Choosing Wedding Venues: What are the MOST IMPORTANT questions to ask?
Choosing a wedding venue is arguably one of the most important and exciting decisions you make throughout the wedding planning process. There are usually very few decisions you will make before booking your wedding venue. In fact, the only vendor usually booked before the wedding venue is a wedding planner (find out why we recommend hiring a wedding planner here). Today, we gathered our top list of questions to ask while touring Hudson Valley wedding venues.
As a wedding venue ourselves (read more about The Preston Barn here), we have been on the other side of things and we know exactly what questions to ask to make sure there are no surprises after you sign the contract! If you want more information about our gorgeous Upstate New York barn wedding venue, head here to learn more about our wedding packages.
Wedding Venue Logistics
What different wedding locations do they have on the property?
Do you have a backup plan in case of inclement weather?
Some wedding venues will have a couple of different options for your wedding ceremony, cocktail hour, and wedding reception. Your venue will likely go over the different options during your tour, but it’s worth asking about anyway, to make sure the backup location isn’t something they are hoping won’t come up.
What is the minimum/maximum guest count the venue can accommodate? And what is the average wedding size?
This is important because just because a venue can accommodate up to 300 guests, doesn’t mean it should (or usually does). Some venues are better suited to micro weddings or have different ceremony and reception spaces for different guest counts. At The Preston Barn, we have a couple of boutique-style areas for guest counts up to 50 people but our stunning barn wedding venue holds up to 220 guests comfortably (with plenty of room for a dance floor).
What is your wedding date availability?
How many weddings do you book each year/weekend/day?
Hudson Valley wedding venues are booking fast for 2021 and 2022. Because there were so many reschedules and postponements last year, many venues are finding themselves overbooked and overwhelmed. If you are planning a wedding, availability is going to be one of the first questions you need to ask.
At The Preston Barn, we love to specialize in destination wedding weekends. Couples love to book us for all of their events, from their Friday night rehearsal to their Sunday morning brunch. Because of this, we tend to take one wedding per weekend, and therefore fewer weddings every year… allowing more time to give you the personal attention you deserve!
Do personal items have to be removed at the end of the night?
Nothing ruins a good time more than gathering your personal belongings (or having a beloved member of your family or wedding party stuck with the task). That’s one of the reasons we love being a destination wedding venue; our couples get the wedding venue for the entire weekend so there is less rush to gather up your things when the night is over.
Are there accommodations for guests on-site or nearby?
Preston House: Room 1
Ideally, you will want to find a venue with accommodations on-site so when guests have the time of their lives at your wedding, they don’t worry about going far to get back to their hotel room. You can learn more about the range of charming accommodation options available here at The Preston Barn.
COVID restrictions
Although we all hope these questions are going to be behind us soon, they are definitely worth asking about.
Are there penalties if my guest count decreases dramatically?
What is the cancellation policy? If the wedding or event is canceled due to government restrictions, does that change anything?
Will the wedding venue be responsible for ensuring the event is following current regulations? Who holds the liability?
Catering and Bar Services
When you book your wedding venue, you are often booking your catering and bar services at the same time. This is part of the reason why booking the right wedding venue is such an important decision.
Is there a minimum spend for food and beverage?
Are there set packages or is everything a la carte? If there are packages, can they be flexible?
Is a champagne toast included?
Is there a charge for signature drinks?
Does the venue have catering on site or do they provide a list of preferred caterers? Can we hire outside caterers?
What are our options for dessert/wedding cake?
What are the bar service options? How late can drinks be served?
Are there options for an afterparty or an option to extend my reception?
If you bring in a cake from an outside vendor, will there be a fridge to store it?
Choosing a Hudson Valley Wedding Venue
If you are in the process of choosing your Hudson Valley wedding venue, we would love to invite you in to book a tour. Contact us here and we can get something set up right away. Or, if you want more information on what you need to know/do before you book your wedding venue, head to this post for some bonus information on what you need to know before booking your wedding venue tours!
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