Too Soon to Look at Venues??

Char91

Hi everyone, our wedding is 24 months out, and my fiance and I keep going back and forth on whether or not we should start looking at reception venues. He thinks starting now would not be a problem, but I wonder if maybe two years is waaayyy too early to start looking and possibly making a decision within the next few months. What do you ladies think, is deciding on a venue 18-20 months out too early or is that not a bad idea? We are having it on October 31st, and I'm assuming most people will not choose Halloween for a wedding, so pretty sure we will be safe with that date.

Maggie0829

Well it really depends on your area.  If your area is very popular for weddings (and fall weddings are becoming super popular as of late) then I don't think looking and deciding now is too soon at all.

If you are really set on October 31st being your wedding date then I think booking sooner rather then later is a good thing.  Now if you didn't care about the date and just wanted a time frame (like Sept-Nov) then waiting would be fine.

itzMS

Char91 said:

Hi everyone, our wedding is 24 months out, and my fiance and I keep going back and forth on whether or not we should start looking at reception venues. He thinks starting now would not be a problem, but I wonder if maybe two years is waaayyy too early to start looking and possibly making a decision within the next few months. What do you ladies think, is deciding on a venue 18-20 months out too early or is that not a bad idea? We are having it on October 31st, and I'm assuming most people will not choose Halloween for a wedding, so pretty sure we will be safe with that date.

To be honest, right NOW is kind of far out. Most venues won't even take appointments for tours or take deposits (due to pricing changes, etc)

Wait until spring (March/April) and start making the calls. Don't be surprised if some venues won't want to talk/meet with you until a few months after that, too!

doeydo

I would start looking.  

Char91

Yeah, I have heard of places not even wanting to book anything if the wedding is so far out, but the places that I have contacted so far have been willing to make appointments and even offered lower price incentives if we were to book early. I just have not visited any venues yet except for one, and it ended up not working out anyways.

ElcaB

I don't think there's a problem with looking. For me, finding the venue was the hardest part of planning thus far. It'll help give you an idea of what's available, and even if you do find something that won't book so far in advance, you can be first on the list when booking does become available. 

davisse3

While people may not be booking weddings on that date, if you are looking at venues that do other events, they WILL be booking halloween parties. 

If you do book this early, it wouldnt hurt to ask if they have plans to do any renovations or anything like that any time soon. We booked ours about 16 months in advance and they made some changes to venue in that that - they were all things we liked (like taking out hideous carpet to expose hardwood), but we didnt know any were happening and wouldve have maybe made a few different choices had we known. 

NYCBruin

davisse3 said:

While people may not be booking weddings on that date, if you are looking at venues that do other events, they WILL be booking halloween parties. 

If you do book this early, it wouldnt hurt to ask if they have plans to do any renovations or anything like that any time soon. We booked ours about 16 months in advance and they made some changes to venue in that that - they were all things we liked (like taking out hideous carpet to expose hardwood), but we didnt know any were happening and wouldve have maybe made a few different choices had we known. 

This.  You might actually have more competition than a random Friday/Saturday.

We booked our venue 17 months out and four out of the eight or so dates we were looking at were already booked.

Dreamergirl8812

I think it's a good idea to start looking and getting an idea of what you both want. Do you want a church for the ceremony? Your church or his? What kind of venue? Winery? Outdoors? Golf course? Banquet hall?

JMalettas

 I would start looking, & narrow it down to the top two or three. Do your research, and see which you like best! We started looking about 15 months before the wedding, found the one we *loved*, and booked within a week or two of when we started our search. This may sound early, but 15 months before the wedding date, there were only FIVE Saturday's left to choose from, for that year! Just make sure that when you're looking, you read through the contracts they have. You'd be surprised at what you may come across! :P

 Happy venue shopping!

 *J

ashleyep

NYCBruin said:

davisse3 said:

While people may not be booking weddings on that date, if you are looking at venues that do other events, they WILL be booking halloween parties. 

If you do book this early, it wouldnt hurt to ask if they have plans to do any renovations or anything like that any time soon. We booked ours about 16 months in advance and they made some changes to venue in that that - they were all things we liked (like taking out hideous carpet to expose hardwood), but we didnt know any were happening and wouldve have maybe made a few different choices had we known. 

This.  You might actually have more competition than a random Friday/Saturday.

We booked our venue 17 months out and four out of the eight or so dates we were looking at were already booked.

Me too. We booked in March for a summer 2014 wedding, and a lot of Saturdays were already booked.

It's worth a try. Worst case you can't book yet, but at least you've done some research.

nextrightthing

I don't think it is too early.  We booked in March 2012 for our December 2013 wedding.  I'm glad we did because we've been able to pay them off over time.  Just make sure you are sure about the venue, style, etc.

genmiguel94

Speaking from experience!!

We found our venue 3 days ago, our wedding is a year and a half away. Ill tell you the pros! The prices from 2013 aren't going to be the same as in 2015/2016. When you find a venue (most) you can lock the price! Ours cost about 1,500 and its absolutely breathtaking! in 2015 April (wedding date) it will cost 5,500. Another thing is you have the upper hand of choosing your date, the longer you take the more chances someone else got your date, which in this case I don't think you'll have a problem lol. Choices! since you have so much time until your wedding you have the privilege to shop around, not settle. I had a friend of mine that ended up settling because they waited 8 months before the wedding! As well as you have soooo much time to plan everything with ease and not work with a short deadline.

CONS! To be honest, the only con is the weird look and opinions people will give. "so soon", or "you never know what can happen"..... *mental note* "forgot you guys are paying for MY wedding!"

Honestly darling, to what you please! Its your wedding, your day and your venue. If you want to plan since now go ahead, which I highly recommend! But if you don't, then don't!

Maybe you can book your venue, and just hold of on the rest (floral, food, décor. ect) until its closer. GOOD LUCK!

 

 

futurepastorswife

We are getting married Oct 10 2015 and are starting to shop for venues now, because we can see what the grounds will look like in the fall - which is really important to us.  But won't make a final decision until Feb/Mar when we can put our deposit down.  Fall is a really popular time for our area, and I am sure that getting a block of rooms reserved for our guests is going to be difficult too, since football is HUGE in East Tenn.  

Have fun, enjoy it! 

I figure the longer I have to plan the less stressed I will be in the last few months before the wedding.

SP29

I think it's fine to start looking at possible venues and pricing options out.

One thing to consider is the price change- be sure if you book now that the venue will honour the current price and not change your price to reflect the new year. But yes, many venues may give you a cheaper price for booking early.

Halloween is an interesting date to consider. I never thought of it until a PP mentioned it, but if it's a banquet hall the date could get booked for a Halloween party, so in that case, it would be better to book sooner. 

My only hesitation would be that very early on in the wedding planning process you have so many ideas thrown at you that, at least for myself, I found some of my ideas on what is important and what isn't, changed. But, I will say that I did pick my venue first (1 year out, though I had be searching online for various venues for about 6 months prior, so I guess I did get an "early" start), and I have not regretted my decision. 

Besides, your food tasting and any decor choices won't happen until later, so if you have a clear picture of what you want and find a venue for a great price that you love, go for it. But I would make sure that you're looking around a few options before signing your money away to the first place that sounds good. You do have the time to shop around. 

CrystaH11

We booked our wedding venues August 2012 for our July 2014 wedding

kitty8403

Our first choice had every summer Saturday booked 12 months in advance.

mscearce

It is never too soon to look at venues.  Even though a venue may not book a wedding on Halloween, something could get booked for that date.. Also if you find a place you just love and know that is THE PLACE then pat yourself on the back cause that's one BIG thing checked off your list already and you will have longer to pay it off!

** I booked mine 17 months in advance, got the LAST weekend they had in May (which was the date we wanted...clearly meant to be haha) but we almost did not get it due to another bride wanting it to, thankfully for us she did not book