Planning your day
Questions to Ask a Wedding Venue
A venue tour is an interview, and the venue is the candidate. These are the questions that earn their place.
Every venue shows well on a sunny tour. The differences that matter live in the answers to questions, so bring these and write the answers down while you are standing there. Any venue comfortable with its answers will be glad you asked; ours included, on a venue tour.
The money questions
- What exactly does the quoted price include: the ceremony spot, the reception space, furniture, staffing, the wet-weather option?
- What are the extras that most couples end up adding, and what do they cost?
- What is the deposit, when do payments fall due, and what happens if we have to move the date?
- Is there a minimum spend or a minimum guest number on our preferred date?
The time questions
- What hours do we have the venue, and what time does the music stop?
- When can our suppliers get in to set up, and is the night before possible?
- Are we the only wedding that day, and if not, where is the other one?
The rain question
- If it rains an hour before the ceremony, what happens, who decides, and is the indoor alternative included or an extra?
One sentence should answer all four parts. A vague answer here is the most expensive vague answer in wedding planning.
The food and drink questions
- Is catering in-house or contracted, and can we taste the menu before we commit?
- Can the kitchen handle our dietary requirements, and children’s meals?
- Can we bring our own alcohol, and on what terms?
The people questions
- Who runs the day on the ground, and is a coordinator included or an extra?
- Who is our single point of contact between booking and the wedding?
- How many staff work our wedding?
The logistics questions
- Where do guests park, and is it free?
- Where do the wedding party and guests stay the night, and what time must everyone leave?
- Is the venue workable for grandparents and anyone with limited mobility?
- Can our dog be part of the ceremony?
How to use the answers
Tour two or three venues with the same list and the comparison makes itself: the venues stop being moods and become offers you can line up. If you are still assembling the shortlist, our guide to choosing a wedding venue covers the step before this one.