booking for the one night.

I went to a friend's wedding a few years ago where they had exclusive use of the whole site with plenty of bedrooms for the wedding party. I can remember them being quite upfront and saying that we could have a room from Friday lunchtime to Sunday night, meals on Friday & Sunday would be provided (plus the wedding food on Saturday) and it would be £X. I think your prices are reasonable depending on the food arrangements. If there is going to be no food provided and the house is far from any towns then costs will soon add up for guests driving to buy breakfast/lunch/dinner.

View quoted message Thanks for your comment Hayley and that’s exactly what I was going to do. We are viewing the venue next Friday just to make sure we get a good vibe from it and it’s what we are hoping for, then I was going to ask family and friends if they would contribute towards their stay. All food will be provided by us and drink. I’m just a bit stumped on how to sell the idea to them without sounding scabby if that makes sense!

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I appreciate your advice xx

View quoted message The venue is 25 mins from where we live, so the distance I’m hoping would be in my favour. I think I just need to just ask and see what feedback I get before booking anything