Who lives in a house like this? - The hunt for a reasonably priced, suitably cute venue

The hunt for a wedding venue is one of the first things you will take on as a newly engaged couple, and much like your choice of dress it can (and should be!) a very personal, ever-so-slightly stressful thing to do!

It is the first time you will realise just how much the wedding industry can afford to charge for things, and how much of a bank-balance changing experience weddings can turn out to be. Do your research however, and you can pay reasonably and sometimes under the odds:

• Get clued up. Avoid venues with marriage licenses if you can – you pay a LOT more for the privilege! Perhaps look to split your wedding- have the legal ceremony at a church or registry office, then move the reception to another venue. It is not uncommon to do this, and could save you a packet!

• Be flexible. Look for “off-peak”  and mid-week availability. Venues struggle to fill these slots and so often the price is a lot lower. And while venues vary in what they consider “peak” and “off-peak” months, even those months in the balance can often be found at a lower rate.

•  “Off-peak” doesn’t necessarily mean bad weather either!

Some places consider the months of April and May to be “off-peak” yet in the UK, for the last 3 years, April has been our hottest month, and statistically May is one of the better months for low rainfall.

• Have vision. Like houses, not all venues will start off looking the way you want them to – If you can try and see past the “decor” and more into the potential of the space, you’re on to a money-saving, self-personalised winner.

• Be prepared to look outside your “catchment” area. Especially if you live in one of the pricier counties / tourist hotspots. Moving just across the county border can often make a world of difference to venue costs. Be aware though that if you are planning on MARRYING in a different county, by law you need to reside there for a week before being allowed to apply and sign the papers in that county.

• How cheap is “cheap”? Be realistic. You can’t expect to find a “cheap” venue and have it comfortably house 300 guests. Overheads alone dictate this and when you consider food at price per head on top, your venue spend suddenly doesn’t look so realistically rosy...

• From trawling the internet, it seems the most common answer that people spend roughly between 45 – 50% of their budget on the venue alone. This often doesn’t include food either. When you consider this figure, and then that food / drinks need to come on top... you’ll probably want to keep this cost as low as you can get!

• Be clever and think outside the box. Your venue doesn’t need to be a building at all!- certainly not a “destination” one either (manor estates etc.) Nowadays you can plonk your party just about anywhere...

• Marquees / tipi’s / yurts
• Barns / stables / Boats / village halls / pubs
• Museums / Galleries / Wildlife centres / nature reserves / arboretums
• Theme parks / school fields / back garden...

And to prove doing your research pays off?

Our wedding venue was a steal. We had to travel slightly outside of our “catchment” and, as it doesn't have a wedding license, we married at a registry office but, (without food) we only paid £200!

We found a marquee in Summertown, Oxford able to comfortably hold up to 120 people, right on the river. The marquee is permanently up all year round and if used during the colder months, can be heated at no additional cost. It is an extension to the boathouse restaurant / main river punt station in Oxford, so there is a fair bit of traffic through here, but they were not disturbing in any way and if anything, made the experience more enjoyable! In a  scenic location, and a complete blank canvass, it was just the perfect venue for us.

Visit their website to see more: http://cherwellboathouse.co.uk/

Love,