wedding venue viewings - nervous

i woudlnt worry too much, tthe people who show you around will have a sale pitch so will prolly answer all your questions as you go along.........its fun looking at venues.but youl knwo when you find the one as youl get a feeling

Thanks Flow ?

I kinda want to get these awkward parts out the way and start to do all the thing I can do myself or ask family/friends to help with.

Even when we were buying our house, I hung back and let H2B do all the talking, I just dealt with all the paperwork. But I think with a wedding, it'd look weird if he asked all the questions and I said nothing - itd look like I was being forced into it lol ?

x

Don't worry too much as remember they are there to SELL you their venue and products - they are the ones under pressure really!

You just have to have a look about, tell them any thoughts you have (or not) and relax.

I felt the same way, worried as I didn't know anything about what I wanted, but I found at the first few places I looked at they were eager to share info about the place, what they provide and so on, and actually helped me get some ideas together.

You may fall in love with the first place you look - for us it was about the 5/6th place and totally not what we set out to have at all! So don't worry, ask anything that pops into your head - you might think its a daft question but trust me, when these people want to take thousands off pounds off you they will not regard any question as silly.

Also no matter how much you love a place don't give them deposits right away - the best advice I got was to always check out another venue, compare, take your time, make sure you are 100% with EVERYTHING, then you can always call back and secure a deposit later.

Don't feel rushed or pressured - if they are trying to give you a hard sell like 'oooh well we are very popular, put your deposit down now...' type of attitude then I am willing to bet they would not take good care of your special day if it is all about focus on the money. The venue we chose the man was very calm and slow and his attitude was 100% on me and my partner - not like at some other places where they were juggling several couples at once and not really listening to any of us.

Most of all, enjoy it! Take your time and make sure you and your partner feel happy with what you are looking at

Definitely agree with "don't book anything on the day" - go away and reflect on them, we thought we'd found the perfect venue until we looked again at the size of the function room (it was long and thin, fine for a banquet but no use for the room arrangement we wanted as it was just the wrong shape. They are very popular for weddings so clearly it works for many, but not for us.

Both hotels were owned by the same company and within 5 miles of each other, but the sales pitch on the one we finally chose was actually weaker than the one we discarded. Prices were, of course, pretty much identical anyway so it made no difference there.

One thing to remember is to ask who you'll deal with if you book. Many venues have a 'wedding department' whose sole job is to sell dates to people, so you get all the sales blurb but the after-booking service can be very different. Sometimes the after-sales people are better, sometimes worse, but if you can meet them too (often it's the duty manager) that can help make a decision.

At all times, you should feel comfortable with everything, and don't be afraid to say "actually we haven't really discussed that yet" if put on the spot, as clearly you can't have pre-thought about every aspect of the day because you don't know what they offer.

Take note as to whether the person you talk to communicates with both of you rather than just one of you - it can show an underlying attitude that you may not feel comfortable with after you've paid a deposit.

I assume you've got a wedding pack from them or their website already, which shows things like menu options - don't be afraid to play them off against one another if, for example, your preferred venue's menu is £10 a head dearer than the other for an equivalent package. Haggling isn't always an easy thing for many of us but it's an art worth developing as you'll be surprised what people will reduce prices on to get a booking - but again make sure it's the venue you want rather than just the cheapest. Flexibility is key too, if you like menu B but prefer the starter options from menu A, ask them to give you a price. It's what they're there for!

A good venue will listen to your plans, and tell you what will and won't work, and offer alternative thoughts rather than concentrating on getting a deposit out of you and worry about the details later.

Let us know how it goes, and what you settle on.

The 1 venue I call asked what time we wanted on the saturday and the one time I suggested she said "well we have another couple at that time, and we only like to speak to 1 couple at a time so we can really understand your requirements etc" - so that sounds promising and I'll feel abit better if its just me, H2B and a wedding coordinator!

Great advice there though, thanks so much! x

my H2B is good at the old bargain hunting and haggling with people, so I'll make sure he does this at the venues too, thanks AJ

Another question to remember is how many weddings a day they do - like a lot of venues, ours only does one a day, so it's fine, but if it's a big place with 3 or 4 separate function rooms, all of which are usable independently, could cause chaos and confusion for your guests and particularly problems with catering arriving at the time you want it.

Don't be nervous, if you feel that you would rather your H2b asked the questions then don't worry Venues are used to this. I have had Grooms ringing me & asking questions at Consultations.

This might help you feel about more confident on questions to ask:

1. Is your venue available on the required date?
2. Is your venue easy to find?
3. Is your venue licensed to carry out civil weddings?
4. If you do hold a license for civil ceremonies, what authority do you come under and can you supply names contact details for the registrar?
5. Will ours be the only wedding at your venue on our wedding day?
6. How many people can you accommodate?
7. How many car parking spaces are available?
8. Do you allow confetti to be thrown at the venue?
9. Do you allow candles to be lit in the reception room?
10. Do you allow professional firework displays at your venue?
11. Do you have landing permission should we want a helicopter to whisk us away after the evening reception?

Room

1. Do you offer the option of a marquee?
2. Are there separate rooms provided for the wedding, reception, meal, evening reception, etc?
3. Is there a room provided for the use of "bride and groom" for the day?
4. Is there a dressing room that the bride and bridesmaids can use prior to the ceremony?
5. When can we have access to begin setting up the room in terms of decorating it with balloons, flowers, banners, etc? (Morning of wedding, day before, etc?)
6. If the evening reception is being held in a room that is being used for something else earlier in the day, do you require the DJ/Band to set-up their equipment beforehand?
7. Is there an area that could be used as a crèche if needed?
8. Is there a quieter area for older guests to get away from the noise of a band/DJ?
9. If rooms are available for overnight accommodation, how many?
10. What are the costs for overnight accommodation?
11. Is breakfast included?
12. What is the checkout time the following day?
13. Do you have a room where you are able to store wedding presents until you are able to collect them and are you insured for any loss or damage to these presents?

Catering



1. Do you insist on doing all the catering?
2. Can you supply examples of suggested menus along with prices?
3. Do you include a cake stand and knife if required?
4. Do you have a preferred order of service (when and where do we cut the cake)?
5. What time do you offer an alcohol license until?
6. What time do you insist the reception finishes by?
7. Do you insist on supplying the wine and champagne?
8. If we are able to supply the wine, what do you charge for corkage?
9. Can you recommend a company to supply our wedding cake?

Thanks Sherrie, those questions are really useful. Im printing those off now to take with me on Saturday ?