General Venue Questions

MichelleAG05 · September 2011

Does it typically work out to be cheaper or more expensive to do a church/hotel reception compared to an all-in-one facility like Ashton Gardens?

Do the majority of wedding venues offer cheaper rates on holiday weekends, or just hotels?

Are there any other BYOB places in Tarrant County besides Northeast Wedding Chapel?

MarieSD · September 2011

1 - I don't know of a price difference between the two, actually. I looked at a few hotels, but they were out of our budget because of their food and beverage minimums (some were 10k for a Saturday night -- our entire wedding budget at the time!) A lot of the all-inclusive wedding venues that do everything for you also tend to be more expensive. Basically, just watch the places that have food & beverage minimums and make sure you intend to spend that much. But I know some knotties have had very reasonably-priced weddings at venues I thought were out of my budget (hotels and golf clubs) so it just depends which one you find.

I had our wedding at our church and our reception at a BYOB facility in downtown Fort Worth (the YWCA) and that was the cheapest option for us. We saved a ton by bringing in our own liquor. We ended up going with an expensive caterer anyway, so we didn't save as much on that as we could have.

2 -- I never heard of holiday weekend discounts, so I'm no help there.

3 -- I had my RD (which was actually bigger than my reception -- long story there!) at 809 at Vickery, which is a BYOB location in Fort Worth. I already mentioned that my reception was at the YWCA. Both are for a smaller guest list (140 max).

I also liked T&P Station in Fort Worth. It can accommodate a very big guest list.

I also toured (and liked) Fort Worth Community Arts Center. If you like the artsy idea, another knottie used Artspace 111 in Fort Worth.

A friend of mine had her reception at Times Ten Cellar (the one in Fort Worth).

fallbride1109 · September 2011

In answer to your first question, the ceremony costs at an all-inclusive facility such as a hotel are usually fairly minimal--it's the reception that is expensive. So you don't necessarily save that much by having the ceremony at a church. But you would need to price it out to be sure. I believe our hotel ended up waiving our ceremony room fee entirely.

professorscience · September 2011

For the ceremony at the church, it really depends on the church. We are members of our church and still have to pay around a thousand dollars when all is said and done. Some churches (especially smaller ones with family connections) will allow you to get married there for free.

I would think holiday weekends would cost more, not less, because they would be popular wedding days. If you want cheaper, go for a Friday or Sunday.

angelsong21 · September 2011

The cost comparison on all-inclusive venues vs. church/hotel varies. It depends on the facilities involed and what their rental fees and food/bev minimums are. ProfessorScience brings a good point to the table -- my parents' church would have cost us around $1,000 as well and my mom is the head of greeting there and has been for years. No break in the price at all for that. The hotels I looked at had VERY high food/bev minimums so that was a no-go for us. We went with an all-inclusive facility and it was less expense than any hotel/church combo or DIY facility and rentals that we looked at (for what we wanted -- full meal, plenty of food, not fajitas/BEP/etc). It really just depends. Make an Excel spreadsheet and write down all the costs associated with each venue you have in mind and compare that way.

Holiday weekends are never cheaper at all-inclusive venues...at least not in my experience. It did not cost us any more or less than a normal Friday evening wedding at our venue and we are getting married on Memorial Day weekend next year.

I can't answer your question regarding BYOB facilities in Tarrant Co. but my friend had her wedding at NE Wedding Chapel and loved it.

LoverBean27 · September 2011

1. I found that most places are close in cost because of food bev min on saturdays. Sundays places can be cheaper, like Ashton Gardens. Hotels I found to be expensive generaly all the time, like someone said, because of food beverage min

2. Everywhere we looked, holidays we ridiculously more expensive. Certain months too, that are popular

3. no help there

juliebug1997 · September 2011

I do have a friend whose daughter just got married on Labor Day and the wedding actually was cheaper.

MichelleAG05 · September 2011

Great ideas! I love using Excel (already started the guest list in Excel), so I'll be sure to compile everything there.

I'm looking at NE Wedding Chapel and also T&P Station/FW Presbyterian Church. Our invite list is currently around 240 people, so we'll have almost 200 guests unless we cut it down.

The Omni Hotel in FW told me that holiday weekends were cheaper and 2 of the places I got quotes from referred to "special holiday pricing". I'm not sure if that would mean more or less in their case, but Omni stated that they normally drop prices on Easter, 4th of July, etc because otherwise the rooms don't get booked. I haven't gotten any quotes from them yet though because I need to pick a date first!

fallbride1109 · September 2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_texas-dallas-ft-worth_general-venue-questions?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:102Discussion:36cbf025-fe1d-48e2-8546-cff95a826bafPost:7c87a1bd-e281-4e4d-9212-b10a9d350ef3">Re: General Venue Questions</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm looking at NE Wedding Chapel and also T&P Station/FW Presbyterian Church. Our invite list is currently around 240 people, so we'll have almost 200 guests unless we cut it down. Posted by MichelleAG05[/QUOTE]

Just thought I'd share this info. that is in our vendor site:
<div id="I159" class="Text_Default" style="display:block;"><div id="I159_sys_txt" class="sys_txt" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;">
Venue Name: Northeast Wedding Chapel 
<span style="background-color:transparent;margin:0px;outline-width:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">Location: Hurst/Bedford
<span style="background-color:transparent;margin:0px;outline-width:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">Capacity: 200 (chapel and reception hall, though 200 in reception means no room for dance floor unless some tables are outside)
<span style="background-color:transparent;margin:0px;outline-width:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">Outdoor ceremony option: No
Price: Including tax, deposit, security, bartender fee: $3900
<span style="background-color:transparent;margin:0px;outline-width:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">DIY: Price includes table/chair setup and choice in black/brown linens. All other decor is DIY. No restrictions on catering.
Exclusions: No liquor allowed
<span style="background-color:transparent;margin:0px;outline-width:0px;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">Notes: They host multiple weddings in one weekend and receptions can only be 3 hrs long. </div></div>

MichelleAG05 · September 2011

Thanks stephie - I had seen that before and then completely forgotten about it. I will keep the outside tables thing in mind when I visit today.

fallbride1109 · September 2011

Yeah and another thing to think about is how many guests a venue can comfortably hold. My venue claimed it could put 180 in the ballroom and there was no freaking way that would have been possible and the guests been able to move around freely--the max was probably more like 130.

MichelleAG05 · September 2011

Piazza told me yesterday their "max" was 275 but that their comfortable max is 225. Maybe that should be updated on the sticky venue page!

MichelleAG05 · September 2011

I'm guessing that I should not be considering a venue if their rental charge is 1/3 of my entire budget? =\ Pretty sure I know the answer, I'm just really struggling to find a venue that I like that is in our budget and has any dates in March available.

aeliza06 · September 2011

I agree completely with what angelsong said: The cost comparison on all-inclusive venues vs. church/hotel varies. It depends on the facilities involed and what their rental fees and food/bev minimums are. ProfessorScience brings a good point to the table -- my parents' church would have cost us around $1,000 as well and my mom is the head of greeting there and has been for years. No break in the price at all for that. The hotels I looked at had VERY high food/bev minimums so that was a no-go for us. We went with an all-inclusive facility and it was less expense than any hotel/church combo or DIY facility and rentals that we looked at (for what we wanted -- full meal, plenty of food, not fajitas/BEP/etc).

One of the bigger things you need to consider is what do you want most (i.e. does photography matter more to you or is the food more important?) Then make a budget, I found the tool on the knot to be really helpful- it helps you see how much you really are spending (excel spreadsheets are a dream too!). Then decide whether you want to do things yourself or have a venue that takes care of everything for you.

General Venue Questions

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