So, the question’s been popped and now you’re engaged! What next?
Well, first, a huge congratulations from our wedding planning team here at Stroudsmoor! Hopefully, you’ve had some time to celebrate your new engagement with family and friends, embrace this new chapter of your life and relationship, and, perhaps, even begun thinking about wedding planning. If that’s the case, then we’re thrilled to hear it and we’re here to help!
It may be a massive understatement, but there are a vast number of things to consider in planning a wedding and—aside from finding the perfect partner—the most important decision you’ll make is where you will hold your event. Choosing the right venue is important for a number of reasons, but, primarily, one should be sure that their ideal venue is a) within their budget and b) matches their wedding vision. Once you’ve determined these factors, the hunt for the perfect venue becomes a little easier. Still, there are other factors to consider in selecting your wedding venue, and what follows is our Top 5 questions for getting your wedding venue search started.
Venue-Vetting Begins. . .
1. How long before my preferred wedding date should I book my venue?
Stroudsmoor’s Advantage:
With more than 40 years of wedding planning experience, our planners advise couples to book their venue 18 months ahead of their preferred wedding date, ensuring availability. Long-term wedding planning enables couples to experience less stress, have more fun, and enjoy the excitement. Afterall, the planning is just as much fun as the wedding itself!
That said, while we suggest long-term planning, Stroudsmoor’s team has planned weddings in less than a month. So never fear; as long as you’re flexible with your date, we’ve got you covered.
2. Will we have the option to host other events besides the wedding, like a rehearsal dinner or morning-after brunch, at your venue?
Stroudsmoor’s Advantage:
The inn is all about gathering with family and friends to support the different events necessary for a wedding celebration – like the engagement party, shower, rehearsal celebration, ceremony, reception, post-reception brunch and much, much more. Make a weekend of your wedding at the Inn as our impressive venues serve well to host the wedding reception but also other diverse kinds of life milestone events.
3. What is your venue capacity, and are the ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception spaces separate or are they all at one location?
Here at the Inn, with six different event spaces to choose from dependent upon your guest list size, we accommodate intimate affairs of 30 all the way up to grand celebrations of 300-plus. Furthermore, the ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception areas at each event venue are dedicated spaces for ultimate privacy.
4. What's your payment schedule?
Stroudsmoor’s Advantage:
When you book your wedding at the Inn, we require of every one of our couples an initial deposit. Note that this is not a booking fee that remains with the venue, but a deposit that remains in your account until the day prior to your wedding when it is applied to your final invoice.
Traditionally, there are two other deposits and a final payment. However, we customize payment plans for each of our couples upon request.
5. Does your venue offer complete event planning services?
Stroudsmoor’s Advantage:
On top of everything we offer at the Inn, from catering and cakes to florals and other finery, every one of our couples are afforded the employment of a dedicated wedding planner, who remains at your side from the time you tour with us until you are a married couple. Our planners are skilled in navigating every single one of our event venues and work hand in hand with our Floral & Décor Team, Chefs & Kitchen Staff, Event Execution Staff, and Group Lodging Coordinator (just to name a few) to make sure your wedding day is everything you envisioned and more.
Of course, you might have some other questions on your mind as you start looking for your ideal wedding venue. And in a future post, we’ll be sure to cover some of those questions.
For now, though, start considering these Top 5 listed here to help give you a better sense of what each of the wedding venues you tour has to offer.
