AW: Ceremony Site Questions

nataliet02

Hey all this weekend FI and I are heading to Vegas to look at the chapels and I have a list of questions (length of ceremony, vendors allowed, fam can take pics, and so on) but was wondering, for those who have already gotten married in LV, what are other important questions to ask when we visit? I want to get as much done while we are there since we don't get to take too much time off work, I want to cover as much as I can while we are there and at least get some of the important questions out of the way. TIA!

vegasgroom

If you look at a chapel where you're required to use their photographer, get a very detailed price list of everything they offer, especialy digital copies.  Many strip resorts use a particular photography company where their prices for covering your ceremony seem like a high but tolerable price, until you find out their prints are very expensive and a CD/DVD of your images averages $800+ per hour of photography shot, quickly making it very expensive.

If you're looking at the Venetian and want to use third parties, they are one of the most strict, on paper, although resort security doesn't typically enforce those rules; i.e. their official stance is no photographer or videographer other than their own is permitted on any Venetian-operated area of the property, including the mall, the grounds and even private ballrooms.  I haven't heard of them enforcing that outside of the chapel so far but I'm dreading the day someone posts on here that their wedding day was ruined by security kicking their photographer off the grounds.

Unless you definitely want a chapel, don't forget that you don't necessarily have to have one.  There are many great officiants in Vegas that will come marry you wherever you want, such as a nice restaurant, Red Rock Canyon, on a helicopter in the Grand Canyon, in a huge suite that can double as your reception location so no one even has to walk elsewhere, etc.

If you want to wedding stalk at Mandalay, https://webcasting.cashmanpro.com/mb/index.cfm will let you get a feel for some of the officiants they use and locations they offer such as Valley of the Falls, etc.

That's what I could think of off the top of my head.

queenklm33

Take lots of pictures of the chapels because they will all blend together at the end of your trip and you may not remember what features were in what chapel.

vegasgroom

If you have a smart phone, Google Docs spreadsheet makes keeping track of everything you see and visit very easy too if your fiance is going to be involved in the planning.  I created a spreadsheet that I then shared with my wife so the two of us could edit it from anywhere at any time via computer or phone and the other would see whatever had been added.  In some cases we went to the same venue at a different time if I was looking at something else that she didn't care about seeing, so it made it really easy to track everything without someone having to type a bunch of notes into a computer later to merge it all.

wallacje

Ditto PP, make sure you find out what's included in each package, how much time is allowed for pictures after the ceremony is over, ask about pricing for flowers, if you can use outside vendors at all, types of ceremonies, if the extra ( sand ceremony, jumping broom, etc) are extra.

Think that's all I have for now. Happy Planning!!

sduran80

Ask about bringing in your own items, such as unity candles, flowers, etc. and see if they have any restrictions regarding outside things (perhaps they don't allow silk flowers). Make sure you know exactly what will be there (and what will not), i.e., don't assume they'll have an aisle runner provided for you just b/c it was in someone's picture.

Also (a problem I had when planning my CA wedding) ask about minimum expenditures for receptions.  If you have a larger party it shouldn't matter, but if your guest count is low (or your budget is tight), minimums can bite you in the booty!

Have a great trip!