Comparing Wedding Venue Quotes: The Questions You Should Ask
Three quotes, three formats. One gives a package price per person, the second a hall rental plus catering, the third a minimum spend. Without the right questions, you are comparing apples with oranges.
First put everything on one bill
Extrapolate each quote to your guest count and your schedule: from the drinks reception to the end of the celebration. Only then do you see what the venue really costs.
An example with three quotes
Three fictional quotes for 80 guests, celebrating from 6 pm to 1 am:
- Venue A: 115 euros per person, menu and drinks until 1 am included. That makes 9,200 euros.
- Venue B: 2,500 euros hall rental, plus a menu for 65 euros and a drinks package for 35 euros per person. That makes 10,500 euros.
- Venue C: no hall rental, 7,000 euros minimum spend. Menu 70 euros, drinks by consumption, estimated at 30 euros per person. That is 8,000 euros. But on top come 400 euros for the hour after midnight and 300 euros for cleaning, 8,700 euros in total.
At first glance Venue C with "no hall rental" looks cheapest and B the most expensive. In the end A and C are close together, and with C a lot depends on the estimate for the drinks. If your guests like to party, C can quickly become more expensive than A. Only when everything is on the same basis can you compare fairly.
The questions
About the room
- How many guests at round tables, with a dance floor?
- Is there a floor plan with measurements?
- What happens if it rains, is there a plan B for outdoors?
- Are we the only wedding that day?
About the costs
- Is the hall rental included or extra?
- Is there a minimum spend?
- What does an extension past midnight or past 2 am cost?
- How high is the corkage for our own drinks or our own cake?
- Are table linens, chairs, dishes and decor included?
- What does cleaning cost?
About the schedule
- From when may we decorate, and when does everything have to be out?
- Are there fixed vendors or may we bring our own?
- Are there noise restrictions or a curfew?
- How many service staff are planned?
- When is the final guest count due?
Have the answers confirmed by email. Verbal assurances at the viewing are quickly forgotten after a year.
After the viewing
Write down right after each appointment what you liked and what you didn't, while the impression is fresh. After the third venue the details blur. Photos of the hall, the outdoor area, the restrooms and the access road help later in the comparison. And ask whether you may drop by again on a day when a celebration is happening. Then you see the room with tables and lighting instead of empty.
Read the cancellation terms
What happens if you have to postpone? How high is the deposit, when is it due and is it refundable? In the euphoria these points are easily overlooked.
Many quotes only apply until midnight or 1 am. Every additional hour can get really expensive. More on this in the article on hidden costs.
How many viewings and where to keep track?
Three to five viewings are usually enough. If you see more, it often gets harder to decide. Keep the quotes in one place, with price, contact person and deadlines for the deposit and final guest count. FloraWed has a vendors section for this, where you collect quotes, contracts and payment deadlines. What a venue really costs per guest, you can work out with the article Cost per guest.
Compare quotes in the budget
Create each quote as a variant and see them side by side.