Category Archives: Venue & Catering

Wedding Shopping Online: Wedding Locations

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This site may have to be booked online! Photo courtesy of Caneel Bay, www.rosewoodhotels.com

The location of your wedding opens up so many opportunities for bringing your wedding vision to life. A magical garden setting, a modern church with wooden beams and light streaming through skylights and windows, a regal ballroom with a grand staircase and sparkling chandeliers…the options are so varied, and brides today are lucky to have so many romantic and impressive wedding locations to choose from.

Of course, you’ll tour your sites — or take a virtual tour for a destination wedding spot you can’t easily reach — but what’s going on with online booking? In The Wedding Report’s new Online Wedding Market Report, we’re seeing that many brides and grooms are booking their locations online, either traditionally or using mobile devices. For the ceremony location, online booking is up 25.9% over 2011, and for the reception location, online booking and paying is up 40.2% over last year. Since mobile devices make it so easy and secure to click and book, check this out: mobile device-booking of ceremony sites is up 131.9% and reception spots are mobile-booked 138.5% more than last year.

That’s a lot of click-and-buy going on out there, which got me wondering why the trend in online and mobile booking for locations is so hot. Isn’t anyone sitting down and writing a check after their tours of the locations? Some couples are, but it seems like more couples are choosing to buy online, even after they’ve walked through the ballrooms, gardens, bridal suites, outdoor terraces, churches, synagogues and Gatsby-like estate houses. Here are some reasons why booking online might be your choice:

1. It’s how your site does bookings now. With technology so evolved, and busy wedding sites streamlining their processes to allow for less time in the office and more time making their brides’ and grooms’ wedding dreams come true, it might be the site’s preference to have you buy online and get right into their one, perfected system. Your event gets auto-filed into every spreadsheet they have, an interactive folder is automatically made for you, and your plans are super-organized and even copied to you. You may be able to log into their password-protected planning page for your wedding to drop in menu and decor ideas and follow their planning timeline and worksheets. Simply put, your site might not do the ‘writing a check’ thing anymore.

2. Couples are spending more time investigating their sites. In addition to the in-person tour, there’s a big collection of information to go through, including a lengthy contract that contains all the terms for what’s going to be provided on the day, what happens if you need to move your date, cancel, postpone or change your guest count, and more. Wedding couples are wisely bringing these info packets home, fine-tooth-combing each site’s contract and menus lists, emailing questions to the site manager, and investing more time in smart shopping. They’re also likely contacting referral couples and friends they know who got married there. So that leaves them sitting together at 10pm surrounded by pretty brochures and packets from the loveliest ceremony and reception locations, until they’re ready to book the sites they decide on. We’re all so busy now…much of wedding planning is taking place in the late-night hours, or on weekend days when you have time to concentrate on wedding plans but the sites are busy with the weddings taking place there at the moment.

3. Couples are more interested than even in protecting their charges. They’re using credit cards with great customer protection, including recalling payments made to unprofessional vendors and double-booked sites. They’d rather book online through a secure connection, maybe through their PayPal if they’d rather not run up their credit cards. And perhaps they participate in a system that gives them rewards for clicking through a particular site to reach their wedding URLs, giving them a 1% cashback perk.

4. Couples may be planning from a distance. If they live far away from the hometown where the wedding will take place, booking online is their only option.

5. They just want to book those sites quickly, get it done, before dates in popular months book up.

Why do you think the practice of booking ceremony and reception locations online and with mobile devices is on an upswing? If you book wedding plans online, or with your smartphone, what’s driving you to do so? We’d love to know how you plan to book, or have booked, your locations!

Unique wedding locations add a dash of flair

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A lovely sight at a family farm wedding

In recent months, rustic weddings held in barns and at outdoor settings have been a popular choice, and the trend points to the importance of a floral designer’s or coordinator’s eagle-eye for design detail in a unique site. They take one look at a unique site’s existing architecture, high ceilings, exposed beams, finials on window treatments, fireplaces…and they sketch out masterpieces for brides and grooms on any budget to create a celebration that looks like a million bucks. Without the million bucks.

An estate house's veranda overlooking a golf course, TheParkSavoy.com

When you choose a unique location that already has phenomenal existing details, you only need to add a few more decor touches. That makes wise budget sense. And that magically turns into the impression that you spent a lot more.

The write-in site suggestions in the 2010 Ceremony and Reception Study provide a jaw-dropping collection of locales that could be home to your amazing wedding. Here are just a few that floored me for their design opportunities and guests’ Wow Factor: aquarium, art gallery, country B&B, and opera house. Several write-ins mentioned ranches for that rustic appeal, and I love the idea of renting out a family farm for your wedding’s setting.

Beyond the rustic appeal of a farm, you’d be doing a wonderful thing in helping to support the small farm community. I talked to a local farm family who beamed about recent weddings they hosted, how their teams helped set up tents in cleared, non-grazing fields, strung lights along their barns, and offered steep discounts on their own organic crops for the caterer’s use. Couples further supported them by offering the farm’s own organic honey pots as favors, and place setting cards were attached to farm-grown apples and pears.

If you wish to find a family farm, visit www.localharvest.org, and call or visit to ask about private events held on their grounds during the different seasons. Expect the farm to enforce rules about off-limits areas and their animal residents’ quiet confinement, but you’ll find these friendly folks to be quite accommodating about helping you plan your wedding in their wide open spaces and rustic places.

If you love the idea of unique settings like the farm, the art gallery or the museum, but not for your wedding…they could be the home to your engagement party, bridal shower or rehearsal dinner. Smaller-scale celebrations may be better for more intimate settings.

What are your ‘write-ins’ for unique wedding locales? We’d love to hear your ideas, or stories about your wedding.

10 Questions to Ask When Selecting a Wedding Venue – Part 2

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Check out Part 1 of Michelle’s series on 10 Quetions to Ask When Selecting a Wedding Venue, too!

6. How many bathrooms do you have? You may laugh that this question made my Top 10, but it becomes serious when a space you rented only has one bathroom for 250 guests and brings in port-a-potties for the guys! You also need to check the condition of the bathrooms. Is there a sewage smell? Do the toilets flush properly?
7. How many hours does the facility rental cover? This is an important question because there have been a number of times that my clients were told they had eight hours of rental time. But before they hired me for my day-of coordinating they set their actual ceremony and reception time to use six of those hours. You need to make sure you allot time for setting up and cleaning up as well. The average ceremony/reception lasts four hours. I have found that three hours is enough time for set-up (even if it is pretty elaborate), and an hour is enough time for clean-up. A lot of places will allow you to buy additional hours, but be sure to ask about that and the costs if you want a longer-than-average party.
8. How many events do you contract for a day? The last thing you want to feel on your wedding day is rushed. You are already packing in a mani/pedi, hair styling, and makeup application into this one day. Why add the stress of having to be out of a facility precisely at 4 p.m because they have another event scheduled for the evening? In my 15 years in the event industry I have found that the stress level of all parties involved is reduced by half at venues that only host one event per day. Anyway, all the attention should be on you, right?
9. What is the A/V capability of the space? Are there enough electrical outlets for all the vendors? Will too much power usage trip any breakers? You should especially ask this question if you are looking at historical buildings. I learned to ask these questions the hard way! I planned a 1,000-guest Christmas party that had booked a warehouse-type space in an old strip mall. There was heavy audio/visual involved, and we didn’t find out until we were setting up day-of that we needed a generator because the building could not support all the wattage. Yes, there was an additional cost for the generator, and who likes last minute expenses? No one.
10. Who is responsible for clean-up? In most cases YOU are! Another thing I have seen way too many times is the mother of the bride or groom and family cleaning up the venue in their formal outfits. They have had a very emotional day as well and should not have to worry about cleaning up a venue. I make sure that the caterers that I suggest are full-service and will have staff to stay with me through clean-up. Ask if there are Dumpsters on site or if the trash must be hauled away. Again, I make sure that my caterers are aware of this policy for all of my events because I am not taking 10 bags of trash in my car! Be sure to read the venue policies to know exactly what you are responsible for. If there is nothing documented you should still ask. Many of the places  I have worked will offer clean-up at an additional cost. Even I offer clean-up at an additional cost. Do not assume that this is just going to get done!

Whew! I know it is a lot of information to absorb but these are all necessary questions that you must ask to plan a hassle-free wedding. Be sure to tune in for the next article in my Vendor Selection series: 10 Questions to Ask a Caterer.

10 Questions to Ask when Selecting a Venue – Part One

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You have a realistic budget in place so now it’s time to visit wedding facilities and select the one of your dreams! Although you have done a ton of research by this point you need to know the questions to ask when selecting your dream location (or you could be shelling out a lot more money come wedding day!) Here are 10 of the most important questions that I ask venue representatives when researching venues for my clients:

Can the venue accommodate both a ceremony and a reception? 75 percent of my  clients choose to have their ceremony and reception at the same location. Sometimes they have already contracted a venue and they hire me for day-of services. There are a number of historical mansions in Austin, Texas, where space is limited and we actually have to do a room flip. That usually takes additional planning and extra labor, which translates to extra costs. If you are planning your own wedding and you must do a flip, here are some tips:

  • Ask the facility representative if they have staff that will do a flip from ceremony to reception for you, and if they do, ask if there an additional cost.
  • If there is only a manager on duty working the day of your wedding they will normally not move furniture, assist with décor set-up, etc. You will need to assign a team of people to execute the flip. Give them each specific tasks. Do not delegate members of your wedding party or parents for this task as they will be taking pictures with you after the ceremony.
  • When creating your timeline for the day, add 30 minutes to an hour for a cocktail hour. It will allow time for the flip to take place without guests milling about.
  • Room-flip tasks include: moving tables into the reception space for seating; placing chairs around the tables; dropping linens; building and/or placing the centerpieces; making sure room lighting is set.

How many guests can the space accommodate comfortably? I recently worked a wedding where the 300 guests completely maxed out the space. There was only room for seating tables and chairs, nothing else. Things like buffet tables, cake tables, a dance floor, and musicians have a “footprint” and will eat into your space quickly. We had to do two room flips for that wedding; one from ceremony to dinner and then one from dinner to dancing. Ask for a floorplan of the space and ask the venue representative to help you plan your layout to make sure everything will fit.

Does the venue have in-house catering and/or will they allow outside caterers to work your event? This is a biggie. Hotels and country clubs usually discount or even waive their room fees altogether because they have food and beverage minimums. They normally do not allow outside catering, and per person costs start at $50 a person inclusive. You can save a lot of money by selecting a wedding facility that allows you to bring in a licensed caterer. Be sure to ask this question before you even start the tour. It is hard to walk away from a place you can’t afford after you have already fallen in love with it.

Can you bring in your own alcohol? This can save you even more money.

Do you have tables and chairs or do I have to rent them? If so, do you charge an additional fee to use them or are they included in the cost of the venue?  This can actually be an item that tips the scale from one venue to the next if they have furniture and include it or not. Rentals are a big wedding expense. Ask to see them to check the condition. I’ve had surprises before of damaged or dirty furniture which took extra time and cost supplementing and cleaning.

Wedding Ceremonies: The Great Outdoors

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When the weather turns nice, ceremonies head outdoors!

Let’s face it: Few of us live in climates where it’s pleasant to be in full, formal dress at 5 o’clock in the evening in the middle of July. Heat, moisture, and mosquitoes plague the prettiest times of night – the magical time that photographers refer to as the “gloaming” hour. When I see photos of ceremonies set in lonely fields with the light from a thousand lanterns illuminating the dusk, all I can think is, “How many bugs are biting those guests?” But as fall arrives and drives back the heat, the moisture recedes and the insects stay away. Then all the gorgeous outside options become more than possible – they become pleasant!

I love using natural settings for inspiration. Here in Florida we are surrounded by palm trees. Find the biggest cluster of palm trees and get married in front of them! Their height adds a regal touch to even the most casual affair.

Four-post canopies, often called chuppahs, are so beautiful. Why not make them even more special by creating a ceremony in the round? Position the chuppah in the center and create four seating areas with aisles separating each section. Bridemaids can walk down one aisle, groomsmen down another, family down the third, and the bride gets her own. Talk about showstopping!

Outside ceremonies are a great time to re-think the same old items. Place a new slant on lanterns by hanging them above your guests instead of over the altar. Bring church pews outside; put them on the lawn or in the sand for a fresh look. Bringing indoor items outside is a hot wedding trend right now; try book shelves or a mantle for a chic altar in the grass.

Now that it’s cooler outside have fun with your outdoor ceremonies. Guests will want to arrive early and linger as twilight fades. Get creative and make your wedding worth their while!

Late-Night Wedding Treats and “Truckies”

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I have a confession to make: I am a foodie. I have always liked the idea of candy bars as wedding favors, but I am absolutely in LOVE with late-night treats being served to guests as a way to revamp and refuel their appetites for just a few more sets on the dance floor! If you think back to your single days, before you met the love of your life, you probably spent evenings out with the girls (or boys) dancing the night away and always worked up an appetite. (Well, at least I did!).  Evenings ended at the nearest diner or fast-food restaurant, and if we were at the beach then it was a late-night stop at the pizza shop! Should your big party be any different? Well, maybe a little. You can serve your favorite late-night snacks or treats in style before sending guests on their way (or to the after party of the after party!) So it’s been decided: You’re going to find the way to your guests’ hearts through their tummies, but where do you start? Check out these fun late-night snacks and food trends I’ve lined up for you!

How about servers donning white gloves, holding endless trays of shooters filled with sea-salt-and-peppered French fries with ketchup, mini grilled-cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, or milk and cookies? I also can’t shake the idea of mini pizzas, empanadas, pulled-pork sandwiches, tacos, sliders or mac-n-cheese cups. Or how about bite-sized pancakes drizzled with syrup to delight those taste buds?

Photo Courtesy of Blaine and Bethany Photography

Interested in bringing in some local flavor and saving some dough in the meantime? Talk to your caterer about having your favorite pies delivered from the local pizzeria or have Chinese takeout containers filled with your favorite noodles. Want to find the way to my heart? Consider ordering off the dollar menu from McDonald’s and serve trays of McDoubles and their World Famous Fries. Want to take it to the next level? Consider having the wrappers or takeout boxes secured with a sticker that includes your wedding monogram, wedding date, or theme from your big day. That way you know that when your guest throws away your favor it’s just going to be the wrapper. This is a sure way to put a few bucks back in your pocket!

If you want to show some love to your favorite city consider dishing out its famous fare! Philadelphia – Herrs potato chips, Tastycakes, soft pretzels, or cheesesteaks. Cincinnati – chili. Maine – lobster rolls. Chicago – deep-dish pizzas. I think you know where I’m going with this!

Photo Courtesy of Beaux Arts Photographie

You want more? There are always food trucks, and let’s not forget about ice-cream trucks. Being centrally located to four major cities – Baltimore, Philadelphia, D.C., and New York – I am lucky to be able to enjoy tons of food trucks and the so-called new “truckie” conventions! There is something for everyone and every taste – Thai, Chinese, Pizza, Mexican, Caribbean, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, and even gourmet desserts. If you are in the Philly area, then check out Guapos Tacos, Sugar Philly, Cucina Zapata, Sweet Box, and Gigi and Big R. Want to do a little homework? Check out the Best-of-the-Best from the First Annual Vendy Awards from Philadelphia this past July.

I love this fun food trend, but I’ll warn you to expect to dig a little deeper in your pocket as it can typically run you about $10 to $15 a guest to do food this way, not including permits, etc. Want a sample before you dish out the big bucks? Look for the next “truckie” convention coming to a city near you!

Hurricane- and Storm-Proofing Your Wedding

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There’s only one thing that wedding planners can’t control at your wedding, and that’s the weather. Sometimes I wish I had a button that would make the skies clear up and the sun shine through the clouds, but that’s not the case! I’ve been a wedding planner for the past 11 years, and this year has been the first one in my career that I’ve had to face a hurricane. Thank goodness I did not have a wedding planned for the weekend that Hurricane Irene reached Puerto Rico. Instead, I was staying at one of my favorite resorts for some much-needed R&R with some friends that flew in from Massachusetts.

This is where I saw El Conquistador Resort, located in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, perform its contingency plan to protect their guests and property from the hurricane. Everyone, including the general manager, was committed to the security and safety of the guests. Boats were secured on the dock and outdoor furniture that could turn into a potential hazard once the winds picked up was stored safely away. The hotel staff transformed the main lobby into a lounge for guests to mingle and chat. A conference room was turned into a movie theater with a popcorn machine and some crafting tables for guests with kids. Luckily, no one was getting married that weekend, but I began to wonder what the procedure was when such occurrences arise.

According to the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), hurricane season is officially from June 1 to November 30. There’s a “very peaked season from August to October, ” and the pinnacle of hurricane season is early to mid-September. Thus, six months out of the year are considered hurricane season in the Atlantic.

Destination weddings always call for a Plan B. I figured that even if there was inclement weather, Plan B would be utilized, but I wasn’t sure when the hotel would cancel or postpone the wedding. I interviewed Yajaira Hernandez, the catering manager at El Conquistador Resort, and she explained the steps the hotel takes in order to continue with a wedding celebration. The weather call for hurricanes is made much earlier than with typical rain forecasts. Once Plan B is chosen the hotel notifies the couple and asks if all guests are on the property or if there are some who have had flights cancelled. If any flights are cancelled the couple may choose to postpone the wedding until the weather clears and guests arrive. The hotel does not charge any fees for postponing the wedding or for guests who arrive on a date later than expected because of adverse weather conditions.

I always advise my clients to buy wedding insurance when planning a destination wedding and to choose a resort that has hurricane guarantees. For some brides their wedding is not only an investment but years of saving money to have what they’ve envisioned since they were little girls. Why not buy wedding insurance? For just a couple of hundred dollars you can get a policy that can give you peace of mind.

I researched and found The Wedding Protector Plan®, which is offered by Travelers Insurance. This plan makes a distinction between a rainy day and truly severe or catastrophic weather, such as a hurricane. If catastrophic weather causes you to cancel or postpone your wedding, the insurer will reimburse you for non-recoverable expenses. While many other event-insurance providers have high deductibles, The Wedding Protector Plan® has no deductible with their liability insurance coverage.

What Wedding Insurance Policies Typically Cover
(Be sure to read the fine print of your policy to make sure they cover these things!)

  • Weather: Your policy should cover the cost of rescheduling if your celebration has to be postponed because of rain or other bad weather.
  • Illness or Injury: The expenses involved with that postponement are covered if essential people get sick or injured and cause the wedding to be postponed.
  • A Missing Officiant: You’ll recoup some of your costs if your minister, justice of the peace, rabbi or other celebrant should be a no-show.
  • Missing Vendors: Similarly, you’ll recover some costs and possibly the costs of rescheduling the whole thing if your caterer, florist, photographer, or other key vendor is missing in action.
  • Your Location: Your wedding-insurance policy can cover damage to the site by fire, electrical or mechanical problems, or a company going out of business, all of which may cause you to lose money or reschedule if your ceremony and reception sites don’t already carry their own insurance.

How to Beat the Summer Heat at Your Wedding

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Summer has finally arrived! With temperatures reaching triple digits in some areas I thought I’d share a few great tips on how to beat the summer heat. Of course being indoors for portions of your wedding is the best way to do so. If your wedding is planned for outdoors, however, here are a few suggestions on keeping your guests cool.

When meeting at your wedding venue ask the coordinator {or the resident} where the
natural shade will be at the time of your ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception, and
utilize those spaces. Naturally shaded areas will be much cooler than a tented area,
which can sometimes hold in the heat. Most venue coordinators have noted where the
shade will be at various times of the day and year.

Your ceremony is likely to be held at the hottest point in the day. Offering your
guests chilled, rolled towels {which can be passed butler style or placed at the
back of the ceremony just as guests begin to arrive}, and a fresh iced water or
lemonade upon arrival is a great way to greet and keep them cool throughout the
ceremony. Choosing programs that double as fans is always a nice touch as well.
And, if the area where your ceremony takes place is not shaded, offering parasols
will help.

You can also consider serving chilled appetizers and side dishes with dinner to keep
it fresh and light. Consider chilled soup shooters at your cocktail hour and a
chilled veggie salad rather than steamed veggies with dinner. And, if you’d like to
keep things fun and cool, you may want to serve ice-cream sandwiches in lieu of
cake! But most important, keep those cool drinks flowing, and make sure
you’ve got plenty of water and ice on hand!

Cheers to a fabulous summer wedding!