Hello there, brides-to-be! One of the biggest decisions during the wedding planning process that you’ll have to make is picking the perfect venue. Honestly, this is typically one of the first vendors that will need to be booked because it determines your wedding date! Most brides will book their venue, and then start looking into photography. However, if you’ve had your eye on a specific photographer, I highly recommend check their availability before you book your venue. This way, you will be able to book your dream wedding photographer and your dream venue on the same day, rather than risking the chance that one may not be available!

Before you book a venue, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, what is the style of the venue, and does it match the style of your wedding? Now, what do I mean by style? Well, it could be anything from rustic, to modern, to DIY, to classic, to intimate. These are all individually unique styles that would all pair best with different venues. For example, a rustic style would work well in a barn, a modern style would be beautiful in the Westin or another modern hotel, a classic wedding would be perfect for the statehouse and something like The Frock in Cincinnati would be perfect for an intimate wedding. The “vibe” and atmosphere or your venue will go a long way in pulling together your style throughout the wedding.

The next thing to consider is the distance from your ceremony, as well as the distance from your guest’s homes. Do you want to have a destination wedding? Do you want your ceremony and reception to be at the same venue? Will your ceremony be at your church and the reception somewhere else? You will need to take into consideration the drive times for your guests to arrive, as well as the time in between your ceremony and reception. I am always a big fan of weddings being located at the same venue as it eases a lot of the stress from the timeline since there is no traveling! However, this is your wedding, so you should choose the venue or venues that will be best for you!

Finally, as much as you may love a certain venue, if it’s too small, then it’s too small. You’ll either have to cut from the guest list (which there are pro’s and con’s to that) or pick a larger venue. It is important to keep in mind the number of guests you may want to invite. You don’t want a venue that’s too big, otherwise it will look empty. You also can’t have too many people otherwise there won’t be enough room!

I mentioned before that if there’s a photographer that you’ve had your eye on, I highly recommend planning your wedding date and venue around their availability (I may seem biased, but it’s true!). If you are having trouble finding a venue, try browsing that photographer’s Instagram to see where they’ve photographed weddings in the past, and try to determine whether or not you could envision yourself there. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions, whether it’s about this blog or not. I would love to chat with you!