In general is it cheaper to have a reception at a hall?

Heather6483 · May 2011

Or have it on someone's property and have everything brought in? Catered, liquor, decorations, band, bathrooms... EVERYTHING ? for about 250 people in the summer in NJ??

caseyandlizzie · May 2011

I think it really depends on your area. I would post this on your local board (look to the left and click on the "Local Wedding Boards" link to figure out how much venues and rental companies run in your area.

I know here there are several venues that offer all-inclusive deals where everything from linens to centerpieces to food and bar are included in the price. But, you can also do things on the cheap and if you do host at someones house have less expensive food and can get alcohol a LOT cheaper than you would pay at a venue.

ETA: We had thought abuot having our wedding on someones property and found a venue that basically would have cost us about the same. Yes we didn't get the exact feel we wanted on our day, but it was worth it to not have to deal with the stress of dealing with the logistics of everything.

jessicabessica · May 2011

Like caseyandlizzie said, there can be big differences in food and alcohol prices. Especially alcohol. Restaurants are sometimes marking up wine by a ginormous amount. Our venue is an inn, and we are stuck with providing alcohol at the same cost to us as they charge patrons in their restaurant. I think the amount you can save on alcohol really depends on the liquor laws in your state and whether you have any venue options that would allow you to purchase your own alcohol (and potentially whether you are allowed to return unopened bottles/cases in your state).

caseyandlizzie · May 2011

Also like jessica said, some venues may allow you to bring in your own food and beverage which would cut down costs a lot.

NOLAbridealmost · May 2011

Just to put your ENTIRE party needs at someone's private property into perspective, chew on this: it was 310 dollars for me to rent 61 chairs for our ceremony (2 bucks a chair plus a delivery fee for pick up after 5:00 PM). And that's just chairs. We originally wanted 6 outdoor lights in addition to the chairs but that put the cost of the chairs and lights at 850. (170 for the lights, and an ADDITIONAL fee for pick up after 9:00 PM). Not worth it. We cut the lighting.

If I also needed linens, tables, restrooms, lighting, dishes, silverware etc. I am sure it would have easily been 1000 dollars. And that's before the food, drinks, etc. I would think really carefully before going the private route because party rentals get super expensive really fast.

(Sorry, I just learned the price of the chairs 2 days ago and still am in sticker shock).

jessicabessica · May 2011

I reread your post...250 people is a lot of people to be in charge of every last detail yourself. Would you hire a wedding planner if you didn't go with a venue that had a planner on staff (my venue has one, and her assistance is part of our package)? It would be worth a fair amount of money to me to not be the one ultimately responsible for making sure that a party for 250 people went off without a hitch, from chair rentals to having enough food to making sure no one passed out from heat stroke to having enough bathrooms.

Another potential cost is liability insurance. Many venues have it themselves, if you had it at a private property, you'd have to get a rider or figure out what you were going to do.

sklink0486 · May 2011

Reception halls and outdoor receptions actually cost more than you might think. Unless you have a lot of cheap resources at your disposal, costs can add up quickly. Packages at venues or hotels are generally decently priced and can actually cost you the same as doing something like what your talking about with that large of a guest list. The only place I see you saving money is on alcohol. But if you have it outdoors, you will have to rent EVERYTHING like others posted. I had a friend that decided to do an outdoor reception because she thought it would be cheaper, but their budget has ballooned after having to rent the tent, lighting, tables and chairs, linens, plates, silverware, and glasses, as well as a port-a-potty (yes, a port-a-potty) because there will be too many people trecking through their family members' house otherwise. As for the reception hall, in general it seems like a good idea, but the ones in my area (and I live in a pretty cheap area) cost anywhere from $2,000-$5,000 just to rent the space, tables, chairs, and maybe some white linens. They require you to hire a security guard since there will be alcohol there.

There's not anything wrong with these 2 types of weddings, but since you're asking, I just wanted to share my experiences when I started researching these options as well and my friend's experience. Good luck to you whatever you decide!

marinabreeze · May 2011

I think it really depends on what's in your area. But I will share my experiences so far.

My FI and I initially planned to have our ceremony and reception on FFIL's farm. However, the cost of tenting, tables and chairs, linens, dinnerware, catering, portapotties, possibly a generator or some kind of electrical feed, and so on so forth made the cost absolutely ridiculous. And it didn't help that FFIL lives in the middle of nowhere, which would make logistics doubly difficult.

We decided to go ahead and get married in our current city. What we have ended up going with is a ceremony site at a city park, and our reception at a banquet hall owned by the county park district. The nice thing is that we don't have to pay separate rental, just for the catering and bar. It runs about $31/pp, but it includes basic beer/wine/soda bar with servers, a full-on buffet dinner, linens, tables, and chairs. They set up and tear down everything. And the nice part is that since it's owned by the park district, they do not charge nor accept gratuity, so we don't have to worry about having to add on another 20-26 percent to our bill. For us, it comes out a lot cheaper than doing it at the private residence.

It may be worth it to look into meeting halls, community centers, and the local park services (among other possibilities) to see what's available. Some nice venues may be available that, with everything combined, could come out cheaper than at a residence or a DIY hall.

KarenLM · May 2011

Didn't think of the insurance issue at first either. But my SIL had an 80th b-day party for my MIL. An elderly lady fell and hit her head in the bathroom. Ambulance came to take her away for care. My SIL's home owner's insurance had to cover all medical bills for this. Something to consider

In general is it cheaper to have a reception at a hall?

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