Wedding Budget: 19 Things to Consider While Calculating the Venue Cost

It’s probably too overwhelming to expect a perfect wedding and a perfect venue at the same time. When it comes to selecting the right venue, many pricing points slip our mind, only to disappoint us at the last moment.

The wedding venue market is tricky and people are smart. It somehow runs on this unsaid rule—if you won’t ask you won’t get. If you think that after booking the venue, the story’s over, you are highly mistaken. Agreeing to book it without any prior research is like clicking on ‘I accept’ without reading the terms and conditions marked in asterisk.

It’s always better to be safe than sorry and that’s why we have made a list of 19 things to consider while calculating the price for your wedding venue.

Venue Timings

It’s your wedding day and everyone will be excited. While dancing and having fun, it’s okay to exceed an hour or so. So, clarify the extra hour charges with the wedding venue.

Weddingz.in Advice: Get a firm understanding on the extra wedding costs well in advance to avoid last minute chaos.

Flexible Dates

Ever been stuck in a dilemma of choosing between Date-A or Date-B? If that’s the case, then prioritise those wedding venues that allot flexible dates or timings for your various wedding events. This way, you can also organise your wedding day at a later date instead of the promised date, ensuring that you do not have to pay extra cancellation charges.

Weddingz.in Advice: When you book a venue through us, we put a tentative block on your preferred dates and treat your request as a priority.

Décor

Photo By: Wedding Stories

The décor at your wedding will add a magical touch to the event. If the venue provides an in-house team and you’re okay with the price, confirm if that includes everything i.e. from setting it up to tearing it down. Taxes might apply on outside decorators, in case you’re getting one.

 Weddingz.in Advice: If you are planning to customize the décor offered by the venue, make sure you don’t land up getting charged for expensive equipment.

Catering

Photo By: Manan Photography

Whether you choose veg or non-veg, check whether the venue provides complimentary cutleries. Make it a point to check the quality too, as you don’t want to serve food in unappetising plates.

Weddingz.in Advice: Put that smartphone to use by taking snaps of different areas to show it to an outside caterer. This gives them a better idea about the buffet arrangements that can be done at the venue and avoids unnecessary expenses.

Alcohol

Photo By: Navdeep Soni

An open-bar is what your guests would expect at your wedding. But many venues don’t allow alcohol consumption and the ones that do, charge you extra corkage. Many a times, it is per bottle.

Weddingz.in Advice: Confirm the corkage applied on outside liquor; request for a lump sum tax amount rather than charges per bottle.

Music Timings

Photo By: Camera Crew

Wedding celebrations are simply incomplete without DJs and music. Most wedding venues have a noise ordinance up to 10 or 11 pm. Clarify the extra hour charges or taxes on music equipment, bands or entertainers.

Weddingz.in Advice: You can recee for free if you book the venue through us to see if the provided space is suitable for your wedding entertainment options or not.

Accommodation

Photo By: PK Suri

If the wedding lasts for 2-3 days, it’s always better to have in-house accommodation for your wedding guests. Many venues give generous discounts if the guest capacity is more.

Weddingz.in Advice: Ask if the venue runs a shuttle service, which can escort your guests from point A to point B.

Complimentary Rooms

Hyatt Regency, Manesar

You can, at least, expect the venue to provide an additional room for the bride and her entourage or the groom to change between the events. Confirm this with the venue so that they don’t charge you a fortune for these additional rooms.

Weddingz.in Advice: If you do get a complimentary room, check for a usable mirror and a restroom.

Parking

Things might go a little haywire if your event starts at 8 and your guests are struggling with parking till 9. Check with the venue if they provide free-parking and the parking limit.

Weddingz.in Advice: Avail the free valet services that the venue provides or enquire the cost associated to it.

Deposit Policy

Cross-check the amount of deposit the venue demands. It’s always safe to pay the required amount a few days before the wedding.

Advance Policy

Every venue has an advance policy that confirms your booking. Never pay the entire amount in advance unless the venue in-charge is one of your pals. It’s always safe to pay 30-40 percent as the booking amount prior the event.

Cancellation Policy

Emergencies don’t knock your door before arriving. If, for any reason, you have to cancel the event, always confirm the advance amount you’ll get back. Most wedding venues have a ‘No Refund’ policy and many will give you just a percentage of it if the cancellation is done few days before the event.

Weddingz.in Advice: Book your wedding venue off-season or in advance and save big time on your overall expenditures.

Wedding Packages

Destination wedding venues, hotels, resorts, banquets or lawns have tailor-made wedding packages. But this is where things get a little twisted – one package will have what you like, the other package will have what your better half prefers but the third package will consist of something that your guests desire. In such cases, see if the venue allows you to customise the package and personalise it as per your preference.

Weddingz.in Advice: Go A-La-Carte by picking services and offers that are most relevant to cut down on the cost.

Discounts and Freebies

After getting the quote, enquire about any additional services you might get as discount. Many wedding venues offer free transportation for guests, discounted décor or catering services and most of them also provide freebies like flower stage decoration, wedding gate decoration, wedding car décor and many other services.

Weddingz.in Advice: If you do get a flower decorator, ask for fresh flowers, select the ones that you want and not what they offer.

A Single Point of Contact

Every wedding venue has a representative or an on-site coordinator. It will be great if you have a go-to person, who can resolve all your queries. This person can also look into safe entry and exit of various third party accompaniments. You can ensure that this is included in the package price.

Weddingz.in Advice: Ask for a venue manager or a banquet coordinator as you should get what you’re paying for.

Hidden Costs

When you book a wedding, you get introduced to whole new world of taxes. We mean there is entertainment tax, liquor tax, service tax, VAT and the list just doesn’t end. Clarify every hidden cost before booking the wedding venue.

Weddingz.in Advice: Many wedding venues also include a cleaning fee in the invoice, so negotiate the amount or request for a complimentary service while booking the venue.

Get Everything On Record

Whatever the venue promises, get it confirmed on paper. A contract or an agreement will be very useful if they refuse to abide by certain promises or claims that were made during the booking.

Weddingz.in Advice: Take the entire package given by the wedding venue on an email.

Security

Most of us forget about this one. While it’s given that every wedding venue provides security, it’s always a good idea to confirm whether it’s a chargeable entity or not. If your guest capacity is too much, gatekeepers will keep them at bay.

Weddingz.in Advice: You can ask security guards to keep an eye on gifts or patrol parking lots.

Plan B

Let’s say if you take your seven vows in an outdoor area or an open-air wedding mandap, and there are unexpected rains or untimely harsh winds. What will you do? At times like these, it’s always great to have a weather contingency plan ready. Ask the venue for an alternative suggestion for such instances.

Weddingz.in Advice: If a situation like this occurs, ask for a later date to organise that specific event.

Unexpected costs could put a huge dent in your pockets. Before visiting the venue, always calculate the number of guests and express your priorities to the venue in-charge. Things will get much easier and you’ll thank us for this.

Did we miss anything? Write to us at content@weddingz.in and let us know if there’s anything else you’d wish to know before booking the wedding venue.