Before You Book Your Wedding Venue: What a Planner Checks First

When you walk into a wedding venue, you’re probably thinking, “Oh my God, this is so pretty.” And to be fair, we are too.

But while you’re looking at the ceremony space, the staircase and where you can picture your flowers, our brains are already doing something slightly different.

We’re mentally running your wedding through the building.

We’re thinking about your guests, your morning, the weather, the flow of the day, the condition of the venue and whether the whole thing actually matches what you’ve told us you want.

Because a venue can photograph beautifully and still not be the right venue for your wedding.

That’s the bit we’re looking for.

We’re looking at the wedding your guests will experience

One of the biggest things that shapes how we look at a venue is your guest experience.

Not in an overcomplicated way. We’re simply thinking about what it will actually feel like to spend a full day there.

If you’re having 120 or 150 people, we want those people to feel comfortable. We don’t want them constantly being squeezed through small spaces, trekking backwards and forwards across an estate or standing somewhere because there isn’t really anywhere else for them to go.

And this becomes even more important when we look at wet weather.

Of course every venue has a Plan B. But there is a huge difference between having a wet-weather plan and having a good wet-weather plan.

For us, Plan A and Plan B both need to work.

If your beautiful outdoor ceremony and drinks reception suddenly have to move inside, does the wedding still feel like the wedding you wanted? Or have 140 people now been packed into a room that technically fits them, but doesn’t actually feel comfortable?

We’ve worked with couples who booked their venue before bringing us in and, knowing their guest numbers and the wedding they wanted to create, there are venues we probably would have questioned at the beginning.

On a sunny day, they were perfect. On a day where it’s absolutely pissing it down, they were a completely different proposition.

And that matters, because you’re not only booking the version of the venue you see on a nice viewing day. You’re booking every version of it.

We notice how your wedding morning will feel

Getting-ready spaces are something couples often don’t give loads of thought to until much later.

We do.

Your wedding morning sets the tone for the rest of the day, and there is so much to be said for having a space that feels good to spend several hours in.

Some venues have beautiful bridal preparation rooms with natural light, enough room for hair and makeup, somewhere lovely to hang the dress and space for everyone to be together without climbing over each other.

Others have a room that feels like it was added as an afterthought. And sometimes there isn’t really a dedicated getting-ready space at all.

That might be completely fine for one couple. For another, it would really matter.

This is why knowing you before we start looking at venues makes such a difference. We’re not ticking boxes. We’re thinking about whether the space suits the way you actually want your day to feel.

We look past the first impression

Venues are very good at first impressions.

You walk into a beautiful ceremony setup, see the gardens, imagine the photographs and it’s very easy to fall in love with it.

But we’re also looking at the bits underneath that.

Sometimes, when you slow down and look properly, a venue can feel quite different.

The paintwork might be tired. Furniture might feel dated. There might be cobwebs, dirty corners or areas that clearly need some attention.

None of those things automatically make somewhere a bad venue. But we see a lot of venues and we understand roughly what they cost.

So if we know you’re potentially spending £20,000 or £25,000 there, we’re looking at it through that lens too.

Is this actually good value for the money you’re spending?

Because there may be another venue at a similar price point that gives you better spaces, better accommodation, better facilities or simply feels more looked after.

When you’re taking in an entire venue for the first time, those smaller things can be very easy to miss.

We tend not to miss them.

We’re matching the venue to you, not the other way around

There is no perfect wedding venue.

There is only the right venue for the wedding you want.

Some couples want everything to feel really cohesive, with the ceremony, dinner and evening all flowing through spaces that have the same look and feel.

Others want contrast. A traditional ceremony followed by drinks in the gardens, dinner in a marquee and then a completely different atmosphere for the party.

Some couples want all of their guests staying together and love the idea that people can wander back to their rooms, take ten minutes out, change their shoes and come back down for the evening.

If that’s important to you, the fact a venue technically has accommodation isn’t enough.

Where is it? How close is it? How many people can actually stay? Does it work in the way you imagine it working?

That’s the kind of detail we’re thinking about. The venue has to support the wedding.

You shouldn’t have to keep changing your wedding to make the venue work.

We’re already thinking several steps ahead

This is probably the biggest difference between viewing a venue as a couple and viewing it with a planner.

You’re experiencing it emotionally, as you should.

You’re picturing yourself walking down the aisle. You’re imagining your photos. You’re thinking about whether it feels special.

We’re doing all of that too, but at the same time we’re thinking ahead to the point where the planning becomes real.

We’re thinking about whether your guest numbers genuinely work in the space. Whether the evening still feels good once the room is full. Whether older relatives are going to have to walk too far. Whether your wet-weather option actually works. Whether the morning will feel enjoyable. Whether the venue feels worth the investment.

Ultimately, we’re asking ourselves one thing:

Does this venue actually meet the brief?

Because the problems with a venue rarely appear on the first viewing.

They tend to appear six months later when you start building the timeline, speaking to suppliers and working through the logistics.

And ideally, we’d rather find those things before you’ve signed the contract.

Bring us in before the decisions get heavy

If you’re at the beginning of planning, this is actually one of the best times to bring a wedding planner in.

You don’t need to wait until you’ve booked the venue, booked half your suppliers and suddenly have 200 decisions sitting in front of you.

We can help you work out what you actually need from a venue, look at the practical side alongside the pretty bits, and make sure the decisions you’re making now support the wedding you want later.

And if you’ve already found your venue, that’s fine too. We can take it from there, work through the logistics and take that mental load off you.

If you’re planning your wedding and want a second pair of eyes on the bigger decisions, book a call with us here and tell us what you’re planning.

Photo credits: @Elizabethjayneweddings