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Affordable Venue (All included)

cg112013cg112013 member
First Anniversary First Comment
in Pennsylvania-Pittsburgh
My fiancé and I are definitely in need of some help. We have begun looking into venues and we are running into some trouble with how pricey everything is within the Pittsburgh area. We are planning to have about 215 people for our wedding and trying to budget for about a $15,000 wedding. We don't mind spending $65 or so per plate as long as it includes pretty much everything. We both have hectic work schedules and would love a place that can really do most of the work for us. We just recently looked into the Crystal Room at the Days Inn in Butler, and the room was gorgeous (+ it included everything!!), but we were concerned because the hotel itself got pretty bad reviews. The hotel looked somewhat outdated and run down which made us think otherwise since we will be having a lot of people coming in from out of town since my fiancé's family is from Erie. Therefore, we need a spot that has a nearby hotel or is at a hotel. Please help with some suggestions! We were getting so excited for all this and then ended up getting more frustrated while searching for our venues :(
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Re: Affordable Venue (All included)

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    alm199alm199 member
    First Anniversary Name Dropper 5 Love Its First Comment
    I was in my best friend's wedding at the Crystal Room in June. The room was beautiful, the food was delicious and the coordinators did a great job on everything but like you said, the hotel, aside from the bar and breakfast room is extremely outdated. We stayed there for two nights and hated it! They don't air condition the hallways so the rooms never cool down enough to sleep comfortably and the hotel was dirty and infested with stink bugs. They put handicapped guests on the second floor with no elevator and told them there was no way they could be moved. They also told guests calling to book that they were completely booked when there were still supposed to be rooms open in the block set aside for the wedding. On top of that, they have nearly doubled their wedding prices in the past year.
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    jenn77bjenn77b member
    First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    Are you looking in the north of Pittsburgh?  Or anywhere in Pittsburgh? 
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    VickiK17VickiK17 member
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Comment
    We had our reception at the Crowne Plaza in the South Hills. I would HIGHLY reccomend them, the coordinator Kelli will make your life so easy! Everything is included, including centerpieces, cake, and linens (unless you want something outside of the "package" then it is extra), and the food is awesome! I believe they have a $15,000 minimum to spend so they should be right around your budget. The ballroom is beautiful and the hotel was very nice and comfortable and they even gave us a room to get ready in in the morning of the wedding. The only con is that breakfast is not included, you have to pay for it but it is very good.
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    cg112013cg112013 member
    First Anniversary First Comment

    Thanks for the responses! Alm199, that was definitely our concern with the Days Inn location. We thought about sucking it up for the price and how gorgeous the room is, but my fiancé does not want is family staying in crappy rooms. We are looking for more north of Pittsburgh, but if the place is well worth the travel then we would go into the city or maybe slightly south.

     

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    csuavecsuave member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper

    My friend had her wedding at the Days Inn Butler about 3 years ago.  I didn't hear anyone say anything negative about it.  I stayed over night but I don't remember the room very well so it must not have been bad if it didn't make a lasting impression.  I liked going to the bar after to continue partying and dancing and everyone had fun at the free breakfast the next morning.

    At least you have it as a point of comparison with the other places you will consider.

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    csuavecsuave member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper

    Also as a budgeting tip, make sure you know if the pricing includes taxes and fees/gratuities.  Most of my quotes did not have it included.  If a $65 per plate quote doesn't have it included then the cost could go up to $84 per plate once you add on about 29% for these costs.  I had 7% tax and 22% gratuity.

    If you want to be around $65 per plate all in then you need to be more like $50 per plate before adding on the tax and gratuity.

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    cg112013cg112013 member
    First Anniversary First Comment

    Most of the places we have looked into have not included the taxes and gratuity. I guess all in all we would be spending like 18,000 because of taxes. We thought that was a reasonable budget, but we are running into a lot of places costing over 20,000 easily.

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    hannahj0hannahj0 member
    5 Love Its Name Dropper First Anniversary First Comment
    My fiancé is from Erie as well and my family from Lawrence County. When we were looking for a location we were thisclose to booking the Four Points Sheraton in Cranberry. They include everything! ..hor d'oeuvres, dinner, bar/drinks, cake, linens, centerpieces, and even complimentary hotel room for bride and groom. They of course have extra stuff you can add on as well. Their prices were around $60-$80 per guest, depending on what meal you wanted. Phillip is their wedding coordinator and he was great when we met with him.

    Now I wish I would have went with them since I'm trying to plan from out of town and trying to get different vendors for everything. I also went to a couple of weddings and from what I remember, the hotel itself was nice as well.
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    rcooper1102rcooper1102 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    We live in Cranberry … we're having ours at the Twelve Oaks Mansion on 228 (its technically in Mars) but it's just off the 79 exit… about 10 minutes straight down 228.  Anyways, don't know what day you are looking at or what time of the year, but we're doing a Friday night, so they discounted 15% for that & waived the room rental fees.  We're paying $73 a person for food, alcohol, tip, taxes.  Which isn't bad & it is GORGEOUS.  
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    giardinaforever10giardinaforever10 member
    First Comment

    Best kept secret. Well, no longer a secret I guess...

    Franzees/Javvys in Ambridge, PA

    The rooms are suitable for your needs, prices are MORE THAN REASONABLE, alcohol is inexpensive for high quality, and the food is good.

     

    Check it out :) honest.

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    megan8305megan8305 member
    Name Dropper 5 Love Its First Comment
    Check out 5he Chadwick 65 bucks a plate for food drinks and cake and they have a bus you can upgrade to take oot guset to a nearby hotel.
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    BB2B121314BB2B121314 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    We are having our wedding at the George Washington Hotel in Washington, PA.  There are definitely some packages available for your budget, the place is stunning and the coordinator is amazing.  Our wedding planning has been nothing but effortless!  Everything is included in the head price (including a shuttle to the hotel down the street if your wedding is big enough) however, the tax & tip was not so keep that in mind.  I am not sure when you are looking to get married, but I know The George Washington Hotel has been filling up pretty fast due to the new coordinator there, but I highly recommend checking them out!

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