Are you recently engaged? Did you just start planning your dream wedding? If so, the best place to start wedding planning is with your venue.
Here’s the TL;DR: Your venue is the first to book up and will provide the base from which you build the rest of your wedding plans. We’ll get into more detail below, but if you only have a few seconds to read, here’s the bottom line: book your venue FIRST!
Photo by White Rose Photography, taken in our upstairs cocktail hour lounge.
When should you book your venue?
When we hear this question, we think the answer is pretty simple: book your venue or venues FIRST. Whether you’re tying the knot at a chapel or a public park, a wedding venue or a friend’s home, make sure you have your venue booked before you start reaching out to anyone else with a date in mind. This can feel a bit disappointing for some folks who know exactly who they want for their photographer, florist, caterer, etc., or who have a very specific date in mind. Your venue will be the deciding factor on whether your favorite vendors are available, and whether your dream date can be YOURS, or if it was already claimed by another couple. Here are a few reasons to build your wedding day from the venue up.
Your Venue Determines Your Date
While your venue won’t be choosing a date on your behalf, their availability WILL dictate whether or not the date you’re hoping for is available. Let’s say you want a date so nice you say it twice, like a classic 10/10 or 11/11 wedding. These dates can book up quickly (because everyone wants an anniversary that’s easy to remember!), so before you set your sights on it, it’s best to make sure the right venue for you already has that date open.
If you’re planning on getting married on a Saturday, these are the most popular dates! Saturdays will be fully booked before Fridays, Sundays, or other weekdays. Make sure the Saturday you want, in the month you’re looking for, is available.
Searching for peak fall colors? Same deal! Our peak fall color dates get snapped up fast. Don’t get left in the dust—pick your venue FIRST before you fall in love with your date!
Image taken by Like the Planet Photography, captured in our Grand Hall
Your Venue Determines Your other vendors
Most couples are planning a wedding for the first time when we set out to pick our venue, photographer, videographer, DJ—and all the other folks in-between. Most couples don’t realize that some venues have preferred vendor lists, including certain venues that don’t allow other vendors in who are not on the list! This can be a HUGE problem in wedding planning if you’ve already booked a caterer who isn’t on your venue’s list.
Why do venues have restricted vendor lists?
There are multiple reasons a venue may choose to restrict which caterers, DJs, or rental companies they allow couples to bring on for their big day. The biggest reason is creating the best possible experience for YOU! There are so many vendors to choose from, and some provide better service than others. When a venue only allows certain caterers, for example, they’re choosing from all of the available caterers to choose the ones whose level of service will provide the best possible experience for couples saying “I do” in their space.
Venues may also restrict certain vendors due to insurance and liability concerns or safety concerns. Again, to provide the best wedding day experience to couples, venues will eliminate certain options for the safety and experience of the couples who choose to book a wedding there. If the city ordinance does not allow for certain animals to be loose within the city, for example, the trendy wedding llama company you’ve heard about might not be allowed on the premesis—because nothing spoils a wedding day like police cars in the parking lot 😬
Photo by Tandem Wedding Productions, captured on our outdoor patio.
Are there exceptions to booking your venue first?
We’ve given this question a lot of thought, and there is only one real exception we can think of! Even if the photographer is your cousin and your venue is your future mother-in-law’s back yard, you need to have your date on your MIL’s calendar BEFORE you book your cousin for photos. Your venue’s availabilty trumps all other vendors, because if you book 10 vendors for a 10/10 wedding and 10/10 isn’t available, your only choice is to pick another venue or pick another date, and not all vendors will alow you to reschedule, or refund your deposits if you do need to move the date.
There is one exception to this rule, though: if you are planning on hiring a wedding planner to book your entire wedding on your behalf, hire them first. An excellent planner will be able to secure your dream venue on your dream date on your behalf, and can navigate those preferred vendor lists for you.
This image and cover image by Christina Vera Creative, captured in our Grand Hall and upstairs cocktail lounge.
That’s about all we have to say for today! If you’re interested in a venue, make sure to book a tour with them and get your date nailed down right away—the sooner the better! Because the only way to book your dream date (before it’s TOO LATE) is to book your venue first.