Reception site

You can save money by having your reception outside in a beautiful garden or by the water, surrounded by nature’s own beauty. You can take flowers from the ceremony to the reception site for decorations. Ensure proper coordination to avoid having your guests arrive at a un decorated reception room.

Your reception Venue Options include Private homes, gardens, hotels, clubs, restaurants, halls, parks, museums, some of the more popular choices for receptions.

The reception is a party where all your guests will come together to celebrate your new life as a married couple. It should therefore reflect and complement the style of your ceremony. If your ceremony is not in the same place as the reception choose a place that is not more than 30 minutes drive from the ceremony venue.

The selection of a reception site will depend on its availability, price, proximity to the ceremony site, and the number of people it will accommodate.

There are two basic types of reception sites. The first type charges a per person fee which includes the facility, food, tables, silverware, tableware, and so forth. Examples: hotels and, restaurants. Indeed most venues with on site catering prohibit outside caterers. They provide you with everything including chairs and tables plus minimal decoration, leaving you to hire only the florist if you need extra decoration.

The second type charges a site rental fee and you are responsible for providing the food, beverages, linens, and possibly tables and chairs.
Examples: gardens, clubs, school grounds, private homes and halls.

The advantage of the first type is that most of everything is done for you. The disadvantage, however, is that your choice of food, tableware and linen are limited. Usually, you are not permitted to bring in an outside caterer and must select from a predetermined menu.

Things to consider: When comparing the cost of different locations, consider the rental fee, food, beverages, parking, set-up charges and the cost of rental equipment needed such as tables, chairs, tents, and so forth. If you are planning an outdoor reception, be sure to have a backup site in case of rain.

Be sure to book your venues as soon as you make the decision, as most venues are booked a year in advance.
Things to Beware of: Be careful of hotels that book events too close together. You don’t want your guests to wait outside while your room is being set up for the reception. And you don’t want to be ‘forced out’ before you are ready to leave because the hotel needs to arrange the room for the next event.

Get your rental hours and the name of your room in writing.

Money saving tips:

• Hire a wedding planner, she may be able to negotiate good rates since she brings in good amount of business in a year and may have better rates with the venue or caterer.
• Reception sites that charge site or a ballroom rental fee may waive this fee if you meet minimum requirements on food and beverages consumed. But try to negotiate this before you book the facility.