A good wedding venue is important!

Have you decided where your wedding will be held, dearies?

Deciding on a place is obviously not easy. There's so many things to consider, and you need to write them down to make sure your chosen hall will be able to fulfil your once in a lifetime wedding dream.

As for me, I am not the one deciding on the venue because I ain't spending any money on that. Lol! So the job is taken by both the parents. Apparently, they have started their hunt yesterday and I am all excited! Though I am not directly involved, both Mom & Dad will usually discuss it with me over dinner and take my ideas into consideration. As of now, Mom knows my Yes-No venues and hopefully, the search will end with a beautiful place for my wedding reception. 

This is the clue for one of the venues that I am currently considering for..hehe!

Anyways, here's a checklist for you when it comes to choosing the right venue!

Checklist

How many guests are you inviting?

This is obviously important to know whether the venue can actually cope with the number of people you are inviting. It helps to determine how you would arrange tables and chairs and food quantity. Take into account how it's going to be like at the venue when the crowd is large or when it is at the peak hours of your wedding - eg : lunch time if you're planning for a buffet styled wedding. 

Food quality

A grand hall doesn't mean they serve good food, remember that! So it is extremely vital for you to request a food-testing session with the Sales person. Don't bluntly trust words of mouth, taste them for yourselves! Because at the end of the day, it is your wedding..so make effort to ensure the food variety suit your taste. In addition to that, read reviews by previous clients - on how the organiser cope during events, do they replenish food on time and what's the overall comments from the previous clients like? Also, ask the Sales person there and then if you require or need special menu, enquire them if they could probably serve your preferred menu if it is currently unavailable - cos it will be worth asking, who knows right?

Banquet Preparation

Read their packages, sales kit and marketing pamphlets carefully. Some halls do provide and include banquet services for the price they are offering - hence the explanation above! But some halls don't. So it is important to know and decide whether you want to proceed with another caterer or take the hall all-in package. Banquet does not only include food, but also the arrangements of tables, chairs, stage, pelamin, registration table, etc. Also ensure the hall provides enough and equipped staffs (waiters especially) during the event if they do provide catering services. This helps to ensure a smooth evemt when it comes to replenishing food & clearing used dishes tables. This will provide a comfortable environment for your guests and allow them to enjoy the wedding reception.

Audio and Visual Equipment

Right dearies, don't forget audio and visual equipment if you need any of them for karaoke session, making wedding speech, live singers, presentation of short film, pre-wedding video or photo slides during the wedding. Check whether the venue is equipped with the required equipment and if they do, do the equipment work? If you have requested for these items, make sure everything is working on the day of rehearsal. Identify any faulty equipment early and not on the day of your wedding! Check on the costing side too, because some halls do charge for these extra equipment - speakers, microphones, white screens etc. 

Decorations

Do they include decorations in their packages? If so, what are the decorations and are you happy with the listed deco? Let the sales person know what you need, what you want and also ensure that you understand what they could offer you. If they can provide you with pictures of the deco, do check them out! Remember 

that every detail is important.

Door gifts

Most high-end hotels or convention centres would provide their own door gifts as part of the package. So if you choose a hall which doesn't provide one, you can either request or order your own door gifts with a separate supplier. But if the package includes door gifts, it would help in reducing your cost!

Overall Cost

Here goes the scariest part! Ensure what you need or want to MEET your budgeted cost. Try not to go over the board, knowing where to give in. A grand wedding is dreamt by everyone, but not all can afford to do so. So try to minimise your cost wherever possible, reduce unnecessary "wants" and double check the "needs". And of course, know the difference between needs and wants! 

Last but not least, remember that a grand wedding doesn't necessarily have to be an expensive one. You could opt for so many other options to reduce cost especially on deco and food. So make sure you take effort to survey and ask around a few different places before deciding one. Comparing all your options is a must!  

This is just a guide line, there are probably other things that you'll need to consider when it comes to actual planning and discussion when choosing your venues. But hope this helps a little bit! 

Happy hunting!