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Planning an East Coast Wedding From ALASKA....PLEASE HELP

KaylaAbbaKaylaAbba member
First Comment
in Wedding Reception Forum
Hi Guys - I am currently attempting to find a place for a reception of a maximum of 150 people, but i can't find a location! I'm trying to find a middle ground between MA and NJ...but that puts me in the middle of NYC....I'm not much of a city person, and the same can be said for both families....however i seem to have hit a block, because I'm fairly certion ive searched every inch of this cite! My wedding is a Bugdet wedding, so ive only been looking at places marked with an $-$$ sign next to it...advice?Please????
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Re: Planning an East Coast Wedding From ALASKA....PLEASE HELP

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    MrsGandthebeagMrsGandthebeag member
    5 Love Its Combo Breaker First Comment First Anniversary
    Is one family from MA and one from NJ?  You may need to just pick one state and go from there.  Maybe local friends/family could suggest venues.  Or, you may want to post on the MA/NJ/NY local boards and ask for recs.
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    amymaysaamymaysa
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    I think you will need to do some research and then plan a trip out here.

    You will need to settle on a place and then really research that area.
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    yoshijoyoshijo member
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    How much exactly is $$? I can suggest some venues in NJ if I know the price but I don't know any in NYC.
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    KaylaAbbaKaylaAbba member
    First Comment
    I've spent so much time searching, and i cant find any thing to describe what $-$$ is...:( i thought about doing it in just one state, but how do i pick which one? i know people on boths sides who can't afford to drive up and spend a weekend somewhere. My Mother-in-law to be is helping me, but she's choosing places above my budget (and i told her, which essentially stopped the help) lol
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    jessicabessicajessicabessica member
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    So you have family in NJ and in MA?  I would look in both areas.  Post on the local boards for those areas (on the left) with info about your budget, the number of guests, and what kind of thing you might be looking for in a venue.  

    As for picking a state, think about your VIPs.  Will they be able to attend in one state but not the other?  If so, I'd make the decision based on that.  Guests may not be able to afford it, or maybe they will save up for gas, stay with family or in a cheap hotel (you can help by picking a location with a lot of lodging options), or they will understand that you had to make a choice.  Since you live so far from all of these people, you could think about going to the other state after your wedding to informally spend time with those that couldn't attend the wedding, but I don't think you need to plan 2 parties or anything like that.  
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    MrsGandthebeagMrsGandthebeag member
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    Do you have an idea of how much you'd like to spend per person?  With open bar, my wedding was $120/person, but we also had a small guest list to make it within our budget.  
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    HobokensFuryHobokensFury member
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    I got married at The Graycliff in Moonachie, NJ. We had all the bells and whistles for about $125 pp.
     
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
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    I don't live in the area but one thing I would recommend that helped me a lot in the planning is finding a reception hall that provides more things. My reception hall is providing the cake & centerpieces. Granted the cake is a basic chocoalte/vanilla cake but will be pretty and center pieces are simple too. I just had to provide the candles for them. But what they offered saved me a huge amount over doing it totally myself. The great thing is that on the day of the wedding, I don't have to worry about centerpieces, cake being delivered or the food.

    If you pick an area where you have no family to help, you may want to consider finding a wedding planner, it will add some cost to your day, but remove a ton of stress so you can enjoy your day more.
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    mrsmtothekmrsmtothek member
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    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_planning-an-east-coast-wedding-from-alaskaplease-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:a3e80dde-8e44-4814-a64b-081462b95c4dPost:9fdd8d16-297f-457c-a5a7-7bab6fa4ea32">Re: Planning an East Coast Wedding From ALASKA....PLEASE HELP</a>:
    [QUOTE]We live in FL and got married in NJ. Our families are both in NY, but the venue we liked and could afford was in NJ, so that's where we got married. Some people complained, we polietly pointed out that we traveled further to our wedding than anyone else, and that it would have been easier for us to have it in FL. That shut down all of the complaints. Pick a place that you like and can afford, and everyone should be glad it is closer to them than Alaska. FWIW, we got married at the Lake Valhalla Club. It was gorgeous, priced well, and the service was awesome, which made planning from afar easier.
    Posted by Liatris2010[/QUOTE]
    Agreed. I'm also planning an east coast wedding from Texas, so I completely understand your pain on this one. My family is from DC and my fiance's family is from MA. Trying to pick a place inbetween is a nightmare. Just pick a place <strong>YOU</strong> love and can afford. Once you stop trying to compromise and focus on that, your search will become a lot easier. After I had narrowed down my venue search to 5 places, I planned a trip and visited each one. The best place for us was in MA. Was it coincidence? Yes. Was my family upset? Yes. They got over it once they understood it had nothing to do with location; it was based on the venue, food, price, and overall experience. Good luck!
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    Carolina85Carolina85
    First Comment
    I hear you, girl! I'm currently planning my Maine wedding from Idaho. My family lives in New England and his in Alabama, but since mine is significantly larger, we're having it in Maine. 
    Have you looked at venues in RI or CT? That's north/northeast of the middle but you may have better luck there than NYC.
    Also, as much as I love the Knot, the vendor list is NOT all inclusive by any means. I would start googling. Also, this is a bit time consuming, but try looking through the blogs of wedding photographers. They often have venue links listed. I don't think I found my venue on this site...? 
    Also, I love love love my venue, but I think I made more work for myself by choosing one that doesn't include anything. We get the property from Wed-Sunday but thats it. Catering, decorations, dj, etc I'm on my own with. I LOVE it, so I wouldn't change it, but maybe find one that is more all inclusive. 

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    GiaspoGiaspo member
    5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment Combo Breaker
    It sounds like you need some help from people here. What is your budget? You could post on the local boards to get different recommendations. Once you've narrowed down your state, you could talk with an affordable wedding planner. A 30 minute free phone consultation may give you some ideas. I found that all of the planners I initially met with were very forthcoming with information. They could also help advise which venues are easiest to travel to, have local hotels, etc Good luck.
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    KaylaAbbaKaylaAbba member
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    Well, my budget is around $15,000 fpr the wedding- and i can't expect any help from our families either. unfortunately, most of us are tight with cash these days. the other thing is, my father has a severe gluten allergy, so i have tio make sure that  wheat gets no where near his food....meaning my cake is gluten free. And im going to be driving to my wedding location from mayland, because thats where ill (hopefully) be stationed next. if im not, then I'll be flying to my own wedding location. that bieng said, i suppose family really has no right to complain, and since its a little more then a year out, they could start saving now. thanks guys...i was really torn about trying to have it in the middle ground, but im going to try to expand the search a little more. i've been searching a thousand websites with a fine tooth comb, and havent found much that i like with the limits ive placed. for those of you who got married in jersey, how high was the tax rate?? 
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    HobokensFuryHobokensFury member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Answer Name Dropper
    edited October 2012
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_planning-an-east-coast-wedding-from-alaskaplease-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:a3e80dde-8e44-4814-a64b-081462b95c4dPost:b85ed0e4-86b0-4673-9703-ba37518ee3df">Re: Planning an East Coast Wedding From ALASKA....PLEASE HELP</a>:
    [QUOTE]Well, my budget is around $15,000 fpr the wedding- and i can't expect any help from our families either. unfortunately, most of us are tight with cash these days. the other thing is, my father has a severe gluten allergy, so i have tio make sure that  wheat gets no where near his food....meaning my cake is gluten free. And im going to be driving to my wedding location from mayland, because thats where ill (hopefully) be stationed next. if im not, then I'll be flying to my own wedding location. that bieng said, i suppose family really has no right to complain, and since its a little more then a year out, they could start saving now. thanks guys...i was really torn about trying to have it in the middle ground, but im going to try to expand the search a little more. i've been searching a thousand websites with a fine tooth comb, and havent found much that i like with the limits ive placed. for those of you who got married in jersey,<strong> how high was the tax rate?? </strong>
    Posted by KaylaAbba[/QUOTE]

    DO you mean for a wedding? I paid 7% which is the standard sales tax in NJ. Also remember many venues charge and additional service fee of 18-20% for tips for the staff.
     
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    OliveOilsMomOliveOilsMom member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    OP - I'm not sure which part of NJ the family is from, but if it's South Jersey, you will get a better pp rate than North Jersey.  We have a lower cost of living than North Jersey, so things are cheaper in the Southern part of the state.

    I would try to stay out of big cities, for the same reasons.
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