Planning an Outdoor Wedding

Re: Planning an Outdoor Wedding

• ILoveBeachMusic member

  

  January 2016

  Make sure you have a plan B for bad weather. Also, decent restroom facilities need to be available. In addition to bad weather, consider the need for air conditioning or heating if you are having a tent for the reception. The Bay area can have such iffy weather. Don't put your vision above the comfort of your guests is priority 1. My son was in an outdoor wedding October in the midwest. The first cold weekend that we had. The entire bridal party along with the guests were really cold and miserable. Don't do that to your guests. Too hot is just as bad as too cold.

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• Lala9414 member

  

  January 2016

  when having an outdoor wedding, always always ALWAYS have a plan B for weather. you could plan to have tents or find a venue that would have a space for you to move into in case of bad weather. some venues offer the option for either a small fee or you can try negotiating it into your contract with a venue! This should help since you are in the bay area, i know it can tend to get foggy and chilly so just keep it in mind
  

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• kvruns member

  

  February 2016

  As others said, having a Plan B for indoor option is important. Make sure you're planning  the wedding where typical temperatures or conditions will be bearable to guests; have fans/AC/heaters ready to go in case the temps are not like you expected but may not necessitate moving indoors. Is the area windy, if so be mindful of decorations or things on tables that could blow around.

  I also think if you're going to have an outdoor wedding you need to be someone who can be flexible and roll with the punches. I remember our venue telling us that a bride the last year freaked out because there was rain and it would have to be moved under cover - she hadn't mentally prepared herself for it despite it being an outdoor wedding. We lucked out and had awesome weather for ours, and the next day (when they had 2 weddings scheduled), it poured most of the day. I felt soo bad for those people because it was going to be miserable.

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• southernbelle0915 mod

  

  February 2016

  Have a Plan B. Have a Plan B. Have a Plan B... did I mention to have a Plan B?

  And your plan B isn't just for rain. It's for "too hot" "too cold" "too buggy" "too muddy", etc....

  Unless you are using a facility that handles all the vendors for you, you may want to consider a day of coordinator. Since outdoor wedding can tend to have more vendors (chair, tent, arch, tables, linens, decorator) than venues that include all that, it's helpful to have someone who can coordinate all of it so you don't have to.

  Privacy is another big one. If you are considering a public park or other public place, make sure you know if you can block it off from the public. If you can't, you need to consider the very real possibility of strangers crashing your wedding.

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• lnixon8 member

  

  February 2016

  I had an outdoor tented reception (with a back up plan for rain/heat). If it wasn't a gorgeous locations AND super important to my husband, I would have had it inside somewhere else.
  
  June in Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay- his family owns their own peninsula/lighthouse/2 story gazebo/family lodge so it really meant a lot to use but OMG was it annoying to plan. Especially the weeks leading up to the wedding, frantically checking the weather. I had a backup plan but that was more  dark log cabin than the light, coastal feel I was going for.
  
  idk how far along in your planning you are but the cost of renting tents, tables, chairs, linens, dance floors etc. adds up very quickly.

  
  
  

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• climbingsingle member

  

  February 2016

  As others have said, you need to have a back up plan, and not just for rain. You don't want your guests siting outside in any kind of extreme weather (heat or cold). 
  
  I had an outdoor ceremony that was accessible by a path, but was then on grass. I made sure to pass that info by word of mouth so that everyone was prepared. 

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