To already be sick of trying to organise a wedding venue

[LadyOfTheCanyon]

The shine is well and truly off the engagement, I can tell you!

Trying to winkle prices out of venues is a blood/stone interaction.

I just don't understand why more places don't just have a " here's what we cost to hire / here's a £ per head menu" section on their website. It would stop me wasting their time - I'm ringing people only to be told there's a £5K venue hire. Had I known that in the first place, I wouldn't have bothered! I can't be alone in this, surely?

How many people faced with that would just say " Oh, okay!"

Instead you have to go through the rigmarole of them sending you a cutesy PDF brochure that say things like " Eat, drink and be married!" WHICH ALSO DON'T HAVE PRICES ON, so you have to call them back again.

It's a good thing I love him.

You should use a free venue finding agency - there are absolutely hundreds of them

You tell them exactly what you want, then they look around all the venues and come back with a cost proposal. You usually get a discount too cos they have the relationship, plus it doesn’t cost you anything as the venue gives them a % of the cost instead.

Absolutely hassle free.

I organised a family party and got £5k off the £20k bill by using one.

A quick trip to the registrar's office followed by a lovely meal with family and friends at a restaurant would solve all your problems. That's what my husband and I did and I think it's one of the best decisions we've ever made. Saved our sanity and a bloody fortune.

*@ShirleyPhallus
*
Can I ask who you used? That sounds great.

Aquamarine

We are looking at that option but dear god do they try and fleece you for the extras!

most venues (eg castles, stately homes, orangeries etc) will have a venue hire plus per-head price; it's to stop tightarse couples trying to cut the cost by only feeding half their guests, for example, and it helps keep the 'per head' looking low.

Write your brief, and email it to all of the potentials. Remember to state:

how many people to eat & whether sit down or finger food
drinks requirements (including pre-drinks and 'picture taking' drinks)

most venues get 100s of enquiries a day, so sending a brochure just sorts the wheat from the chaff. Have fun, and congratulations!

Hi OP,

After booking my venue I realised that if you contact the registrar / on their website they should have a list of venues they are licensed for. I remember thinking if I ever did this again I'd just go through the list to narrow it down before asking for quotes and options, but hopefully wouldn't ever need to.

After my first venue burned down a few months beforehand, I was glad I'd thought about it.
Also another lesson - pay for insurance if you are thinking about spending a lot on the event. It was worth it in my case!

Beetroot - that is a canny lesson learned. Thank you! How awful for you though - how long before your wedding did the venue burn down??

It was several months beforehand so we luckily had time to find another venue. Thankfully my husband and I (and our guests) had a better time at the second venue than we would have had at the first!