Finding your venue can be really exciting, but can also be very stressful.  But fear not, what’s great is that there is so much choice out there, that there is something for everyone.  Here are my top 5 tips for finding your perfect venue.

1) Budget

I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to set your budget before you start your venue search, there is nothing worse than finding the perfect venue to then realise that you cannot afford it.  This not only leads to every other venue you see not living up to the ‘one’ but a huge disappointment which is unnecessary, and could quite easily have been avoided if you had only looked at venues that were within budget.  

2) Guest list 

If you already have your guest numbers, only view venues that can fit your guest list requirement, or maybe you would rather find your venue first and then compile your guest list, If you choose the later, then I would start compiling your guest list with the people you cannot imagine getting married without, then move on to the other guests, always remembering to consider your budget for catering, the more guests you have, the more budget you will need. 

3) Location

It is important to consider the location, where are your guests travelling from?  Is it easily accessible?  Do you love the area?  By deciding your location it will help narrow down your venue search.

Another thing to consider is are you planning on having the ceremony in a different location?  How long is the journey between the ceremony location and the reception? How will your guests get between the two locations? Or would you like to get married onsite, if so, ask does the venue have a licence.

Is there a sufficient amount of overnight accommodation close to the venue for your guests? It is important you take all of these into consideration, your guests are important; they play a big part in your day.

4) What’s included?

Some venues have a preferred supplier list, make sure you ask this question when making your initial enquiries.  This isn’t always a bad thing, there could be some great suppliers on their list that you might not have considered and they will know the venue very well.

Are tables, chairs etc included? Or will this be an additional fee?  It’s important to ask lots of questions-What time can your party go on until? Will I be able to set up the day before?  If your wedding is outdoors, is there a backup if it rains?  All these questions are important to ask, remember there is never a stupid question.

5) Visit, visit, visit

If you plan to get married in the summer, make sure you visit the venue at that time of year so you can get a vision of what it looks like, what are the gardens like etc, this will help you think about any additional dressing you may need.  The same goes for Winter and Spring.

Also visit at different times of the day, what does it look like at night? It is really important to consider the lighting, it needs to look just as good after sunset as it does during the day.

And last of all, remember, be true to yourself, choose a venue that suits your personalities.  Ask yourselves can you imagine your special day there?