In town or out of town wedding and reception

melsey62

Hi all, Like many people, my fiance and I are not originally from Chicago. We are going back and forth about whether to have the wedding and reception back in Chicago or here in Atlanta. The prices are much better here (Atlanta) but it's a matter of how many of our out of town relatives will travel to the south. Are any of you getting "push back" or pressure to have your event in your hometown (out of state) or are you finding most people are willing to travel? Thanks, Melanie

KRHagen

Our wedding is in WI....I think that pretty much says it all. Planning sucks long distance...

melsey62

Thanks for responding.  I kinda thought that would be the case.  By chance are you using a wedding coordinator in Wisconsin to help  you?

smynings_bride

We're from NY and PA and have 100 out of town guests and decided to have the wedding here and I'm very happy with the decision. I'm planning the wedding myself so it was easier to plan from here. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been to plan long distance. It turns out many of our OOT guests have someone in Atlanta that they've always wanted to visit so many are looking forward for the excuse to come here. We selected our venue because of its convenience for OOT guests. We would have liked something more rural like a vineyard but we didn't want guests to have to fly here and then travel more than 30 minutes. You have to assess your own situation--what support you will have long distance to plan, how often you can travel, the number and ages of the guests that would have to travel, etc.

melsey62

Ahh you mentioned a vineyard.  My fiance and I just went to a bridal event at Chateau Elan.  It was the first time for both of us and we fell in love with it!  My only concern is to have something for out of town guests to do while waiting for the wedding.  Not everyone is into golf or spa treatments.  One other venue I was considering was Crowne Plaza Ravinia in the Perimeter Mall area.  Lots do to there while waiting for a ceremony and reception and only a few minutes away from Buckhead. Thanks for sharing!

jinxed8605

Have it where you want. I am from Seattle and live in Georgia. All my family is in the northwest. I am having the wedding here because this is where I live. This is MY home.

ncohio

My family is mostly from Georgia, but I live in Ohio right now for graduate school.  Our wedding is in Atlanta, and we made a point to find a place that was both convenient for both parts of the family as well as the out of town guests from Ohio.  My sister got married in Florida a few years ago and a lot of the older relatives complained about having to travel.  She also had a lot more people RSVP no than would have if it were in-state.  I guess it depends on your guest list.  Some people may be more willing than others, but wherever you decide on, you might want to try to make it as convenient as possible for those who have to come from out of town.

JulesDiane

Melsey, We also looked at Chateau Elan. We decided it would be too much (and kind of unfair) for our out of town guests to have to fly in, and then drive over an hour or find some other way get up to Chateau Elan. And if they aren't interested in golf, spa, or tennis, they will be bored silly. Since we knew we were going to have a large number of guests from out of town, we decided to do it downtown where there was a great number of things to do within walking distance. Honestly, it made it easier for our in town guests too.. we got a kick a** rate at the Ritz downtown, and tons of our in town friends stayed there too so they didnt have to drive. and the downtown location was convenient for most others. Just my 2 cents.

melsey62

Hi JulesDiane, Thanks for the feedback.  Nice to know I was not the only one with the same misgivings as Chateau Elan.  BTW, I just had to peek at your wedding photos.  They are absolutely beautiful and you are gorgeous.  Congrats on the baby! I may check the Ritz.  I never considered them due to costs but sounds like they may be a place to investigate. Take care of yourself and I am sure you are going to be a great mom! Sincerely, Melanie  

JulesDiane

Melanie, Thanks! We actually had the wedding and ceremony at the aquarium, but when searching for hotel room blocks for our out of town guests, The Ritz gave us some of the best rates! And great service to boot! We ended up renting a conference room and set it up as a hospitality lounge for our guests. It gave them a place to unwind and get a snack or drink which we were able to buy from Costco and bring in. That was a nice amenity to have for our guests. I don't know about costs of actually having the reception at the hotel itself.. GL! Julie

atlcatlover

I live here but we had our wedding OOT so everyone had to travel.  Our guest list would have been way too big if we'd had it here which was why we went away.  In the end you will not make everyone happy so remember it is your wedding and you should have the wedding that you and FI want.  FWIW, we had 68 people travel to our wedding out of a guest list of 100 and we were very pleased with the turnout.  As pp said, some people will look for any reason to travel.

Deidra123

Most are willing to travel.  But it depends on the makeup of your guests.  Our makeup may be a different demographic than yours so pehaps you should consider that as well.

KRHagen

I am kind of using one.... I found her free on Craig's lists she was just staring out. I'm using her as a DOC and doing everything myself. I'm a control freak so it works. Most of the planning is done by flying home , over the phone and through email. Its not fun but it was better than having everyone complain about traveling.

melsey62

This is a great board.  Evenyone's advice so far has been quite helpful.  Really re-thinking Cheteau Elan.  I was taken in by it's setting.  I did find out though they are willing to shuttle people to Mall of Georgia for a small fee.

Chefysgirl

Most of out family lives in Michigan, Indiana, and North Carolina but we're having our wedding in Atlanta. We actually moved 2 weeks ago to Charlotte, NC so, we are now doing it from a far. From what I've heard, a lot of our guests are planning on coming. We are letting them know well in advance so they have time to plan and save. I'm trying the best I can to accommodate but only using hotels with shuttles and have my reception hall and church pretty close to each other. My dad had the biggest problem with having it so far away but everyone has pretty much been ok with the wedding being so far.

melsey62

Thanks!  We were planning to have the ceremony and reception in the same place to help with older relatives who don't get around so much.  Our thoughts were people would be willing to stay at the reception a little longer so they won't have to think about driving home or to another hotel. We've been fortunate so far that most hotels are more than happy to have both events...just means more moolah for them!   Melanie

rudywooten

I'm from Virginia, dh is from Louisiana. We compromised and had the wedding here in Atlanta. Some people still complained but I expected that. You can't please everyone. Good luck!