Reception locations

kernanpn

Hi, I'm planning on getting married in the Outer Banks either this fall (October) or May 2013. I'm having a hard time finding venues for a ceremony/reception site. Any suggestions or ideas? We are having around 85 people and we are trying to keep the budget around $10K. I'm not sure if we can swing it, but I am up for any suggestions on venues or locations. My original idea was to rent a big beach house and get married and have the ceremony at the house. When I've looked at houses, I'm having a hard time picturing where to set everything up. Any suggestions or has anyone used a house to get married and have their reception at? It would be helpful if the rental properties showcased pictures of actual weddings and how they decorated for the event in designated "event homes." 

Thanks!

OBX2011

Hello & welcome!

You can definitely do 85 people with a $10K budget.  It's just a matter of choosing wisely and any DIY things you can do will save a lot of money as well.

At the top of the board is a sticky with a link to the OBX Wedding Assoc and there you can find a complete list of venues, caterers, officiants, photographers, etc.

A lot of the brides/grooms on here (myself included) looked into renting a beach home but keep in mind, that most "event homes" charge and additional fee on TOP of the deposit that is non-refundable and can range anywhere from $1,000-$2,500!!  Then you have to rent tables, chairs, this and that, etc etc.  I originally wanted to have our wedding at an event home until I saw some of the prices.  Now, that's not to say that it can't be done b/c we also have several brides/grooms that are in fact renting an event home.

Is there a particular part of the island that you would like to have your wedding at?  There are lots of choices:  The Hilton Pier House, Jeannette's Pier, 108 Budleigh (my venue and very popular choice), NC Aquarium, etc.

I would definitely look at the sticky and then call around and get some quotes.

One of other posters did rent a home (it wasn't event though since she only had 40 people) and she did a gorgeous set-up!  I am sure she will chime in shortly

Good luck to you and if there are any other questions you have, feel free to ask

hibiscus118

Hi there and welcome to the board!

I found the hardest part of wedding planning was actually choosing a venue.  We got married in the town of Hatteras, there isn't really any venues down there currently (although I hear they are building one?) so we went the event home route.  We originally wanted that anyways so it was no problem for us. 

I personally would suggest a planning trip if you can if you do go the event home route.  We were able to go into the homes on their turn days and look at them to see the layout.  This really helped us decide.  Some of those houses look great in photos, but they look terrible once you get in them.  At least that is how it was for me.  When we walked into the house we chose the first time, we knew it was the one and had a vision.  That's really true of any venue I feel, whether it's an event home or not.

We only had 45 guests and from the very start we knew we wanted a very casual reception.  We didn't rent a tent and just had the reception in the great room of the house overlooking the ocean.   So there were no extra costs associated with that.  We did pay a $1,000 non refundable fee to have the wedding there.  We also had a $1,000 security deposit that we DID get back. I just budgeted the event fee it into my max price we wanted to pay for the house and didn't think much about it after that.  I figured we were using this house as both the venue for the rehearsal dinner and the wedding, plus had 20 peope staying in it for the week.  So to me, the $5,100 that we paid for it was well worth it.  We could have gotten a house much cheaper.  In fact our back up one was about $1,500 cheaper, but we fell in love with our number 1 pick and it was worth it.

Let me know if you have more questions, I'd be happy to help.  There are also some pictures in my signature.  I just can't remember what I have on there of the actual setup.

jenncroft

I'm having my wedding and reception at Pelican Landing the rent for the home for 2 days was $3800, plus tax and a refundable security deposit (May, 4, 2013) and that included rental equipment for up to 150!! The owners of the house also own Coastal Provisions Market - so you have to use them as the caterers, but they have a menu that's really easy to work with to keep things in your budget!Good Luck!

littlemsmagic138

Yay! Another Pelican's Landing bride!! One thing you do have to be careful of is budgeting the tent, if you have one, they eat up a big chunk of change which can be a problem with event homes.

delilahjz

Hi!  I was in the same boat you were.  I did search after search and then one day... divine intervention.  Rendezvous House by Twiddy Realty is amazing.  It was the only house I could find that had a yard for a reception.  I am hopefully going to end up with 75 guest as that is the most I can fit in doors if it rains.  The one draw back is the house does not allow tents to be put up, but tents are not budget friendly anyway.  Definately look into it and good luck!

kernanpn

Thanks for all of the great ideas! I'm going to look into 108 Budleigh. I really like the idea that you get the place for the entire day. Tables and chairs are included in the price, correct? Is there anything else included?

s.cruz83

OBX when you used 108 Budleigh, what did you have to rent that the venue did not provide (plates, glasswear etc)?  Do you have any pictures of the reception that you share with the boards?  

keb2482

Kernanpn, Tables and chairs are included, as well as the half moon table for the cake.  The taller bistro tables for cocktail hour are not included but you can rent those from Shindigs (also owned by the owners of 108 Budleigh - their daughter actually).  Also if you rent your linens from Shindigs, you can just toss them in the corner of the room when you are done and the cleaners will take care of them.  Definitely make sure to tell Allison Fearing with Shindigs that this is your plan though.  If you use Ortega'z as your caterer (right across the alley from 108 Budleigh) they will include silverware and cloth napkins and plates at no charge (you can choose black or white on the napkins).  For me, also, using Ortega'z gives me peace of mind.  If they forget something, their restaurant is RIGHT there!    I also love their food.  They are a southwestern style food restaurant.  We are doing two fajita bars, fixings, chip/dips station, southwestern lasagna (delicious!), salad, and a few passed appetizers.  They do all kinds of food though, not just sw/mexican type food.

OBX2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina-outer-banks_reception-locations?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:598Discussion:67b3e176-29ab-458a-be74-1bc3eaf27375Post:6de6e677-9707-4b54-aef2-cf62367cbc2c">Re: Reception locations</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks for all of the great ideas! I'm going to look into 108 Budleigh. I really like the idea that you get the place for the entire day. Tables and chairs are included in the price, correct? Is there anything else included?
Posted by kernanpn[/QUOTE]

Like Keb mentioned, the gold chilvari  chairs and tables are included as well as the half moon table for your cake.  You can bring in your own caterer and you are also allowed to bring in your own alcohol. 

You would be responsible for linens, tableware, etc.

I have a lot of pics from our Sept wedding if you are interested in set-up :)

s.cruz83

I would love to see pictures of decorations/ the reception site if you or anyone else would allow me to see them.  I am very interested in 108 Budleigh and would love to see how others decorated. 

s.cruz83

Does anyone know if the Budleigh has air conditioning.  The FI is concerned bc of all of the fans.  

OBX2011

Wait...what fans??

There is A/C at Budleigh....it's a really nice venue and very sophisticated decor.  Even the bathrooms were pretty fancy, lol.  The owners have put a lot into the venue and it is very well maintained.

OBX2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina-outer-banks_reception-locations?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:598Discussion:67b3e176-29ab-458a-be74-1bc3eaf27375Post:8be97c05-7d1e-47b8-abdb-491ccecf5760">Re: Reception locations</a>:
[QUOTE]I would love to see pictures of decorations/ the reception site if you or anyone else would allow me to see them.  I am very interested in 108 Budleigh and would love to see how others decorated. 
Posted by s.cruz83[/QUOTE]

Send me a PM with your e-mail address.

I have pics of Budleigh when it's completely empty with no set-up at all and I also have pics with the set-up from our reception.